double deckers of delicious

double decker tacos .

The double decker taco was added to the Taco Bell menu at some point in the early-to-mid 90's (at least I think it was pre-high school for me). And in the line of many things that I latched on to in my pre-HS and HS years double decker tacos were something that my older brother also had professed love. whatever, show me a younger sibling who was not extremely affected by their older sibling's tastes (to the positive or the negative). it's jus' not gonna happen. It be interesting to interrogate my brother on how much he realized that i was biting his style AS MUCH AS POSSIBLE. (this changed when i entered college, but more as an evolution than a new track.)

again, i'm getting sidetracked. double decker tacos. really the pinnacle of taco bell culinary achievement. i like other things at taco bell (classics like simple tacos, bean burritos and 2nd in line tostadas) but nothing as much as the double decker taco. the primary appeal is the textural interface between the soft taco & beans and the hard shell topped w/ lots and lots of TB hot sauce and meat/cheese/lettuce interior. as stated by others (above links) it is crucial to eat the double decker taco within 5 minutes of purchase as the beans begin to soften the shell and render the appeal moot (no longer crunchy). other things TB menu item favorites follow from the same appeal hierarchy (crunchy tacos, same ingredients minus flour tortilla tostada, beans & hot sauce bean burrito). there is also the double decker supreme but the uptick in flavor, sour cream/tomatoes, is lost in the tradeoff in increased structural damage, soggier crunchy tacos, and is therefore not worth the extra 30 cents.

further other taco bell culinary inventions have not done it for me. grilled stuffed burritos = no good. they've added some new funky sauce that DOESN'T DO ANYTHING AT ALL BUT BAD THINGS. any of the things w/ funky shells (gorditas et al) = bad idea. they also introduced some tostada spin-off that had similar architecture as the double decker, tostada wrapped in flour tortilla and grilled stuff, and it is no more successful than their other creations. whenever something new at TB comes on the menu i end up intrigued and venture in to try it hoping for another double decker revelation but TB always fails me. the double decker taco was one of their first deviations from traditional TB menu and the only one to stand the test of time.

the other key to taco bell appeal is the hot sauce. (i'm known to eat hot sauce packets by themselves) and remember reading in the phx new times about some one trying to unsuccessfully ween themselves of TB bean burritos and coming to the conclusion that the key was the hot sauce. i'm not gonna disagree. okay it's probably loaded w/ sugar but that doesn't bother me. i eat taco bell at most once every couple of months, but it will always have a place in my heart. (even with the recent e. coli scare which affects me NOT ONE BIT)