TOWN OF TONAWANDA, N.Y. (WKBW) — Louie's Footlong Hot Dogs, a community staple on Grand Island Boulevard in the Town of Tonawanda for more than 70 years, has closed.
The announcement was made in a post on its Facebook page earlier this week.
This is not the first time the restaurant has closed. In May 2021, owner Angelo Turco said they were having difficulty staffing the restaurant and it was proving to be too much. But in August 2021 plans were announced to reopen the restaurant in Spring 2022 with Turco's cousin Aaron LaMarca taking over day-to-day operations.
In the post earlier this week, Turco said:
"It is with mixed emotions … those of sadness, joy, thankfulness, love, appreciation, and accomplishment that I would like to THANK our wonderful customers and friends of not only WNY but throughout the country/world for supporting our family business for over 70 plus years!
A few years back I announced my retirement after working side by side with my family for almost 50 years.
After much thought, I have decided to sell the building and property that housed our family business since 1951.
At the time of my (and my sister Debbie’s) retirement, I sincerely thanked our loyal customers for the love and support they gave us throughout the years.
I feel in my heart it is worth saying it again.
A sincere, heartfelt thank you from my dad (Louis Turco) my mom (Josephine Turco), my brothers (Louis and George Turco) my sisters (Debbie and Maureen Turco) and our many cousins and staff members throughout the years that made our company and brand name a success and landmark in the Tonawanda’s and beyond.
Thank you WNY, it has been our pleasure serving you all these wonderful years!
We could have never taken this truly remarkable journey without you !!
We love you … and hopefully when you hear the name Louie’s Footlong Hot Dogs in the future, it brings a Big smile to your face, a tantalizing tickle to your taste buds, and warm feeling in your heart
Please don’t be sad the journey has come to an end, be happy that it happened!"
