Illinois taco shop goes viral after daughter wishes for more customers ahead of Christmas: 'Breaks my heart'
Taco-Bout-Joy’s, a Mexican restaurant in Glenview, Illinois, is reportedly getting swarms of customers after its empty shop went viral on TikTok
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}A small family-owned restaurant in Illinois is celebrating the surging demand they’re reportedly seeing after a TikTok video of their empty taco shop went viral.
Taco-Bout-Joy’s, a Mexican restaurant located at 909 Greenwood Road in Glenview, Illinois, an incorporated village located in Cook County, opened in September.
The restaurant reportedly struggled to get diners, according to TikTok videos the restaurant co-owner’s daughter, Isabel, shared in early December from the official Taco-Bout-Joy’s account.
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In a 10-second clip Isabel posted on Dec. 8, she panned the camera showing that the front of the restaurant was empty.
"It breaks my heart to see my mom watching the door everyday waiting for a customer to walk in," Isabel wrote in the video’s text overlay.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}She went on to caption the post, "I wish I could give her customers for Christmas."
Isabel’s wish was seemingly granted because the video garnered millions of views and likes in addition to tens of thousands of comments.
TikTok users near and far responded by sharing Isabel’s video and many documented their visit to Taco-Bout-Joy’s. Many of the TikTok videos showed a full restaurant with a long line.
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The #tacoboutjoys hashtag on TikTok has received over 14 million views while the original video has since received over 39.5 million views.
Customers who have stopped by in person have posted positive reviews on TikTok describing a full parking lot and delicious food.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Taco-Bout-Joy's menu (not pictured) includes birria tacos, a traditional Mexican dish that involves pan-frying taco tortillas. The dish is typically made with braised meat and cheese. (iStock)
Fox News Digital reached out to Taco-Bout-Joy’s for comment.
The restaurant’s follower count on TikTok has grown to 248,300.
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{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Customers who have left five-star reviews on Google noted that Taco-Bout-Joy’s replaced a pan-Asian restaurant that closed down after serving the Glenview residents for years.
A separate TikTok video posted on Friday, Dec. 9 by Isabel’s cousin, Jordyn, claimed Taco-Bout-Joy’s went from making $100 per day to $100 per order.
The video showed Taco-Bout-Joy’s co-owners – Joy Milan and Kack Keomanivong – and their restaurant crew tearing up as they counted their earnings.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}The first video Isabel posted to the Taco-Bout-Joy’s account commended her mother for putting $10 in the tip jar because she saw it was empty – despite her mother being the one who cooks.
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Isabel has since posted updates to TikTok showing footage of the busy kitchen.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}On Saturday, Dec. 10, Isabel thanked Taco-Bout-Joy’s TikTok followers and customers for their "local support" and asked for everyone’s patience as they try to grow their team to help with phone calls, cooking and completing mobile and walk-in orders.
"For a while, it was just my mom and I," Isabel said in her video. "I would recommend trying to order an hour ahead, though."
"We’re trying to catch up on everything," she continued.
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Isabel uploaded a short biographical video her cousin produced which detailed how Taco-Bout-Joy’s came to be.
Milan, formerly named Sisouphanh, is a Laotian refugee who married Alejandro of Morelia, Michoacán, Mexico, who immigrated to the U.S, according to the TikTok video.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Milan reportedly learned how to cook traditional Mexican cuisine from her mother-in-law.
Her niece, Jordyn, wrote that Milan connected with her mother-in-law through food since there was a language barrier.
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{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}"Now, she honors her by carrying on the same recipes in her cooking," Jordyn wrote in her TikTok video. "We all embrace our two cultures and food together as a family, and are so excited to be able to share that with you guys! Proud of my Lao-Mexican Family."