Our neighbors to the north better share this.  Check out the KFC Canada version on the Taco Bell Crunchwrap.  It’s the BBQ Bacon Wrapstar.

Two mini breast filets, BBQ sauce, sizzling bacon, crunchy tostada, ranch sauce and cheese – toasted to seal the flavour.

NBA baller Kevin Love was at the Taco Bell HQ today trying out some upcoming menu items and he shared some pics via his Twitter.  Apparently he got to try the upcoming Doritos Locos Taco Cool Ranch version and XXL Nachos.  Take a look:

Here’s a peak at the XXL Nachos.  Looks to have steak and guacamole among a ton of other things.

The last couple of months in the world of Taco Bell has been dominated by Doritos Locos Tacos.  We’ve been bombarded with print ads and tv spots advertising the taco with a Doritos shell.  The hype campaign surrounding Doritos Locos Tacos is something that was to be expected since this was somewhat of a major game changer in the quick-serve industry.  So other than the press and push of the well deserved Doritos Locos Tacos, I’ve been quietly sitting back waiting for the next “new” promotion.  The 5-week rotation of promotional products skipped a turn, but now 10 or so weeks later, we’ve got a new burrito to sink our teeth into.  Debuting today at Taco Bell, the Beefy Nacho Burrito.

The Beefy Nacho Burrito is described by Taco Bell like this:

Bite into crunchy nacho chips, covered in warm nacho cheese sauce, delicious 100% real seasoned beef, and cool reduced-fat sour cream, all wrapped up in a warm flour tortilla for maximum portability.

It’s tough to ask for anything more from this combination of ingredients in a Taco Bell burrito, but I felt the Beefy Nacho Burrito fell a little bit short of greatness.  Back in December 2010, Taco Bell released the Beefy Crunch Burrito and I graded it a 7.25/10.  The Beefy Crunch Burrito, in my opinion, will still be superior to this latest offering.  Both burritos have/had promo prices of 99-cents, great deal.  Both burritos have seasoned ground beef.  Both burritos have nacho cheese.  Both burritos have sour cream.

Where the differences come into play are surrounding the fact that the Beefy Crunch Burrito also had rice and a more flavorful and substantial crunch with the inclusion of the Flamin’ Hot Fritos.  This latest creation uses new Queso Strips, which are a bit lighter in texture and don’t pack the snap and heat of the Fritos.  While the Queso Strips are indeed a welcome addition to a standard beef burrito, they didn’t quite live up to Hot Fritos. The crunch was there, but not substantial enough.  Five minutes after placing my order I ate the Beefy Nacho Burrito and I could already tell the crunch was bogged down with a soggy texture.  Overall, the ingredients work well together, yet I felt it was missing a little extra something.  I know you can customize your tastes with Border Sauce packets, but as it stands alone, the Beefy Nacho Burrito would’ve benefited from a different flavored cheese sauce or a cheese-blend.  Like its name, “Nacho” comes through and through.  Typically, I like my nachos with a little bit more than just the standards.  Maybe diced jalapenos would have made this stand above.

At 99-cents, the nearly 7-oz Beefy Nacho Burrito is a steal.  It didn’t quite live up to the Beefy Crunch Burrito (which had a few issues of its own), but it holds up as a nice change of pace promotional item to keep us busy until the next wave of Doritos Locos creations hit the menu board

• Pros: Only 99-cents.  Good size.  Cheesy.
• Cons: Beefy Crunch Burrito is superior to the Beefy Nacho Burrito.  Missing one ingredient, take your pick. Crunch was lacking.

Taste: 6.50/10

Value: 9.00/10

Grubbing on the Go: 6.00/10

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GrubGrade: 6.50/10

(Overall GrubGrade is not an average)

Price: 99-cents

TacoBell.com

Nutrition Information – Beefy Nacho Burrito

Calories – 470

Total Fat – 20 grams

Saturated Fat – 6 grams

Cholesterol – 30 milligrams

Sodium – 990 milligrams

Carbs – 58 grams

Dietary Fiber – 4 grams

Sugars – 4 grams

Protein – 14 grams

I’m going to preface this review by letting you guys know that I’m not a fan of Pizza Hut. Most pizza joints smell the same; like pizza. Not Pizza Hut. Step through the doors and you are greeted with that weird smell that comes from frozen dough being deep fried in an oven. It sure doesn’t scream, “Who wants pizza?”. It’s more of a warning sign letting you know what you are getting yourself into. That would be crappy pizza. Crappy oven deep fried pizza.

Clearly I’m not in their target demo, so why am I reviewing this? Because I have a soft spot for novelty foods. If you love or even remotely somewhat enjoy Pizza Hut, take this review with a grain of salt. If you are curious about novelty foods like me, this is for you. Really, this is for you. We are a team, and I just took one for you guys. With that said, let’s dive head first into the awful mess that is the Cheesy Bites Pizza from Pizza Hut.

If you couldn’t tell by the pictures, this is a regular hand stretched pizza with little cheese stuffed bread tubes as the crust. $11.99 gets you one topping and a marinara dipping cup. Ugh, where to start… The pizza is the same as you’re used to. I found the dough to be greasy, gummy, artificial tasting, and bland. The cheese was void of both flavor, texture and just seemed to occupy space as the ubiquitous “white” part of the pie. The pepperoni, while surprisingly plentiful, also tasted artificial and extremely sub par. The sauce was spiced well, but clearly just tomato paste reconstituted in water with artificial flavorings and preservatives. Add more sugar and vinegar and you’d have ketchup. Seriously. Whoop dee doo. Now on to the novelty aspect: The Cheesy Bites Crust. Imagine a normal stuffed crust where all the cheese cooked out of the gaping holes it isn’t supposed to have, made by someone who hates you, and is just doing it for the paycheck.

Fun novelty food this is not. $11.99 wouldn’t be an awesome deal even if I loved this pizza, so it fails on all fronts. It wasn’t inedible, but there is no reason I can think of to eat this. Maybe staving off death, but I’m not even too sure it could do that.

I don’t hate chain pizza. Papa John’s isn’t half bad, and their cheese sauce rocks. The Brooklyn style crust and wings from Domino’s are fairly tasty. In terms of novelty foods, that’s all Taco Bell serves, and I love Taco Bell. The Doritos Locos taco is equally ludicrous and delicious. In my opinion the Cheesy Bites pizza misses every target. I’m sure some of you will disagree. Please explain to me what you love about Pizza Hut, because I just don’t get it.

• Pros: Absolutely nothing… well, it didn’t make me sick.

• Cons: Taste. Crust. Cheese. Lack of value. Hunt’s ketchup as pizza sauce. I got wings and they sucked too. I could have eaten something else, from somewhere else, but I’m a sucker for advertising. Trying to find another word for “artificial”, and giving up.

Taste: 3.00/10
Value: 1.50/10
Grubbing on the go: N/A

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GrubGrade: 2.75/10

(Overall GrubGrade is not an average)

Price: $11.99

PizzaHut.com

Nutrition Info not available

Once again, Burger King is offering up something from its new menu for a promotional price.  This time it’s Smoothies and Frappes.  via QSRMagazine:

This Saturday, May 26, Sunday, May 27, and Monday, May 28, participating BURGER KING restaurants will offer 12 ounce Strawberry Banana and Tropical Mango Real Fruit Smoothies or Mocha and Caramel Frappés for just $1 each, at participating restaurants.