Taylors Falls, Minnesota · Founded 1956
A seasonal Taylors Falls carhop drive-in, opened in 1956 and still known for hand-packed burgers and homemade root beer in frosted mugs.
The Drive-In Restaurant opened in Taylors Falls on July 5, 1956, when Allan Anderson launched a roadside burger-and-root-beer stand. Under Wade and Carol Vitalis, who bought the business in 1988, it remains a seasonal carhop destination with hand-packed burgers, poodle-skirt servers, and homemade root beer served in frosted mugs.
Allan Anderson opens the drive-in restaurant in Taylors Falls.
Source: The Drive-In Restaurant, “About Us.”
Wade and Carol Vitalis purchase the Taylors Falls drive-in and begin operating it as a family business.
Source: The Drive-In Restaurant, “About Us.”; KARE 11, “KARE in the Air: The Drive In Restaurant in Taylors Falls,” 2021; Press Publications, “Historic Taylors Falls drive-in restaurant has local connections,” 2013.
The Vitalis family expands its drive-in operation to Grantsburg, Wisconsin.
Source: The Drive-In Restaurant, “About Us.”
Every claim gets rated. A business's own website can never earn "documented."
The reviewed sources support a July 5, 1956 opening by Allan Anderson, but none establishes that the restaurant was an A&W franchise or that it was Minnesota's first A&W drive-in. The claim should not be used in editorial copy without franchise records, contemporaneous advertising, or an authoritative A&W history source.
The business and Explore Minnesota describe homemade root beer, carhops, poodle skirts, and frosted mugs as part of the current experience. The sources support the feature as current service, but do not independently establish that every element has continued unchanged since 1956.
The restaurant’s history says Wade and Carol Vitalis bought the business in 1988 and operate it with their children. KARE 11 and local reporting also identify them as the owners.
The Taylors Falls Drive-In opened as Minnesota's first franchised A&W drive-in.
The restaurant’s 1956 opening by Allan Anderson is supported, but the reviewed sources do not establish an A&W franchise relationship or a Minnesota-first A&W designation.
Source: The Drive-In Restaurant, “About Us.”; Explore Minnesota, “The Drive-In.”
The present drive-in experience is unchanged from 1956.
The restaurant preserves a 1950s-style experience through carhops, poodle skirts, nostalgic music, hand-packed burgers, and homemade root beer, but the reviewed sources do not establish that every structure, menu item, or service practice remains unchanged from the original operation.
Source: The Drive-In Restaurant, “About Us.”
The Drive-In has endured by making its roadside format a continuing experience rather than a nostalgia display. The Vitalis family retained carhop service and classic drive-in rituals while adding family attractions and maintaining the kind of seasonal, local tradition that gives the St. Croix Valley repeat destinations.
Allan Anderson opened The Drive-In Restaurant in Taylors Falls on July 5, 1956. Wade and Carol Vitalis bought the business in 1988 and continued its carhop-drive-in format, serving hand-packed burgers and homemade root beer in frosted mugs. The restaurant remains a seasonal St. Croix Valley destination.
The Drive-In Restaurant is a long-running Minnesota carhop restaurant dating to 1956, but the reviewed evidence does not establish it as the state's oldest drive-in restaurant. Its often-repeated claim to have been Minnesota's first franchised A&W drive-in has not been verified with A&W franchise records or comparable statewide research.
Wade and Carol Vitalis own The Drive-In Restaurant in Taylors Falls. The business says they bought it in 1988 and operate it as a family business with their children; independent local and television coverage also identifies them as owners.
The Drive-In Restaurant operates seasonally. Explore Minnesota lists its usual season as mid-April through mid-October, but opening and closing dates can vary with weather and operations, so check the restaurant directly before visiting.
334 Bench St, Taylors Falls, MN 55084
(651) 465-6831
The Drive-In is seasonal, generally operating from mid-April through mid-October; carhop parking, patio dining, and nearby mini golf are available.