The Journal. - The Taco Tuesday Fight Is Over

Episode Date: December 26, 2023

Earlier this year, we brought you the story of a New Jersey restaurant owner named Gregory Gregory, who took on Taco Bell over the trademark for "Taco Tuesday.” After months of negotiations, their fight is now over. Producer Rachel Humphreys spoke to Gregory Gregory to find out why. Further Listening: - Who Owns Taco Tuesday?  Further Reading: - The Long Fight Over ‘Taco Tuesday’  - The Battle for Taco Tuesday Gets Heated  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Hey, it's Ryan. And Kate. And Jess. You know what's behind me? Real Christmas presents. The studio is where I keep all the Christmas presents. What did you get for me? As if.

So, do you guys know why we're all here? Why, Ryan? Tell us. Because it's our final episode of the year. Yay! Yay! And it's been an amazing year. We've covered so many stories. We made three series.

And we made our 1,000th episode. And we asked all of you to tell us which have been your favorite episodes. And hundreds of you responded, which was also amazing. There was one episode that really stood out that people seem to like a lot, which is the one that you made, Jess, Who Owns Taco Tuesday? Yes, I absolutely love that story. It was one of my first episodes hosting the show. And it was about a restaurant in New Jersey that took on

Taco Bell in a fight over the trademark of the phrase Taco Tuesday. And it's a story that has everything. A David and Goliath plot, a man named Gregory Gregory, and of course, it has tacos. And today, Jess, you're going to bring us an update. Yes, I'm super excited about it because there have been developments in the saga. Ooh, yeah. Before you update us on that, can we wish everybody a happy new year? Okay, one, two, three. Happy new year!

And thank you all for listening to us in 2023. And thank you all for listening to us in 2023. We hope you'll be back with us when we begin another year of episodes on January 2nd, 2024. And so for the last time this year, welcome to The Journal, our show about money, business, and power. I'm Jessica Mendoza. I'm Jessica Mendoza. No, I'm Jessica Mendoza. I'm Jessica Mendoza. No, I'm Jessica Mendoza. It's Tuesday, December 26th.

Coming up on the show, why the fight over Taco Tuesday is over. Add Bacardi Rum. And there you have it. The perfect summer mix. Bacardi. Do what moves you. Live passionately. Drink responsibly. Copyright 2024. Bacardi, its trade dress and the bat device are trademarks of Bacardi and Company Limited. Rum 40% alcohol by volume.

It's Friday night at Gregory's restaurant and bar on the Jersey Shore. The place is filled with customers getting ready to brave the rain and enjoy the town Christmas parade. Our producer Rachel Humphries was there to meet the owner, Gregory Gregory. Hey, Gregory. Good to see you again. Gregory Gregory became something of a celebrity this year when he found himself in a standoff with Taco Bell over his trademark for the phrase Taco Tuesday.

Gregory Gregory has held it since 1982, after Taco Tuesday nights at his restaurant took off. I started, I was the first to have it. I mean, most of the people that had Taco Tuesday here never had a taco before in their life. And when they go other places, they don't recognize them. You know what I mean? And I'm proud of that. Rachel first spoke to Gregory Gregory back in June, when she visited his restaurant for Taco Tuesday.

I asked Rachel to remind us what this trademark tussle was all about. So this goes back to May when Taco Bell announced that they wanted to, quote, liberate the phrase Taco Tuesday. What that basically means is they wanted to cancel the trademark so that any business could use it. And that was a problem for Gregory's, who held the trademark in New Jersey, and also the taco chain Taco John's, who held it most everywhere else in the U.S. And I thought this was fascinating when we made our last episode, because I had never thought about the phrase Taco Tuesday being trademarked, because you see it everywhere.

Right, yeah. And that's because it has been everywhere. Restaurants aren't supposed to use it, but around the country, many places still do. And it's on Taco John's and Gregory's to tell them to stop. And when I spoke to Gregory Gregory in the summer, he told me he does actually send cease and desist letters to other businesses in New Jersey holding Taco Tuesday nights. in New Jersey holding Taco Tuesday nights. So Gregory Gregory was clearly up for defending his trademark. And I remember he also wasn't going to go down without a fight against Taco Bell.

So in June, when we reported the story, both Gregory Gregory and Taco Johns had said that they would, you know, that they would defend their trademarks. What was Gregory Gregory's next move? Well, Gregory Gregory is a man who knows an opportunity when he sees one. So his next move was to get the word out about this fight. And when I spoke to him a few weeks ago, he told me he'd had a very busy summer speaking to reporters. How many of these have you done now?

Interviews. This year? 30, maybe more I've been in the Washington Post, CNBC, CNN, Newsmax, ABC, CBS So you get the idea Gregory Gregory's fight against Taco Bell was big news And he says it bought him a lot of customers He even sold t-shirts which

said that Gregory's was the home of the original Taco Tuesday. But then in July, Taco John's decided to surrender their trademark. And Gregory Gregory was suddenly fighting Taco Bell on his own. I know it seemed real soon because even my attorney said, wow, what's that? Did you ever think at that point, oh, well, you know, they've given up, they've given it up, shouldn't I? Well, I hadn't heard from anybody. I hadn't heard from Taco Bell. So we thought, business as usual, we're just going to continue to do Taco Tuesday and have our trademark. And I figured we were alone with to continue to do Taco Tuesday and have our trademark. And I figured we were alone with the one state that we had, and we were happy with that.

And why did Taco John's give it up? Well, I contacted them, and they sent me a statement. And they told me that, quote, paying millions of dollars to lawyers to defend our mark just doesn't feel like the right thing to do. So they were out in the summer and Taco Bell actually celebrated canceling the trademark in 49 states with what else Jess, but tacos. Taco Bell handing out free tacos on Tuesdays this month in almost every state in the country except one.

I think they're going to be long lines. The offer isn't valid though in New Jersey except one. I think they're going to be long lines. The offer isn't valid, though, in New Jersey, because a small restaurant there still owns the trademark for Taco Tuesday in that state. Wait, okay, so they offered tacos everywhere except for New Jersey. That's right. But Gregory Gregory had a plan. He ran his own Taco Tuesday giveaway in September. And of course, he invited Taco Bell along to come to his restaurant and try his tacos. The gentleman.

And did Taco Bell oblige? No, but they and Gregory Gregory did start talking. And Gregory Gregory told me that one day he missed a call from none other than Taco Bell CEO Mark King. Because I'm a hard guy to get. I only work enough hours in a day to let me have some time off. And I called him back. And since he didn't know my number, he didn't pick up either. But I left him a message. I said, this is Gregory Gregory, and this is my one and only call to call this number to see if you want to talk to me. That's fine. If you don't, we're going to continue to be Taco Tuesday, and we are the home of the original Taco Tuesday. I hung up the phone, and 14 seconds later, the phone rang, and it was that gentleman. And he talked to me for a while and said, you know, we don't want to make this a belligerent thing,

you know, a big guy picking on a little guy, and we want to keep it, you know. So we talked for a while, we talked for a while. We didn't come to any resolutions or anything, and then he said it was really nice talking to you. And I said, it was nice talking to you. He said, I'll see you later. I said, I'll see you later, Goliath.

Oh, you actually, because you said to me before, you feel like this is a David and Goliath situation. Well, he laughed, I laughed, and then he said, see you later, David. See you later, Goliath. Wow. What a way to end a phone call. Truly. See you later, Goliath. Wow.

What a way to end a phone call. Truly. And that wasn't the only call. Gregory Gregory kept talking with Taco Bell into the fall. But by October, he realized they weren't going to back down and that they would take this to court. They said, let's get a resolution. And we were just about to move into the phase where the court was going to start the

cost list. And we decided, even if I win, I get nothing. What do you mean by that? I mean, if I won and they couldn't use the phrase Taco Tuesday, I'm not going to get any money I still got to pay my lawyers and if I lose I still get Taco Tuesday because everybody gets Taco Tuesday which is what Taco Bell have said all along is that they're quote liberating it liberating it and so we came together and said

okay, kumbaya I'm going to be the home of the original Taco Tuesday if you have a problem with me saying something like that, then let's get it out on the carpet right now. And everybody was in agreement. And I said, we agree. We'll surrender our trademark. So the fight is over.

We hear from Taco Bell next. Introducing TD Insurance for Business. We hear from Taco Bell next. a pet groomer, a contractor, or a consultant. You can get customized coverage for your business. Contact a licensed TD Insurance advisor to learn more. is literally the best day of my life on august 2nd what's with all the police trucks outside you know the butcher goes around just chopping people up comes a new m night shamalan experience the feds heard he's gonna be here today josh hartnett i'm in control and salika as lady raven this whole concert it's a trap trap directed by, directed by M. Night Shyamalan. Only in theaters August 2nd. So, you won. Taco Bell won. I would say we won, Jess. We won. We won. Everybody that makes and celebrates tacos won.

Taco Bell just had a small part to play. Taylor Montgomery is Taco Bell's chief marketing officer. Well, how does it feel, though, after all of that? Pretty surreal, honestly. We thought that this was going to be a road, Jess, honestly. The best things are never easy. We thought this was going to take some time. But I think what we learned was there's a lot of people that ultimately saw the light and agreed with us and did the right thing with us.

It's a free taco Tuesday. And you said that this took less time than you thought. How long were you expecting to be in this fight? We were ready to be in it for a couple of years, Jess. I think when we got into this, we didn't know how long it was we were going to take, and we were ready for it to really go the distance from a legal standpoint. And it all happened within three or four months after the campaign and the petition was filed. How much has this fight cost Taco Bell?

In terms of what? I mean, just did it cost money to launch this campaign to free the phrase? Yeah, we have a great legal team and set of resources at our disposal for sure. I won't disclose the exact amount, but I would say that we have to handle these things all the time on behalf of the brand. Would you say it was all worth it? Absolutely. Not even just for Taco Bell, but I think for us, this meant something deeper.

What could we as a brand humbly give back to everybody out there in food culture that sells tacos? And yeah, it was absolutely worth it for that. And I think it's the beginning of something really special to get more people across America eating more tacos, which is why we did it. Neither Taco Bell nor Gregory Gregory has disclosed if their arrangement involved any financial terms. So Gregory Gregory lost the trademark. Rachel, how does he feel about it? So Gregory Gregory lost the trademark. Rachel, how does he feel about it? Well, he told me that this has been a long fight for him. And I think he feels like he may have lost the trademark, but his business got a lot of publicity. And he had so much support from his

local community. And I actually got to see that for myself early this month when I watched him leading the Summers Point Christmas Parade. Now, Jess, I'm just going to set the scene a little. It was a very wet, cold night, not particularly festive weather, but people lined the streets and Gregory Gregory led a procession of floats and trucks and a marching band. Now, he does this every year leading the parade, except this year he did it with a colleague dressed as a taco. Ho, ho, ho! Ho, ho, ho!

Right, because even though Gregory Gregory cannot send those cease and desist letters anymore, he can parade a man dressed as a taco through the streets of Summers Point. Exactly. And people loved it. It's really clear how well liked Gregory Gregory and his business are in this town. And as I was running along trying to keep up with the parade, I stopped to ask people along the route about Gregory Gregory's Taco Tuesday fight this year. Here's Mary DeVray and Bob Doucet. He's the best. Yeah, he's the best. Couldn't be

a nicer man. And what did his tacos and his Taco Tuesday mean to the community? Oh, it's huge. He's been doing it for years. It's important for us. It's a get together every Tuesday night and Thursday night. And you go? You like the tacos? Yeah, we were just there the other night. We were just there on Tuesday. Do you ever eat at Taco Bell?

No. Actually, there's a Taco Bell right two streets down from where we live. We have never eaten there. It's been there for years. We only get the tacos over there. So, Rachel, is this a win for Gregory Gregory? I think in many ways it is. Gregory Gregory really took advantage of how much attention this fight brought his business. And he even told me that he was asked by Taco Bell to be in one of their commercials. Really? And what did he say? Is that happening?

to hear this, Jess, but I don't think Gregory Gregory is going to appear in a Taco Bell commercial anytime soon. He says he doesn't need any more publicity, but he says this fight has revitalized his Taco Tuesday nights. And as long as he can continue to say that he is the home of the original Taco Tuesday, he's happy. What are you going to trademark next? What's next for you? Oh, I don't know about a trademark, but I got a couple of things cooking, a couple of things cooking. A lot of people offer me different ideas once this started and some of them are written down and some of them I got in the old coconut, but there's something coming. What would your advice be to someone in a position similar to the one you've been in this year?

I'm going to tell you what my father told me when I first took over the business. I was running the bar downstairs and it was Taco Tuesday and it was like 1980 and we were packed. And a guy comes in, he says, pretty good business you got going on here. And I said, thank you. He said, well, enjoy it because I'm building a million dollar restaurant down on the bay and you'll be out of business in no time. I went home, said to my father, he was sitting there and I said, dad, I said, you're not going to believe this. I said, dad, this guy said he's going to build a million dollar restaurant and he's going

to put us out of business. And he said, boy, they've been putting us out of business for 40 years. You just keep your nose clean. You do your work. You worry about your business. Let them worry about their business. And that's what I recommend. You got somebody open up next door to you.

Just worry about your business. Don't worry about theirs. That's all for today. Taco Tuesday, December 26, 2023. The Journal is a co-production of Spotify and The Wall Street Journal. Laura Morris, Enrique Perez de la Rosa, Sarah Platt, Alan Rodriguez-Espinosa, Heather Rogers, Jonathan Sanders, Pierce Singhi, Jivika Verma, Lisa Wang, Catherine Whalen, Tatiana Zamis, and me, Jessica Mendoza. Our engineers are Griffin Tanner, Nathan Singapak, and Peter Leonard.

Our theme music is by So Wiley, remixed by Peter Leonard. Additional music this week from Peter Leonard. Fact-checking by Mary Mathis. Thanks for listening. We'll be back with a new episode on January 2nd. See you next year.