Biz Buzz: Convenience store opening 5th Idaho Falls location, includes soda and taco restaurant

Do you want to know what’s happening in the eastern Idaho business scene? We’ve got you covered. Here is a rundown of this week’s business news across the valley.

BIZ BUZZ

IDAHO FALLS

Good 2 Go opening 13th Idaho store with soda shop and taco restaurant

IDAHO FALLS – Fill your tank and satisfy your soda and taco craving at the same time.

Good 2 Go is opening its fifth Idaho Falls location at 4456 East 1st Street on Thursday. In addition to being the largest Good 2 Go store in the Gem State, District Manager Carey Grant tells EastIdahoNews.com it will also include a Rusty Taco Restaurant, which will open in mid-January, and a new drive-thru soda, coffee and treat franchise called Sips Crafts Drinks, which opens Friday.

“Sips is our version of Pick Me Up,” Grant says. “We hope it’s a big hit.”

There will also be an outside patio and place to order in the summertime while customers are gassing up their vehicles.

Sips offers a variety of flavored sodas, hot chocolate, coffee, cinnamon rolls, cookies and popcorn. The menu at Rusty Taco will include handmade and breakfast tacos, chips and guacamole, chips and salsa, and other sides, along with churros and dessert items.

There will be an official grand opening in the spring.

With Sips locations in Rigby and Rexburg, this will be the third Sips in eastern Idaho. It has been around for several years, but manager Tony Blakeslee helped rebrand the franchise.

“We closed the stores and rebuilt the program so it was easier (and more consistent). It’s a separate entity owned by Good 2 Go with its own staff,” Blakeslee says.

The Sips locations in Rigby and Rexburg are expected to reopen in the next few months once the Idaho Falls Sips is up and running.

Rusty Taco was founded by Rusty and Denise Fenton, and their partner Steve Dunn, according to its website. It launched in 2010 in Dallas. Blakeslee will oversee the Idaho Falls restaurant.

Construction on the new Good 2 Go has been in the works for about a year. With Thunder Ridge High School right around the corner, it will cater to the student population, which is one reason Grant says they chose this specific location.

RELATED | Second Good 2 Go store opening in Rigby next month

The new store will replace the Rigby location at 445 Farnsworth Way as the flagship store for the franchise. One reason for that is due to the restaurants that will be part of it. Another has to do with the size. It’s 6,000-square-feet and has an open, vaulted ceiling.

“This one has a bit more of the bells and whistles,” she says. “We are trying our self-service program here. A majority of our registers are self-served. We have soft-serve ice cream, and we have lots of promotions (for customers), like our loyalty program, which is available at other locations. We have lots of good, clean space we’re ready to offer the community.”

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Good 2 Go owns stores in Wyoming, Colorado, Utah, New Mexico, and Arizona. This is the company’s 74th location nationwide and 13th in Idaho. As the brand celebrates its 10th anniversary, there are plans to expand and improve in 2023.

Good 2 Go and the restaurants on 1st Street will be open seven days a week with varying hours. Good 2 Go will be open 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. Sips will be open 7:30 a.m. to 9 p.m. Monday through Saturday and 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Sunday. Hours for Rusty Taco will be determined as it gets closer to opening.

“We love being able to grow in the area where we began,” says Grant. “We’ve been working really hard to get it done. We like to take care of the communities that take care of us. We’re excited to get people in the door.”

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