Photo : Joshua Blanchard ( Getty Images )

We’ve seen a number of fast food chains pare down their menu of late—most famously McDonald’s—and this seems like a smart idea, as we’re proponents of accentuating the positives and hiding the negatives.


Now comes word via Nation’s Restaurant News that Taco Bell will be trimming down their menu in what the chain describes as “decluttering a closet.”

Except: They’re making a critical error in eliminating one of its tacos. On Sept. 12, nine items will be excised into the Taco Bell menu graveyard, and one of those will be the Cool Ranch Doritos Locos Tacos. This is a mistake.


Here at The Takeout it’s a subjective fact that Cool Ranch Doritos are the ne plus ultra of salty snacks. As I described lovingly:

There are specks of green and red sprinkled onto the corn chip, and somehow, it seems to amplify its subtle sweetness and tang. It is vaguely reminiscent of Mexican elotes, which has grilled corn with lime juice acid and creaminess from the sour cream/mayonnaise. I’m not saying Cool Ranch Doritos are the equivalent to elotes you find on a Mexico City street corner, just that for a commercially produced snack, Cool Ranch Doritos are more sophisticated than initially thought.

I’m not as devoted to Taco Bell as I am with other chains, but when I patronize the restaurant I’m usually getting a taco with the Cool Ranch Doritos shell. It does augment the genericness of a standard Taco Bell hard-shell taco into that sour cream-ranch-cheesy-tomato powder spectrum. Add some Diablo sauce and, in my humble opinion, it is (and soon, was) the best item on the Taco Bell menu.

According to NRN, the other dishes coming off the Taco Bell menu: the Fiery Doritos Tacos Loco, Double Decker Taco, Beefy Mini Quesadilla, chips and salsa, Chipotle Chicken Loaded Griller, Double Tostada, Power Menu Burrito, and XXL Grilled Stuft Burrito.


At least we’ll have the Popeye’s chicken sandw... wait, what?!