What year did the first Taco Bell open?

The first Taco Bell opened in 1962.

Glen Bell opened the original Taco Bell restaurant in Downey, California, turning a small Southern California operation into one of the world’s best-known Mexican-inspired fast-food chains. The first location is commonly associated with the date March 21, 1962, and was known informally as “Numero Uno.”

The restaurant was not Bell’s first experience selling food. He had operated Bell’s Hamburgers beginning in 1948 and opened taco businesses, including Taco Tia, during the 1950s. Those earlier ventures helped him refine the hard-shell taco format that Taco Bell would popularize nationally. Another often-confused milestone is franchising: Kermit Becky became Taco Bell’s first franchisee in 1964, opening a restaurant in Torrance, California. Thus, 1962 refers to the first company Taco Bell location, not the first taco stand Bell ever operated.