I Ate Taco Bell And I Liked It
Today I did something weird. I ate at Taco Bell. Voluntarily. In fact, I've now done that twice within a week. Cue the hoots and hollers of derision from my peer group!
Why did I do it? Honestly because I was curious. The last time before this I'd eaten Taco Bell food was 7 years ago. I'd avoided Taco Bell for years because their food just wasn't good. Here in the Bay Area there are so many better choices for quick-service food, especially when I want something vaguely resembling Mexican food. Ages ago, though, I used to be a regular, eating at Taco Bell about once a week. Now, one of my bits of philosophy on disliking things is that it's totally okay if you don't like something and don't want to eat it (or use it, or wear it, etc.) but you should at least try it. I felt like after 7 years it was time to try Taco Bell again.
For those of you curling your lips and snarling, "Ewww!" ask yourself what was the worst that could happen. Taco Bell food doesn't kill people. There are no dead bodies outside the restaurant lying in pools of vomit. Visit a cemetery and there are no inscriptions, "Here lies Johnny B. Goode/His final mistake was eating Taco Bell food". Taco Bell doesn't even make people sick. Well, not seriously sick. There's not even reports from hospitals, "Food poisonings due to Taco Bell Loco Crunchwrap Chinga-ritos are up 5% this week." Worst case is it merely doesn't taste very good, I throw it out half-eaten, and I go somewhere else- which I can totally afford to do.
What did I find? Well, I didn't need to throw the food out half-eaten. It's actually tolerable. I know, I said "I Liked It" in the headline.... Honestly that was partly to invoke a popular 2008 Katy Perry song. 😅 And partly it's because I find it more edible now that I did several years ago. That's the the wisdom of my try-it-before-you-hate-it policy. 🤣
What's changed? Compared to several years ago it strikes me that Taco Bell has simplified its menu and focused on doing fewer things slightly better. Their basic 3 Taco Supreme combo- the closest thing today to my regular order ages ago- is pretty good. The Salsa Verde Chicken Burrito is good, too. Yeah, it's still not high quality food, but it seems in line with other fast food options. Oh, and Pepsi. They serve Pepsi, which I hate compared to Coca-Cola. Yes, I can tell the difference between Coke and Pepsi. It's a big difference to me. But I decided to try the Pepsi Zero Sugar variety soda at Taco Bell, and I found it actually tastes a lot more similar to Coke, particularly Coke Zero, which is my top preference. So I can see going back to Taco Bell once a month or so for variety.
Why did I do it? Honestly because I was curious. The last time before this I'd eaten Taco Bell food was 7 years ago. I'd avoided Taco Bell for years because their food just wasn't good. Here in the Bay Area there are so many better choices for quick-service food, especially when I want something vaguely resembling Mexican food. Ages ago, though, I used to be a regular, eating at Taco Bell about once a week. Now, one of my bits of philosophy on disliking things is that it's totally okay if you don't like something and don't want to eat it (or use it, or wear it, etc.) but you should at least try it. I felt like after 7 years it was time to try Taco Bell again.
For those of you curling your lips and snarling, "Ewww!" ask yourself what was the worst that could happen. Taco Bell food doesn't kill people. There are no dead bodies outside the restaurant lying in pools of vomit. Visit a cemetery and there are no inscriptions, "Here lies Johnny B. Goode/His final mistake was eating Taco Bell food". Taco Bell doesn't even make people sick. Well, not seriously sick. There's not even reports from hospitals, "Food poisonings due to Taco Bell Loco Crunchwrap Chinga-ritos are up 5% this week." Worst case is it merely doesn't taste very good, I throw it out half-eaten, and I go somewhere else- which I can totally afford to do.
What did I find? Well, I didn't need to throw the food out half-eaten. It's actually tolerable. I know, I said "I Liked It" in the headline.... Honestly that was partly to invoke a popular 2008 Katy Perry song. 😅 And partly it's because I find it more edible now that I did several years ago. That's the the wisdom of my try-it-before-you-hate-it policy. 🤣
What's changed? Compared to several years ago it strikes me that Taco Bell has simplified its menu and focused on doing fewer things slightly better. Their basic 3 Taco Supreme combo- the closest thing today to my regular order ages ago- is pretty good. The Salsa Verde Chicken Burrito is good, too. Yeah, it's still not high quality food, but it seems in line with other fast food options. Oh, and Pepsi. They serve Pepsi, which I hate compared to Coca-Cola. Yes, I can tell the difference between Coke and Pepsi. It's a big difference to me. But I decided to try the Pepsi Zero Sugar variety soda at Taco Bell, and I found it actually tastes a lot more similar to Coke, particularly Coke Zero, which is my top preference. So I can see going back to Taco Bell once a month or so for variety.