The Taco Stop — a Fort Collins Mexican restaurant with late-night street food roots — made USA TODAY’s list of best restaurants in the country .
The USA TODAY Restaurants of the Year 2025 list , released today, features 44 restaurants that range from beloved holes-in-the-wall to fine-dining establishments.
“We always wanted to do our best, but we didn’t expect … this,” said Cesar Lopez, who started The Taco Stop with his wife, Berenice Longoria, shortly after the then-newlyweds moved to Fort Collins in 2012. In the 12 years since, the couple has grown their taco cart into a multifaceted business with a taco trailer, food truck and brick-and-mortar restaurant in Fort Collins’ Scotch Pines Village shopping center, 2601 S. Lemay Ave…