Alexander Alusheff

Lansing State Journal

LANSING - The man trying to reopen the iconic Mr. Taco is suing family members of a former business partner to keep the restaurant's recipes secret.

Bill Bonofiglo and his father, Eugene, who was one of the restaurant's founders, filed a temporary restraining order against Sheryl Eytcheson, Tracy Eytcheson and Jeffrey Cole on Aug. 3, restricting them from publishing or selling Mr. Taco trade secrets, which include the recipes and spice formulas.

A court date has been set for 9 a.m. Friday at the Ingham County Circuit Court with Judge Joyce Draganchuk, according to the order.

Sheryl Eytcheson is the widow of Mark Eytcheson, who founded Mr. Taco on Logan Street in Lansing on 1966 with Eugene Bonofiglo and Paul Coscarelli. Mark Eytcheson died in 2014. Tracy Eytcheson is his daughter.

Cole is a partner at the accounting firm Cole Gavlas in Portage. He was the accountant for Mr. Taco in the 1980's.

Over the last two years, the attorneys for Mr. Taco requested that Sheryl Eytcheson "return the copies of the recipes which she claimed to have and which she had expressed an interest in selling," according to an emailed statement from the law firm Fraser Trebilcock. The statement said Eytcheson has refused to return the copies of the recipes she claims to have.

Both Sheryl Eytcheson and Cole said they could not provide comment on the matter at this time.

Bill Bonofiglo, of Grand Rapids, could not be reached for comment. His attorneys confirmed he already owns the recipes.

"There have been a few long uphill sections that have slowed Mr. Taco down," Bill Bonofiglo wrote on a private Mr. Taco-focused Facebook page on Aug. 6. "One particular long uphill section is being crested as you read this because Mr. Taco has asked a Lansing law firm to take action and put the hill behind us permanently."

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At court, the Eytchesons and Cole will have to present their case as to why the court should not require them to turn over the recipes and spice mix formulas.

Bill Bonofiglo announced he had plans to bring back Mr. Taco in May 2015. He has been making repairs slowly to the former location at 3122 S. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd. since. Most noticeably, he has repainted the building and restored the sign.

A date for re-opening hasn’t been set.

Alexander Alusheff is a reporter for the Lansing State Journal. Contact him at (517) 388-5973 or aalusheff@lsj.com. Follow him on Twitter @alexalusheff.