Craig, now the company's chairman, established The Taco Maker Inc., and the first restaurant opened in Puerto Rico in 1978, setting the stage for it to become the largest Mexican fast-food chain on the island. A year later, a shop opened in Wayne, N.J., and it remains the oldest operating outlet in the United States. By 1987, there were 100 outlets.

Jake's Over the Top opened its first outlet in 1993 in Ogden, and a big move for the company came four years later when a store in Kaysville opened with both Taco Maker and Jake's items on the menu. Many restaurants now feature all three Taco Maker Inc. concepts.

"We found that by putting them together, you appeal to a much broader market," Krolak said.

His own family is representative of that market. Krolak almost always goes for the Burrito Grande Platter, while his wife mostly opts for a taco salad. Their daughter? A Jake's burger. His wife finishes with a Mayan Jamma Juice, with Krolak and their daughter downing some ice cream.

"And it's all in one spot," Krolak said. "When we started the concept of putting the two together right here in Kaysville, it was at a time when there wasn't anybody else doing co-branding with their own brands. They usually were still separate companies focusing on what they did."

Iuni and Mapuana Tuli of Bountiful enjoy that menu variety. At the Centerville restaurant, they recently sampled Mexican offerings while two of their children preferred Jake's burgers, served "old school," according to Iuni Tuli, meaning inside cardboard vintage cars.

"We come here all the time," he said. "I prefer the food here more than McDonald's or Burger King because it comes out nice and hot. The order comes out really quick. We're not out here waiting for 10, 15 minutes for it. And the food is great."

Although one daughter often orders a bean burrito, the burgers-for-kids, Mexican-for-adults scenario is typical for their family. And it's the same for others, according to Kevin Moss, owner/operator of the Centerville restaurant.

"We see it all the time, especially in the summertime. In the winter, you'll see some burgers, but the majority is Taco Maker. But when summertime comes around, kids and tacos and Jake's Over the Top ice cream works real well," he said.

"With the exception of Japanese or Chinese, I think we have a good menu, especially if you have four or five family members. One wants the burgers, one wants the platter, one wants ice cream. It makes it real sweet for us as business owners to make that available."

The first of soon-to-be five Taco Makers in India opened this year in New Delhi. "Obviously, we've had to make a few adjustments to the menu, so we replaced beef with more chicken and lamb offerings, and we've tied it in with the ice cream, and it's packed," Krolak said. "The place is packed all the time."

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