Then and now: Taco Bell a mainstay in SLT

Fast food in South Lake Tahoe has been around for decades.

Taco Bell has had a presence in South Lake Tahoe for more than 40 years. Photos/Bill Kingman

South Lake Tahoe’s original Taco Bell opened in the late 1960s or early 1970s in an adobe brick with tile roof Spanish classic building. This is what most Taco Bells looked like at the time.

The original Taco Bell was destroyed in 2006 and rebuilt.

Nearly 40 years later, it was time for a new, larger Taco Bell. An effort was made to save as many trees as possible.

Same food, different physical look.

Reversing its footprint, now parking is at the left and Taco Bell is right behind the big front tree.

— Bill Kingman