UPDATE: Happy Joe’s management announced today that Sunday was its final day of business.
A popular Galesburg pizza parlor for more than five decades has closed its doors.
Happy Joe’s Pizza & Ice Cream, 1727 N. Henderson St. announced via its Facebook page Monday morning that Sunday was its final day in business.
“We want to thank everybody who got a pizza yesterday! We went through our entire inventory. Unfortunately, that means yesterday was our last day of operation and we will not be opening today. We want to thank all of our guests and team members who have been with us over the years. We’ll miss serving up a Taco Joe to the Galesburg community.”
The restaurant broke the news of its closing on Sunday via Facebook.
WGIL reached out to Galesburg Happy Joe’s owner Leslie Boynton who declined to comment Sunday.
Happy Joe’s has existed in Galesburg since the mid 1970s. Originally a corporate-owned store, the Galesburg Happy Joe’s became a franchise-owned restaurant when Leslie Boynton took over Sept. 30, 2022.
Boynton assumed ownership of the Galesburg store at a time when the the Bettendorf, Iowa-based restaurant chain filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Delaware.
Happy Joe’s opened and operated for many years at 1964 N. Henderson St., next to Lieber’s Boxcar Express. In July 2015, Happy Joe’s moved across the street to 1727 N. Henderson St., site of the former Asian Buffet.
The Happy Joe’s in Kewanee permanently closed in May of this year, but locations still exist in the Quad Cities and Burlington, Iowa.
Happy Joe’s was founded in 1972 by Joe Whitty in Davenport, Iowa.
According to a recent story in restaurantnews.com, Happy Joe’s expanded its footprint with the signing of a 10-unit franchise deal, and two single unit franchises on August 26. The article noted tt’s the latest step in the company’s continued growth across the Southwest and Midwest – covering Arizona, Nevada, New Mexico, North Dakota, and Illinois – reflecting the nation’s continued demand for unique pizza options.