News: Taco Bell Tests New $1 Cravings Menu

It appears Taco Bell is looking to scrap the current "Why Pay More" value menu by testing a "$1 Cravings" value menu. The move to a flat $1 per menu item is probably a response to rising food and labor costs.

I was traveling through California's Central Valley over the holidays and came upon the menu at a Taco Bell in one of the major truck stops.

The $1 Cravings gets its name because it's split into several different food cravings: "Beefy," "Cheesy," "Spicy," "Crunchy," and "Sweet."

For a "Beefy" craving, the menu offers the Beefy Cheesy Burrito which is filled with seasoned beef, nacho cheese, and Latin rice (i.e. cilantro rice).

For a "Cheesy" craving, there's the Cheesy Roll-Up and the Cheesy Bean & Rice Burrito. The Cheesy Roll-Up is basically a rolled up quesadilla while the Cheesy Bean & Rice Burrito is filled with refried beans, nacho cheese, and Latin rice.

For "Spicy," the offerings include the Spicy Mini Chicken Quesadilla and the Spicy Cheesy Roll-Up. They are most likely spiced up with Taco Bell's chipotle sauce, but Volcano sauce is also a less-likely possibility.

For "Crunchy," there's the return of Triple Layer Nachos on offer as well as regular menu stalwart, the Tostada. Both items feature beans instead of meat for protein. The Triple Layer Nachos adds warm nacho cheese and red sauce to go with the beans and the Tostada goes with red sauce, shredded cheese, and lettuce.

Finally, for "Sweet" cravings, the menu features the Caramel Apple Empanada and Cinnamon Twists.

The menu also does away with the "Why Pay More" menu's $2 Dollar Meal Deals (introduced back in 2010) and offers "Craving Combos" for $2.49 instead.

Each Craving Combo is very much like the previous value meals with a medium drink and a small bag of Doritos chips, but changes up some of the entree choices. A total of three choices are on tap: the Cheesy Bean & Rice Burrito, the Beefy 5-Layer Burrito, and the Chicken Burrito. Gone are the Double Decker and Cheesy Gordita Crunch as entree choices.