Fast Food Discussion: Mexican Pizza at Taco Bell

[kyphysics]

This thread shall be a place where we can talk about anything fast-food related.

Does anyone here actually dislike fast food? I know it's not healthy, but it's sure darn good.

...The Mexican pizza is back at Taco Bell. I like certain items at Taco Bell, but this is not one of them. I wonder what people like about it? I'd rather eat a crunchy taco...a real/normal pizza...I don't see the hype behind this concoction.

 

[jtbell]

I have a soft spot for Arby's roast beef sandwiches, because I grew up not far from where Arby's was founded. When I was a kid in the 1960s, my mother and I occasionally stopped at one of the first Arby's on our shopping trips to that city, as a change from hamburgers at McDonalds etc.

Just last weekend I had my first Arby's in more than two years (a beef 'n' cheddar) on my first (mini) road trip since the pandemic started. Most or all of the Arby's around here suspended dine-in service during the pandemic, and I don't like drive-throughs.

 

[pbuk]

I have a soft spot for Arby's roast beef sandwiches

Me too - it's the horsey sauce that does it for me. There used to be just one in the UK, in London*, but sadly it went about 20 years ago.

* edit: apparently there were 3 others in Glasgow, Southampton and Sutton.

 

[pinball1970]

This thread shall be a place where we can talk about anything fast-food related.

Does anyone here actually dislike fast food? I know it's not healthy, but it's sure darn good.

...The Mexican pizza is back at Taco Bell. I like certain items at Taco Bell, but this is not one of them. I wonder what people like about it? I'd rather eat a crunchy taco...a real/normal pizza...I don't see the hype behind this concoction.

I was never a fan of McDonald’s the place because they were usually noisy, busy and full of kids where I lived (Manchester)

I like the burgers though, Burger King even better ideal when you are getting from A-B realize you are very hungry and bob in.

As a student it was always the Kebab shop, chicken Kebab or Doner. Great for on the way home after the pub.

I went to Berlin with some friends a few years ago and we found this amazing street that had a fast food place every 20 meters or so it was great!

All different nationalities, curry, Kebab (amazing) , pizza, Thai – brilliant.

….Not a thread I should indulge in, I am thinking food now, food that’s bad for me.

Attempting to get in shape right now and googling things like, “food that fills you up that has low calories…”Its rubbish.

 

[kyphysics]

Me too - it's the horsey sauce that does it for me. There used to be just one in the UK, in London*, but sadly it went about 20 years ago.

* edit: apparently there were 3 others in Glasgow, Southampton and Sutton.

The sauce is fantastic. But, I don't like super meaty sandwiches. I like veggies mixed in too. I feel like their roast beef is just a big stack of meat and bread. The flavor is too strong and gets "old" fast for me without more flavor complexity.

I like a sandwich with fresh veggies like lettuce, tomato, bell peppers, onion, etc. ...Gives it more complex flavors and breaks up the monotony of a big chunk of meat. But, that's just me! I know some people cannot stand veggies on a sandwich, as they think it makes it all mushy and watery.

 

[Mark44]

I was never a fan of McDonald’s the place because they were usually noisy, busy and full of kids where I lived (Manchester)

I remember when McDonald's was touting their Big Mac hamburger, back in about '69 or so. I tried one and was very disappointed. It wasn't very big, and as I recall, the only thing between the two bun halves was a small patty, some sauce, and maybe a pickle.

I like a sandwich with fresh veggies like lettuce, tomato, bell peppers, onion, etc.

Me, too. If a burger doesn't have lettuce, tomato, onion, pickles, it's not for me.

Speaking of hamburgers, I worked at a small diner way back when, and they had a very tasty sandwich. It was served open-faced on toasted French bread, with a burger patty, melted cheese, Ortega chiles, and a fried egg. The Carl's Jr. franchises served something similar years ago, but it must not have been well-received, because I've never seen it again.

 

[JT Smith]

Define "fast food".

If you mean Micky-Dees, Taco Smell, Burger Stink and the like, then put me into the mostly-I-don't-like-it category. I grew up eating all of that stuff, liking it back when my body simply dissolved everything I put into it, and then and over the years learning to not like it; because it's mostly not so good for you. You can train yourself, change what feels good to eat. It takes time.

I still like a good hamburger once in a while but it's a limited love affair, mostly reserved to being on the road where alternate options are minimal. Had a Carls Jr burger a week ago while en route to a backpacking trip. It was okay. The fries sucked though.

I wish we had a culture where good falafel stands were as ubiquitous as burger places. And I love the french fries in Europe and Australia. In the U.S. they are almost always sub-par. What's up with that?

So many good things in Asia too. But I'm not sure what you mean by fast food.

 

[kyphysics]

Me, too. If a burger doesn't have lettuce, tomato, onion, pickles, it's not for me.

I used to go to McD's and buy their .89 cent hamburgers (like 4 of them) and load them up with my own cut veggies at home (cucumbers, tomatoes, onions, etc.). . .

Haven't been recently and wonder what a hamburger in the post-inflation crazy world costs nowadyas? Still the same? ...Shrunk at all?

 

[kyphysics]

Define "fast food".

If you mean Micky-Dees, Taco Smell, Burger Stink and the like, then put me into the mostly-I-don't-like-it category. I grew up eating all of that stuff, liking it back when my body simply dissolved everything I put into it, and then and over the years learning to not like it; because it's mostly not so good for you. You can train yourself, change what feels good to eat. It takes time.

I still like a good hamburger once in a while but it's a limited love affair, mostly reserved to being on the road where alternate options are minimal. Had a Carls Jr burger a week ago while en route to a backpacking trip. It was okay. The fries sucked though.

I wish we had a culture where good falafel stands were as ubiquitous as burger places. And I love the french fries in Europe and Australia. In the U.S. they are almost always sub-par. What's up with that?

So many good things in Asia too. But I'm not sure what you mean by fast food.

I think of drive-thru food that is made assembly line-style and probably has some ingredients that aren't so fresh and sometimes with made orders sitting under a heat lamp warmer. . .Panera has a drive-thru, but I wouldn't classify then as fast food.

It's a good question though...Would anyone say Chipotle is fast food IF it has a drive-thru at their location?

 

[JT Smith]

I think of drive-thru food that is made assembly line-style and probably has some ingredients that aren't so fresh and sometimes with made orders sitting under a heat lamp warmer. . .Panera has a drive-thru, but I wouldn't classify then as fast food.

It's a good question though...Would anyone say Chipotle is fast food IF it has a drive-thru at their location?

Chipotle is kind of like Panda Express. They have the assembly line thing, the plague of consistent sameness. But the food quality is better than most burger chains.

I don't think of drive-thru as a necessary part of fast food. The last time I drove through an In-N-Out at 11pm I sat in a line of cars for about half an hour.

 

[JT Smith]

I used to go to McD's and buy their .89 cent hamburgers (like 4 of them) and load them up with my own cut veggies at home (cucumbers, tomatoes, onions, etc.). . .

Haven't been recently and wonder what a hamburger in the post-inflation crazy world costs nowadyas? Still the same? ...Shrunk at all?

According to the internet a regular burger at McDonald's is now $2.49.

Fast food has has gotten to be kind of expensive. On my recent visit to Carls Jr I got a basic single burger without cheese, a fish sandwich for my wife (which she described as "vile and vomitous"), and a large order of fries (we had our own drinks). Two sandwiches and fries cost about $15.

 

[kyphysics]

Burger King mails me these coupons: $4.99 for 2 original chicken sandwiches and 2 small fries

How do they even make money on these? Those chicken sandwiches are pretty big.

 

[kyphysics]

Domino's is offering 50% off all menu items via internet this week (at least here).

 

[gleem]

How about subs, hoagies, or heroes?

My favorite is Jersey Mikes Italian sub, Mikes Way.

 

[Mondayman]

Used to eat Tim Hortons frequently on road trips or days where I didn't get to have breakfast before work.

At some point in the last five years, service has just gone downhill. I got fed up with paying for undercooked eggs, overcooked bacon, unstirred coffee, and missed items on every order.

On multiple occasions I've been served a small sandwich when I asked for and payed for large. They're out large buns, but still collect your money for it..

Pizza is pizza. I'll eat pretty well any of it, especially after a long game of hockey. Papa Johns is favorite, but sadly it doesn't agree with my gut anymore. Onto Dominoes now.

I'd say A&W has Micky D's beat by a mile when it comes to burgers. McDonalds sounds like a good idea every once in a while, but it leaves me unsatisfied pretty well everytime.

 

[Delta2]

There is nothing like Greek souvlaki, fries, Greek Salad and Greek Zythos(=beer in ancient greek)!

 

[Vanadium 50]

the horsey sauce that does it for me

The son of the inventor of Horsey Sauce is a physicist at Fermilab.

 

[JT Smith]

Burger King mails me these coupons: $4.99 for 2 original chicken sandwiches and 2 small fries

How do they even make money on these? Those chicken sandwiches are pretty big.

They count on you buying drinks.

Long ago I worked at a Burger King. The sandwiches were pretty close to zero margin. We had to pay for those if we ate them. The drinks were so cheap that they let us have as much as we wanted for free, provided we brought our own cups (that was the most expensive part).

I worked the closing shift and remember one night laying awake in bed and it finally dawning on me why I couldn't get to sleep after one of those shifts: I was consuming at least half a gallon a caffeinated soda each night!

 

[Mondayman]

I stopped drinking pop for probably ten-fifteen years. I would only have it with liquor, which wasn't all that often as I much prefer beer and straight scotch.

Recently, I've had a couple of Mountain Dews while watching playoffs, and had trouble sleeping afterwards.

Completely derped on the fact that soda has caffeine in it. Duh.

 

[DaveE]

Does anyone here actually dislike fast food?

Yes. Me. There is always better food available from restaurants that aren't big chains.
There's a good reason it's cheap.

There's also better fast food available at a grocery store. Fruit, bread, cheese...

 

[kyphysics]

Pizza is pizza. I'll eat pretty well any of it, especially after a long game of hockey. Papa Johns is favorite, but sadly it doesn't agree with my gut anymore. Onto Dominoes now.

Have you heard of Jet's Pizza? It's a Detroit deep dish franchise. It's national, but not yet that densely saturated (nowhere near the store count as a Domino's or Pizza Hut). They are so darn good.

They're known for quality and fresh ingredients + perfect deep dish preparation. They make their dough fresh every morning (no frozen crap) and cut their veggies fresh that day. You can taste it in the preparation. The crust is sooooooooooooo goooood. Even their pizza sauce tastes so much better than everywhere else.

They are maybe $3 higher vs. a Papa John's, Pizza Hut, or Domino's for the same types of pizzas (notwithstanding the deep dish crust). It's worth every extra $ to me personally. I literally cannot go back to the Big-3 pizza chains anymore after trying Jet's. ...re: Papa John's...I'm very temperamental when it comes to them, given their sweet sauce tasting pizza. Some days, there is no possible way I'd consider it (I need a savory/salty pizza), whereas if all the stars align...I might be willing to eat it every once in a while (if Jet's is near me, though, I'd go with them all the time over PJ's).

 

[kyphysics]

Yes. Me. There is always better food available from restaurants that aren't big chains.
There's a good reason it's cheap.

I have yet to find a better quality + price bargain on a chicken sandwich at a regular restaurants vs. Chick-Fil-A's. I eat at CFA 3-4x a week. I never tire of their sandwiches, fries, and fresh squeezed lemonade.

If In-N-Out were close to me, I'd say the same of them. I prefer In-N-Out even over Five Guys.

Those are the best of the best fast food places, of course. I would be willing to give up lower tier places - like a McD's...Burger King, etc. for a regular restaurant meal on average, I think. But, I would probably literally have Chick-Fil-A withdrawal symptoms (cold sweats and and restless anxiety) if I suddenly couldn't eat there anymore.

 

[DaveC426913]

I like fast food, but my nigh-sixty year old tummy is disliking it more and more every day.
This is a formula for sadness.

 

[JT Smith]

If In-N-Out were close to me, I'd say the same of them. I prefer In-N-Out even over Five Guys.

In-N-Out burgers are decent and they have a good approach to their operation but the food is way overhyped. I grew up eating their burgers and greasy fries and never thought it was anything that special. So it's weird to me how they're almost deified now. Good marketing sense I guess. But I don't think their burgers are all that much better than Carl's Jrs'.

And their fries suck too. What's up with that?

Living where I do the best fast food is ethnic. We've got loads of mediocre taquerias that are still better than the burger chains and they're just as fast -- just no drive thru. The really good taquerias are wonderful. My favorite place lately is a small Vietnamese Bahn Mi shop. That and bubble tea is pretty much all they do and they do it really well. They're super fast but you do have to walk in.

 

[kyphysics]

In-N-Out burgers are decent and they have a good approach to their operation but the food is way overhyped. I grew up eating their burgers and greasy fries and never thought it was anything that special. So it's weird to me how they're almost deified now. Good marketing sense I guess. But I don't think their burgers are all that much better than Carl's Jrs'.

And their fries suck too. What's up with that?

It's interesting how personal tastes operate.

I greatly dislike Carl's Jr.'s burgers for their heavy grease feel, whereas In-N-Out's patties felt less greasy and more fresh (delivered nightly and never frozen).

I feel like CJ's buns are also much more sugary, greasy, and less healthy (could be wrong). The proportion sizing of things and ingredient ratios felt better put together in In-N-Out burgers...but, again, that's just personal taste I suppose.

I agree that In-N-Out's fries are the worst. They have some weird after taste...like the potato was washed in some kind of funky/"Earthy" water or something. Five Guys and Chick-Fil-A have awesome fries imho.

I'd go with an In-N-Out burger, Five Guys fries, and a Chick-Fil-A fresh squeezed lemonade as my perfect fast food meal. Dang I'm hungry!

 

[kyphysics]

Five Guys milkshakes are the absolute best in my opinion. No other shake comes close.

 

[gmax137]

Long ago I worked at a Burger King. The sandwiches were pretty close to zero margin. We had to pay for those if we ate them. The drinks were so cheap that they let us have as much as we wanted for free, provided we brought our own cups (that was the most expensive part).

I worked at a small local chain, with the same deal: all the soda you want as long as you use your own cup. The manager showed me the cost breakdown, the paper cup was by far the biggest contributor.

We made fried chicken too (actually it was "broasted" which is deep fried in a pressure cooker). Yum. At closing we were allowed to divide up the unsold cooked chicken.

I was hired at minimum wage ($1.60/hour) but soon got a 25 cent raise. The restaurant was a 15 or 20 minute walk from home, no car required. I walked home at 1:00 AM every night without thinking twice. "OK boomer" I will stop now.

 

[kyphysics]

Something I've noticed:

Fast food places are almost 99% of the time closed at midnight since COVID. . .I was hoping they'd go back to 24 hours (like McD's...) or late-night (maybe like 1AM like Burger King) before this all happened...Even Walmart of all places is no longer 24 hours.

It's hard out there for those who have the munchies late night/early morning. Nothing is open anymore it feels like. Taco Bell here opens until 4AM, but the one near me is horrible. I swear the staff there do pranks with the food - I've gotten crazy prep where it felt like they purposely smashed my food before giving it to me...it's happened multiple times and when I complained I wasn't convinced they were truly sorry (possibly laughing behind the scenes).

Anyhow...I miss 24 hour/late night fast food. I wonder if it will return post-COVID?

 

[Delta2]

I swear the staff there do pranks with the food - I've gotten crazy prep where it felt like they purposely smashed my food before giving it to me...it's happened multiple times

And I thought things like these happen only here in the crazy Greece lol. This has happened to me to occasionally but I thought it was just another aspect of the crazy Greek socioeconomic reality.

 

[symbolipoint]

Does anyone here actually dislike fast food? I know it's not healthy, but it's sure darn good.

I dislike most fast-foods.

 

[pbuk]

First World problem. Having said that, opening hours in the UK have generally got back to where they were, particularly retail and catering, although staff shortages are an ongoing problem.

 

[vela]

There is nothing like Greek souvlaki, fries, Greek Salad and Greek Zythos(=beer in ancient greek)!

In So. Cal., there's a fast-food chain called Luna Grill, which offers Mediterranean food. It was one of my favorite fast-food place until the pandemic. Gyro meat, chicken kabobs, falafel, Greek salad, hummus, basmati rice...I could eat this stuff every day.

 

[Delta2]

In So. Cal., there's a fast-food chain called Luna Grill, which offers Mediterranean food. It was one of my favorite fast-food place until the pandemic. Gyro meat, chicken kabobs, falafel, Greek salad, hummus, basmati rice...I could eat this stuff every day.

Wondering what exactly you were getting as "Greek" salad? Was it cucumber+tomato+feta cheese+olives+olive oil+ some other stuff (onions, peppers, origan ,e.t.c) cause that's the original Greek Salad. Feta (or Pheta) cheese is a white cheese, kind of salty if you eat it by itself, trademark of Greece as well.

 

[pbuk]

Feta (or Pheta) cheese

I have never seen it transliterated as pheta, always feta at least in English.

 

[Jarvis323]

I'd go with an In-N-Out burger, Five Guys fries, and a Chick-Fil-A fresh squeezed lemonade as my perfect fast food meal. Dang I'm hungry!

Maybe it's the DALL-E thread influencing me, but I just envisioned a future where people connect their brains/nervous systems to their VR interfaces, ask an AI for random stuff like this, and then virtually binge on fast food all day.

For example, you might say McDonald's fries coated in chocolate and mixed into a vanilla shake from Wendy's, and a deep fried Subway sandwich with Arby's sauce and Domino's pepperoni pizza for bread, and then the AI synthesizes the sensory input for your brain, and it is indistinguishable from reality.