Suzanne Graham

I love taco salad, and it has always been a favorite menu choice. Lately I’ve noticed that in many restaurants the meat portions are getting smaller and smaller, while the condiments (sour cream, colored corn chips, etc.) are taking up more and more room.

Today after church we hung around visiting with friends. I glanced at my watch and we had less than an hour to eat and get DD ready for work. There was no time for a relaxing meal in a nice restaurant. My husband suggested Taco Bell, and we all agreed.

Perhaps you’re surprised that I don’t mind eating at Taco Bell. When our son was in elementary school, he had very severe reactions to MSG. I spent hours researching ingredients in all kinds of restaurants – both elegant and fast food. I was impressed with Taco Bell. Not only did they not add any MSG to any of their food, they didn’t add potatoes, wheat, or masa as fillers either.

As I started writing this blog, I went to the Taco Bell website to see if they still have the high standards that they did 10 years ago. I see a few Type O avoids toward the end of the ingredient list - things I wouldn’t have known to look for them when I did my original research. My own taco meat is more Type O compliant, but I still think Taco Bell ingredients are acceptable for a fast food restaurant.

My concern was not the ingredients. My concern was that Taco Bell taco salad used to have a generous portion of meat, but now it is pretty meager. There was also the issue of pinto beans. If I order Mexican food and it comes with pinto beans, I eat them, but I when I have a choice I eat something else.

As I stood in line, I had a brainstorm. For the same price as a taco salad, I could get 5 crispy tacos. I would get about the same amount of lettuce, no pinto beans, and a lot more meat. This sounded like a good plan for me.

The plan nearly went awry when my husband went to pick up our order. He assumed that I had ordered a salad and nearly sent back the tray stacked high with tacos. “How many did you order?” he asked incredulously when he got to the table. I smiled and enjoyed my lunch, scooping the meat and lettuce out of the taco shells. It was better for me than a taco salad, and DD got to work on time.