Tag: Taco Bell

Despite being alive through most of the decades, I don’t believe I’ve ever had any of the products on Taco Bell’s new Decades menu. However, now that I think about it, I didn’t get my first taste of Taco Bell until the early 90s, and back then, I stuck to the cheaper tacos and burritos. But now my taste buds can go back in time and experience what they missed.

Gordita Supreme (1990s)

This pretty much takes the guts on a Taco Supreme—seasoned beef, reduced fat sour cream, tomatoes, cheese, and lettuce—and stuffs it in a Gordita flatbread. While the flatbread does a better job of keeping in its filling than a crunchy taco shell or flour tortilla, its thickness makes most bites too bready. All the typical Taco Supreme flavors—seasoned beef, sour cream, and tomatoes—are noticeable, but they all get muted by the puffy Gordita. I don’t plan on eating this again in any future decades.

Purchased Price: $3.99
Rating: 5 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: 280 calories, 11 grams of fat, 4.5 grams of saturated fat, 25 milligrams of cholesterol, 560 milligrams of sodium, 31 grams of carbohydrates, 3 grams of fiber, 5 grams of sugar (including less than 1 gram of added sugar), 13 grams of protein.

Meximelt (1980s)

As you can see, my Meximelt was max-messy. That flour tortilla tried so hard to contain the seasoned beef, pico de gallo, and three cheese blend inside of it, but it was no match for the wet ingredients. Of course, your results may vary. To eat this without losing any of the filling, I had to wrap the soggy tortilla into a burrito.

Despite being a simple three-ingredient menu item, the Meximelt has a lot of flavor. I can imagine this is what a lettuce and sour cream-less Soft Taco Supreme tastes like. The lack of green leaves probably gives this more flavor than a Soft Taco Supreme, allowing the seasoned beef and pico de gallo to really stand out. Besides its messiness, my only other issue was the lack of cheesiness. However, this was my second favorite item on the Decades Menu.

I described this as a “simple three-ingredient menu item,” but it has a price that’s a bit expensive. If you want to experience a Meximelt, but for a cheaper price, just order a soft taco with no lettuce and add pico de gallo.

Purchased Price: $3.29
Rating: 7 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: 250 calories, 13 grams of fat, 7 grams of saturated fat, 40 milligrams of cholesterol, 720 milligrams of sodium, 21 grams of carbohydrates, 3 grams of fiber, 2 grams of sugar (including less than 1 gram of added sugar), 13 grams of protein.

Green Burrito (1970s)

The menu item born in the 70s features a flour tortilla stuffed with green sauce, refried beans, cheddar cheese, and onions. The emerald sauce has green chili, tomatillos, jalapeno peppers, and spices. If you’re like me and very familiar with Taco Bell’s regular Bean Burrito, you probably notice that this is similar, except the usual red sauce is swapped with a green one.

I don’t know if my taste buds are tired from eating the regular bean burrito so many times, but tasting the Green Burrito was a breath of fresh green air. I instantly thought this should be the default bean burrito for the next few decades, and it’s my favorite item on the Decades menu. The sauce gives the item a pleasant, peppery kick of flavor and a slight kick of heat. Also, it’s bolder than what the red sauce provides. With a regular bean burrito, the refried beans are most noticeable, but with this burrito, there is a better balance between the beans and the sauce.

However, I have an issue with its price. If it’s basically a regular bean burrito but with green sauce instead of red, why is it significantly more expensive? At my local Taco Bell, the difference is a dollar, and in other regions, it’s about 60 cents. Also, while messing around on the Taco Bell app, I found out I could order a regular bean burrito and customize it with green sauce for only 25 cents more. So, if you want to experience the Green Burrito, go that route.

Purchased Price: $2.99
Rating: 8 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: 370 calories, 10 grams of fat, 4.5 grams of saturated fat, 5 milligrams of cholesterol, 1040 milligrams of sodium, 55 grams of carbohydrates, 9 grams of fiber, 4 grams of sugar (including 3 grams of added sugar), and 13 grams of protein.

Tostada (1960s)

The Decades Menu’s oldest and most colorful member is also the blandest of the bunch. Piled on top of a corn tostada is a layer of refried beans topped with red sauce, lettuce, and cheddar cheese. While the toppings are piled high, it really needs something else to make it not taste so blah.

Despite having a droopy amount of red sauce, its flavor doesn’t come into play when eating this. Maybe the lettuce side salad on top mutes all the other ingredients. The only positive I can say about this is the corn tostada’s sturdiness. It didn’t fall apart while eating it. But overall, I can taste why it disappeared.

Purchased Price: $2.69
Rating: 4 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: 170 calories, 7 grams of fat, 2.5 grams of saturated fat, 5 milligrams of cholesterol, 420 milligrams of sodium, 20 grams of carbohydrates, 5 grams of fiber, less than 1 gram of sugar, and 6 grams of protein.

I was a little underwhelmed with Taco Bell’s Big Cheez-It Crunchwrap Supreme when it first came out earlier this year. The giant cracker that Taco Bell claimed was 16 times larger, cheesier, and crunchier than a regular Cheez-It wasn’t 16 times cheesier or crunchier, according to my mouth. It didn’t seem like it wasn’t even close to two times cheesier or crunchier.

But the Big Cheez-It Crunchwrap Supreme is back with Version 2.0, which comes with TWO Big Cheez-It Crackers, seasoned beef, nacho cheese sauce, lettuce, tomatoes, and sour cream in a flour tortilla. That second cracker adds a dollar to what the original version cost. So, does the second cracker make the Cheez-It more noticeable?

Yes, it does.

However, it didn’t have a Cheez-It flavor or crunch as big as the cracker itself. But it’s better than what was offered during the original release. With the first rollout, due to the cracker being pulverized with heat and moisture while trapped in a flour tortilla, its crunch was nonexistent with almost every bite. With this updated version, they’re still being pulverized in the tortilla, but having two crackers to support each other helps delay the inevitable sogginess. When I got to sink my teeth into it, the two crackers still had a slight crunch. It wasn’t there with every bite, maybe about half, but it was noticeable with more bites than I remember with Version 1.0. As for the Cheez-It flavor, it also got a boost from the second cracker, but not enough to make it seem like they were a headlining ingredient. With that said, the addition of the second cracker did make an improvement.

However, I don’t know much about Taco Bell engineering, but wouldn’t it have been better if the two crackers were sandwiching the other ingredients in the flour tortilla? The crackers would be the first thing the mouth experiences when taking a bite. Yes, there’s the flour tortilla, but its mild flavor wouldn’t get in the way of the crackers like all the other ingredients.

Maybe that’ll happen if there’s a Version 3.0.

Purchased Price: $6.49*
Rating: 7 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: 670 calories, 27 grams of fat, 9 grams of saturated fat, 30 milligrams of cholesterol, 1720 milligrams of sodium, 87 grams of carbohydrates, 7 grams of fiber, 7 grams of sugar (including 4 grams of added sugar), and 20 grams of protein.

*Because I live on a rock in the middle of the Pacific Ocean, things are a bit pricier here. You’ll probably pay less than I did.

Over the past few years, Taco Bell has reached out to sauce makers most have never heard of to feature their products on the fast food chain’s Nacho fries. Remember Yellowbird? How about TRUFF? Secret Aardvark? But for the latest, Taco Bell uses a sauce made in-house with its Jalapeño Ranch Nacho Fries.

The loaded spuds offering has seasoned beef, jalapeño ranch sauce, reduced fat sour cream, nacho cheese sauce, cheddar cheese, and pico de gallo on its Nacho Fries. There’s also a veggie version being advertised that swaps the seasoned beef with black beans.

The sauce du jour has a pleasant green color that makes it look like Taco Bell’s Avocado Verde Salsa, but it was not as tasty or spicy as the sauce that debuted with the chain’s Cantina Chicken Menu. I’m pretty sure I didn’t notice the jalapeño ranch because it was overwhelmed by the other gloopy condiments, the nacho cheese sauce and the reduced fat sour cream. At times, there was a minuscule level of heat, but for the most part it was tame.

I think my taste buds were more impressed with the addition of pico de gallo. It’s been on other limited-time Nacho Fries offerings, but this was the first time my mouth was experiencing it and I think it should be on all loaded Nacho Fries. Or I’ll just add it to whatever Taco Bell offers in the future since it’s so easy to customize via the app. The acidic punch from the tomatoes and the bite from the onions add a freshness that helps cut through the savoriness of all the sauces.

While I didn’t find the headlining sauce to be too noticeable, that doesn’t mean Taco Bell’s Jalapeño Ranch Nacho Fries are a complete fail. Yes, the combination of the seasoned beef, sour cream, and nacho cheese sauce makes these fries taste too similar to many other Taco Bell menu items. But overall, it tastes fine. Though, I’d recommend spending a little bit more to customize it with more jalapeño ranch.

Purchased Price: $5.99*
Rating: 6 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: 480 calories, 31 grams of fat, 6 grams of saturated fat, 0 grams of trans fat, 20 milligrams of cholesterol, 1080 milligrams of sodium, 41 grams of carbohydrates, 5 grams of fiber, 3 grams of sugar, and 9 grams of protein.

*Because I live on a rock in the middle of the Pacific Ocean, things are a bit pricier here. You’ll probably pay less than I did.

If you were to ask me what I thought was the best thing Taco Bell has ever done, I’d answer without hesitation: the Chalupa. There have been variations of the original, but rarely have they outshined the OG. When I went into the app to order, a pop-up informed me of the newest menu item: the Cheesy Street Chalupa. Originally a test menu item from October of 2023, the Cheesy Street Chalupas consist of smaller Chalupa shells stuffed with mozzarella and pepper jack cheese, either steak or Cantina Chicken, Jalapeño Ranch, fresh onions, and cilantro.

Ordering the item gets you two smaller Chalupas that I’d estimate are about half the size of a regular Chalupa but much more dense because they’re stuffed with cheese. Unfortunately, you cannot ask for one of each protein when ordering a pair. I get why (to keep the process easy for the employees), but for the sake of trying them, it would have been nice to mix and match. They come in branded, specialty packaging that helps to keep them from getting too messy in transit.

Starting with the Steak Cheesy Street Chalupa, I was impressed by its heft. Knowing it was smaller than the standard item, I worried it would also be less substantial. My first bite would prove that thought to be very wrong. The first flavor to hit was a familiar one of salty steak, followed by the brightness of the fresh onions and cilantro and the creaminess of the Jalapeño Ranch sauce. I could tell cheese was present between the shells, but it wasn’t strong enough to stand out. I was also (pleasantly) overwhelmed by the amount of bread in the bite.

I didn’t hate the Steak variety, but it didn’t wow me. The flavors all seemed to be working independently of one another and not creating a cohesive experience.

After a swig of Baja Blast, I tried the Cantina Chicken Cheesy Street Chalupa. The difference was like night and day. The flavor of the Cantina Chicken works so unbelievably well in this item. The roasted chicken works with the fresh onions, cilantro, and Jalapeño Ranch sauce to create what is probably the closest I’ve had to “authentic flavor” at Taco Bell. If I had to point to a negative, it would be the lack of pepper jack flavor in the cheese between the shells, but I don’t think it is missed much.

I would be failing you, dear reader, if I didn’t mention the bready nature of this item. While I loved it, some may not like the bread-to-toppings ratio. These items had an almost bao bun vibe in that the bread was very much a star.

The Taco Bell Cheesy Street Chalupas are a nice limited-time offering. While the Steak version didn’t quite meet my expectations, the Cantina Chicken knocked it out of the park. Both succeed in offering a new flavor profile to the menu and will (hopefully) lead to more uniquely flavored menu items. These little bread bombs are available for a limited time, so I would definitely recommend trying them while you can.

Purchased Price: $5.49 each
Rating: 7 out of 10 (Steak), 10 out of 10 (Cantina Chicken)
Nutrition Facts: Steak – 410 calories, 25 grams of total fat, 35 milligrams of cholesterol, 750 milligrams of sodium, 27 grams of total carbs, 3 grams of dietary fiber, 3 grams of total sugar, and 19 grams of protein.

Cantina Chicken – 410 calories, 25 grams of total fat, 40 milligrams of cholesterol, 670 milligrams of sodium, 28 grams of total carbs, 4 grams of dietary fiber, 3 grams of total sugar, and 19 grams of protein.