I practically grew up on fast food chains like McDonald’s and Taco Bell. When my working mom didn’t have time to cook dinner, we headed to the easy and cheap option for a meal. This trend continued throughout my young adult life, with me often stopping at a Subway restaurants for a chicken teriyaki sandwich or at Taco Bell for a chicken quesadilla.
Although I liked the convenience of the on-the-go lunch or dinner, I was never a fan of the quick breakfast options. Burger King never appealed to me with their Breakfast Bowl. McDonald’s hasn’t caught my attention with their new Fruit & Maple Oatmeal. And Subway didn’t do anything for me with their Sunrise Melt, though at least their menus still serve up takes on the traditional American breakfast. But how is Taco Bell going to serve morning meals and still remain Mexican?
They’re doing breakfast the “Taco Bell way”, according to a report from the OC Register. This will include four different kinds of burritos (bacon and eggs, eggs and sausage, eggs and steak, and a grande skillet burrito) and a crunch wrap made with sausage, eggs and cheese. You can also get a hash brown on the side, Cinnabon Delights (fried dough balls) and iced coffee.
Those might be okay choices for the consumer, but how Mexican are they?
In my Cuban household, breakfast usually consisted of eggs with rice and beans. When I occasionally go to a real Mexican restaurant for breakfast, I get the huevos rancheros. I never see a breakfast burrito with bacon on the menu, much less a side of hash browns.
I can appreciate Taco Bell expanding their menu to better serve their customers but is wrapping a tortilla around scrambled eggs and steak chunks really qualify something as Mexican food? I have a feeling they’re getting further and further away from the food that first inspired the restaurant chain.
With the addition of breakfast, do you still consider Taco Bell as serving Mexican food?
Image via Taco Bell
