Taco Bell CEO Greg Creed said the idea started to take shape about a year ago, after the company did some routine consumer-segmentation research. The company found "a number of segments that provide growth for Taco Bell." One of those segments is made up of consumers who are willing to spend a little more for higher-quality ingredients and better atmosphere beyond what the traditional fast-food chain offers.(http://gaia.adage.com/images/bin/image/x-large/ustaco_food_3x2.jpg)
"We could spend time and money trying to get these people interested in Taco Bell," he said, but they would probably never become regular Taco Bell patrons. "We thought, maybe there's a new brand we can create to address this opportunity," he said, adding that the chain "has the talent and the money" to explore new concepts.
The differentiator for U.S. Taco Co., said Jeff Jenkins, senior brand manager at Taco Bell who also works on mobile for the brand, is that the focus will be on tacos and that the menu is not standard taco fare. "There's a lot of great fusion going on, a lot of it coming from the food-truck scene," said Mr. Jenkins. "Our fusion is the best of America in a taco."(http://gaia.adage.com/images/bin/image/x-large/ustaco_interior_3x2.jpg)
Offerings include spins on various regional American food such as a taco inspired by a Philly cheesesteak called Brotherly Love, or one inspired by Southern fried chicken called Winner Winner. Mr. Jenkins said that he hopes the food will lend itself to Instagram photography -- something that Taco Bell's social media teams has focused heavily on lately.
Toppings offered on the tacos can also be placed on an order of fries. And though the Huntington Beach location won't offer booze because of zoning ordinances, a second location in the Los Angeles area is in the works and will offer beer, wine and even boozy milkshakes like the Mexican Car Bomb, which includes vanilla ice cream, tequila caramel sauce, chocolate flakes and Guinness stout.
"The menu is simple and we wanted it limited to be focused on tacos, fries and shakes," said Rene Piscoitti, executive chef at U.S. Taco Co. and a Taco Bell executive, adding that the chain has already developed a number of tacos well beyond what will be offered at first. "We're starting with 10 tacos but we have an opportunity for more -- we have 20 more in queue we could pull in anytime."
Has to be cheaper than Chipotle at least.
And though Taco Bell and U.S. Taco Co. are both takes on Mexican food, Mr. Creed isn't worried that the new concept would lure customers away from Taco Bell. After all, the average guest check at Taco Bell is about $7, whereas U.S. Taco Co.'s average will be closer to $12 or $13.
"urban taproom"
Not seeing green sauce or rice water. Don't care.
Chipotle is so popular because you get about 2000 calories for 7 bucks. Many people eat half of their bowl and save the rest for later. It's an incredible value of relatively quality food when you break it down that way.
Did they get Ed Hardy to design the logo?
More yuppie lebensraum? Just what the world needs.EAT TACOS
Did they get Ed Hardy to design the logo?
Yeah, that thing looks somehow... off. It's like what you'd see a fairly hip Japanese person thinks an American design looks like.
Still trying to unpack the "Literally Grilled Cheese" name and what they're going for with it. Is it just to communicate that a grilled tortilla with cheese is technically a grilled cheese? Is it an attempted play on the whole misuse of the word literal meme that's cropped up recently?
I feel like the answer to this will define exactly how much I don't like this place.