When it comes to fast food restaurants, it can be hard to stand out, but Del Taco made
it happen.
It might be the super low prices, or the mix of Mexican and American fare, or maybe a combination
of both.
Here's the untold truth of Del Taco.
Del Taco has been around for quite a while now.
It was started by Ed Hackbarth and David Jameson, who opened the very first location in 1964
in Yermo, California.
Their menu included tacos, tostadas, fries, and cheeseburgers.
Opening day was a huge success: they made $169 in sales, which works out to about 900
tacos.
Clearly, customers were pretty happy with what they had to offer.
That success continued, as the chain saw significant growth throughout the '70s.
In 1977, there were 50 restaurants, and that doubled to 100 just a year later.
New menu items were added, like the bun taco, quesadilla, and ice cream sundaes.
In 1988, Del Taco got a whole lot bigger when it merged with the Naugles restaurant chain.
Locations even started staying open 24/7, which was a pretty big deal in the 80s.
The chain's 500th restaurant was opened in 2008, and it's just as popular today as ever.
One of the most wonderful things about Del Taco is that you get the best of both worlds.
You can eat Mexican-style food and classic American food all at once, because sometimes
you just want fries with your burrito.
If you always want to add fries to any order, then you need to know about one of the best
secret menu hacks out there.
According to Food Beast, there are two little words you can say to your cashier that will
make your order even more delicious.
Those two words are "Go bold," and they get you secret sauce and fries added to any item.
When Food Beast saw the tip online, they decided to test it out for themselves.
They headed to their local Del Taco and went wild after employees confirmed that the hack
was indeed true.
Food Beast "went bold" with several different menu items, including the crispy shrimp burrito,
Double Del Cheeseburger, and even a vanilla shake.
And just to be clear, those fries you're adding aren't on the side.
They're going to be inside whatever you order, whether it's a burger or a milkshake.
And it's plenty affordable, as it costs just 39 cents per item.
Sticking to a vegetarian or vegan diet can be tough, especially when you're looking to
grab a quick lunch at a fast food place.
But Del Taco has you covered!
In addition to its Beyond Meat burritos and tacos, there are some other options as well.
If you're vegetarian, you can go for the bean and cheese Burrito, the Crunchtada Tostada,
cheese quesadillas, breakfast burritos, 8-Layer Veggie Burrito, Breakfast Rollers, the bean
and cheese cup, and Potato Poppers.
But wait, there's even better news!
If you're looking for something to satisfy your sweet tooth, the churros, churro ice
cream dessert, caramel cheesecake bites, and chocolate chip cookies all satisfy vegetarian
requirements.
If you're vegan, you're taken care of thanks to the likes of the Beyond Avocado Taco, the
avocado veggie bowl, crinkle cut fries, and the hashbrown sticks.
And here's the important thing: vegans and vegetarians can make a meal that's every bit
as substantial as their meat-loving companions.
That sounds much better than just sticking to the relatively few options that some other
chains offer, doesn't it?
Burger King made headlines with its Impossible Whopper, but they're not the only restaurant
offering tasty fake meat options.
When Del Taco teamed up with Beyond Meat, it became the first Mexican fast food chain
to form a meatless partnership.
Two months after the announcement, Vox reported that the restaurant was looking at one of
its most successful new product launches ever.
They'd sold more than two million Beyond tacos in just those first two months, and it was
that success that led to the development of the Beyond 8 Layer Burrito and the Epic Beyond
Cali Burrito.
Their success didn't go unnoticed, as it wasn't long before Qdoba announced that they were
going to be doing the same thing.
Strangely enough, Taco Bell made an announcement of their own by declaring that they weren't
going to be getting in on the trend anytime soon.
And you don't have to be a vegetarian to appreciate the Beyond Meat tacos.
That's part of the beauty of these offerings, as they absolutely stand on their own.
Who can pass up a Beyond Avocado Taco, especially when they're just as high in protein as Del
Taco's standard tacos?
"Could a butcher love a plant-based taco?"
"Tastes like meat.
Wow."
Our fingers are crossed that we'll be seeing even more Beyond Meat offerings from Del Taco
in the future!
Del Taco is known both for its great food as well as its low prices.
Costs have obviously gone up somewhat since the chain first opened in the '60s, as you
just can't make a taco for 19 cents these days.
"Aw man, I'm all outta cash."
"No, you don't want to kill yourself, you just want a taco!"
But prices have still remained on the lower side, and likely always will.
One awesome thing to note is that Del Taco has a legitimate dollar menu.
The Dollar Deals Menu, which used to be the Buck and Under Menu, is something many other
chains don't have anymore.
In a statement, Barry Westrum, Del Taco's Chief Marketing Officer, said,
"In a landscape that's saturated with limited item five- and six-dollar offers, Del Taco
is drawing on its legacy as the value leader in the fast food space to deliver unmatched
flavor per dollar."
Del Taco offers more than 15 items for a dollar or less across breakfast, lunch, dinner, and
late night.
This supercheap lineup includes 79-cent tacos mini quesadillas, Chicken Rollers, and 3-layer
queso nachos.
Clearly, the Dollar Deals Menu is one of the things that helps the chain stand out from
its competition.
"Del Taco" has been the name of this restaurant for a very long time now, and it will likely
never change.
But that doesn't mean it never did.
In its early days, it actually went by a different name: "Casa Del Taco."
Ed Hackbarth opened the first Del Taco, or rather, the first Casa Del Taco, after working
for the old fast food chains Bell's Burgers and Taco Tia.
Then in 1964, he partnered with David Jameson, and they opened the fourth Casa Del Taco location
in Corona, California, which was also the first drive-through location.
As the years went on, Casa Del Taco became more and more popular, and in 1972, Hackbarth
and Jameson opened their largest store in Newport Beach, California, along with their
third partner, Dick Naugles.
By 1973, they felt ready to make some changes, and one of the first was to drop the "Casa"
from the name.
So that year, the company became known as simply Del Taco, and it's stuck ever since.
Fast food mascots aren't all fun and games, and the trouble that Del Taco got into is
proof of that.
Back in 1999, the restaurant had a mascot that it used in almost all of its TV commercials.
It was a western hero named, naturally enough, "Del Taco."
"Told you I'd find you again, Del Taco!"
"Ohhhh!"
This man was based on spaghetti western movies of the 70s.
He was also an underdog, in much the same way that Del Taco was an underdog in the fast
food industry compared to Taco Bell.
Despite the ads' popularity, there was one company that wasn't happy.
A month after they first appeared on TV, Zorro Productions Inc. and Tristar Pictures Inc.
slapped Del Taco with a lawsuit, in which they claimed that the "Del Taco" character
infringed on their trademarked Zorro.
"Not bad!"
Del Taco President Rob Petty told the Los Angeles Times at the time,
"He's not Zorro.
We didn't set out to copy Zorro.
We did our homework out front making sure that we weren't stepping on any toes in this
process."
"Hahahaha!"
Ultimately, Del Taco settled the suit in January 2000.
They said they would change the character, and they then ended up getting rid of it completely.
Ed Hackbarth may be in his 80s, but he's still proving himself to be a vital part of the
company that he founded.
In June 2018, The Press Enterprise reported that he'd appeared at the grand opening of
a Del Taco in Corona to show his face and interact with customers and employees.
And not only was he hanging out at a grand opening, he was also seen cleaning tables
at Barstow No. 1, which is one of three Del Tacos in Corona that he kept when he sold
off the chain in the 70s.
In 2012, The O.C.
Register reported that Hackbarth was still actively managing three Del Tacos in the desert.
That's certainly a lot for a man who was, at the time, 78 years old!
In one day, Hackbarth wanted to spend an hour at each of the restaurants, which meant an
overall five-hour commute.
Why is he still working?
As he told The O.C.
Register,
"I love what I do.
The customers make me so happy."
In addition to great value, one of the things that makes Del Taco stand out is the quality
of its food.
The chain is dedicated to serving good food made with fresh ingredients.
In June 2018, it introduced an entire menu refresh that put an emphasis on fresh food.
"Del Taco has the freshest food because of hard working hands, like Andi's!"
"What?"
Chief Marketing Officer Barry Westrum told QSR Magazine,
"We're further leaning into what enables this brand to continue to differentiate itself
from Taco Bell and Chipotle, with industry-leading value and traditional food prep, where our
team members chop, dice, shred, and grill throughout the day."
In other words: Del Taco's food is made by hand.
They're really proud of this fact, and they know it's something that makes them different.
In 2017, then-president and CEO John Cappasola told CNBC,
"This is actually a structural advantage for us, the fact that we do it fresh in our restaurants."
He also explained that employees are the ones who do the cutting and grilling, because they
know that's what delivers the best food experience.
"These other fresh ingredients that we take the time to execute each and every day…"
"Right."
"...it's what makes our food taste better."
For many Del Taco customers, adding on their own condiments is super important for flavor,
especially when it comes to hot sauce.
Like Taco Bell, Del Taco is known for its delicious, fan-favorite hot sauce packets.
In fact, they're so popular that Del Taco decided to do something about it.
In 2011, the chain began to sell its hot sauce packets on its online store.
Yes, that's right.
You can buy Del Taco hot sauce online, without even having to get off your couch!
You can choose from 100 packets of Mild Sauce, Del Scorcho, or Del Inferno for just $6.99.
There's also the multi-pack, which contains 300 packets for $18.99.
In packet size, they're super convenient!
The online store also sells more Del Taco merchandise, including sweatshirts, hats,
socks with tacos all over them, shirts, and even baby onesies.
So now you know that you can wear your love for Del Taco whenever you want!
Do you love Del Taco and the smell that wafts out of its food?
Can you just not get enough of it?
Do you wish you could experience all that at home?
"I did have a fantastic basement.
Now it smells like tacos.
You can't air out a basement."
In 2019, Del Taco introduced what might be the most unlikely product tie-in in fast food
history, as the chain revealed that it was going to be branching out into aromatherapy
with a series of essential oils.
Customers could choose from chocolate, churro, and vanilla oils.
The whole thing was a tie-in to the release of the chain's Mini Churro Dipper Shakes.
It seems as though this venture was a limited-time offer, but surely the potential is high for
bringing back something super successful and that attracts social media attention.
In the meantime, don't worry, as Del Taco still has a ton of really strange merchandise
in its online store, like earbuds and fidget spinners.
"That's unfreshing believable!"
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