Some friends and I have been discussing the Doritos flavors you never see anymore, and the number one on their lists was Taco Doritos. I personally don't remember ever having these, but they assure me that surely, here was manna from heaven.
Taco Doritos are still listed on the Doritos Web site, so Rob and I started looking in our local Seattle stores for them. Boy, the zillion Doritos brands of the past are dead, it seems. Most stores around here carry regular and maybe two other flavors. Salsa Verde, which used to be one of those flavors people wrote in to me asking for information about, is commonly found in our stores now, it seems. There's a fiery Habanero flavor that we've found, and believe it or not, the regular Corn flavor appears, as does Guacamole. Cool Ranch is everywhere, that flavor is now more common than Diet Coke, it seems.
But Taco? Nope, not anywhere.
I started hunting online, and it appears they can be ordered online here, but other sites claim Taco has been discontinued, so I don't know if that site is correct or not.
If you scroll fairly far down on this site, you can get one person's recipe for making Taco Doritos.
And almost to the end of this forum page, someone claims that "Depending on your market, you can still get 'em. But you are, unfortunately, probably in the same region as am I, and they don't produce 'em for our region. Through a convoluted chain of family & acquaintances, I learned from a manager at the Atlanta office of Frito Lay that certain flavoring ingredients required to make those delicious morsels are not made available to the production facilities that supply the southern region of which you and I are citizens of. The only way to get this contraband is to Smokey & the Bandit 'em in. Just like we had to do with Coors beer back in the day. And now you know the rest of the story."
While searching for info on Taco Doritos, I kept finding an entry on Scrubbles that not only offered up good info on them, but noted that Matt had posted his entry on them because he was inspired by my entry on Salsa Verde Doritos back in 2004.
It's a small, small world indeed, and the Internet is a snake with its tail in its mouth.
78 comments:
I was just at a conference in San Antonio last week, and I saw these at the CVS store (I was killing a lot of time, and was reading every single chip bag!). I did not remember seeing them before this, but I tend to stick more to the Ruffles end of the chip aisle.
I see Taco flavored Doritos in Missouri from time-to-time. The plain (Corn) disappeared for awhile but seem to be back.
I don't think Taco flavored Doritos use the same flavoring that they used in the 80s. They switched to a Taco Bell Taco flavored Doritos and even though they dropped the "Taco Bell" I don't think they have tasted right since.
These days, I prefer the Black Pepper Jack. The Salsa Verde are okay, but I have never seen them in the big bag. I might have to break the diet to try Fiery Habanero Doritos if I ever find them.
I once saw something on Food Network about a shop -- I think it's online -- and all they do is order obscure, hard-to-find food items. From them, you can get seasonal flavors year-round, and they always have chocodiles. It sounds like some weird food-heaven.
I live here in Seattle and I SWEAR I've seen the elusive Taco Doritos around! I'm thinking more in the 7-11 type stores, though, instead of the major grocery stores. Start hitting the gas stations!
It's definitely a regional thing -- we have no shortage of Taco flavored Doritos here in Central Nebraska, but we never see Salsa Verde (except for occasionally in the 99 cent little bags). The flavors easily available here are Regular corn, Nacho Cheese, Spicy Nacho, Black Pepper Jack, Cool Ranch and Taco.
Since Frito-Lay just changed product packaging on Doritos, it's easy to see which flavors sell fastest, and the Nacho Cheese flavors and Cool Ranch clearly outsell the rest, but Taco was close behind. Three weeks later, most stores STILL have the old packaging Black Pepper Jack.
My 12 year old loves the Salsa (not Verde) flavor, but we haven't been able to find that one in months.
Odd. I just bought and enjoyed a bag here in Chicago, and thought hm, haven't seen these in ages. Now I can't remember where I saw them. It's sort of like the lost chord.
we have them in MN, and they're delicious.
Gael - it kills me that Doritos still lists Taco on their web site! I remember reading somewhere that they aren't producing as much Taco because the powder they use on them is thicker and tends to gum up the machines, so they only have one factory that makes them. Take that with a grain of salt (or Nacho Cheesier seasoning).
I dunno - shopped at the Green Bay Wal-Mart (yeah, I know, but I'm cheep cheep) and they had plenty, in the latest-design bag. So they're still making them. Maybe ask your grocery if it's stopped ordering them...
It's funny I'm reading this Dorito-flavored post as I am sitting here eating Ranchero Doritos. They suck. The bag deceived me. I thought it was Original Doritos. But they're the only chips in the house. What a nice Saturday breakfast.
What a striking image to choose - "a snake with its tail in its mouth". Thanks!
When I was about 15, I called the company becasue they stopped selling Taco Bell flavored around me, and was told the whole "regional" thing.
Pure crap!
Frito lay also, I swear, recycles flavors. The Salsa flavor from the 80s (not the current one) made a comeback as one of the short lived extreme flavors.
The Taco flavor is still available in Columbus, OH!
I just purchased and ate a whole bag earlier this month with my 3 year-old in Kansas City.
Taco Doritos are plentiful in west Michigan, and I am glad for it.
I was in St. Louis this summer and came across the Taco Doritos. I took it as a sign from God. I bought many bags and shared them with other Taco Lovers in NYC. But they do not taste as I remember. They go good with Squirt.
Here in southwestern Connecticut you can always find Spicy Nacho, Black Pepperjack Nacho Cheese, and Cool Ranch. Salsa Verde disappeared for awhile, then came back a couple of months ago, and has now vanshied again. I never see the Corn or Habanero varieties, which I would snap up in a second if I saw.
Today I saw the Ranchero flavor for the first time. Didn't want to pick them, since I wasn't sure of what flavor "Ranchero" would be. Are they like a Taco flavor?
As an Frito-Lay employee in Cincinnati, I can shed some light on this subject...
Our warehouses typically do not carry the full line of Doritos (which is 10 flavors, 11 if you count Salsa flavor, which is going to be reintroduced in some areas this Spring). Nacho Cheese, Cool Ranch, Black Pepperjack, and Spicy Nacho are carried pretty much everywhere in the US, and most warehouses also stock 2 or 3 of the remaining flavors.
Although all of our warehouses here in Southwestern Ohio (Cincinnati, Dayton, Columbus) have the Taco flavor, it is not commonly found outside of the Midwest, as the warehouses in many of those cities opt instead to carry the Salsa Verde flavor or Ranchero flavor. With the Fiery Habanero flavor starting to be introduced in more areas, it is likely going to be increasingly more difficult to find some of these more uncommon flavors (Taco, Original Corn, Ranchero, etc).
Hope this helps...but you can easily find them anywhere in the Cincy area at least for now.
First of all they do not have the original Taco flavored doritos in Columbus, OH. They are the "new" variety, which was originally branded as Taco Bell Flavored Doritos. I seriously doubt the originals will make a return, since, I believe, they contained ground beef powder and sour cream. They were easily the best flavor of snack that Frito Lay ever produced, next to maybe chili cheese fritos. The last place I ever saw the original taco doritos was in Los Angeles, circa 1994-1995, but if anyone sees the original, please email me at tkl3b@yahoo.com
It's great reading posts from fellow Dorito fans on flavors that are so elusive in so many places. I'm here in Buffalo, NY where Nacho, Ranch, Spicy Nacho, and Pepper Jack are the only mainstays in the area in the last year. Just started seeing Ranchero though. Sala used to be here but it's been gone for a while now, as has the Four Cheese flavor which seems to be discontinued now. Being close to Canada though, I often go up there as they have a whole other world of flavors to choose from including Dill Pickle, Ketchup, Zesty Cheese, Italian, Bold BBQ, & Jalepeno Cheddar, all of which are pretty yummy! So, if you're up north in good old Canada anytime check'em out!
In the 90's they had these Doritos, called Taco Bell Doritos, but I think Taco Bell wanted them discontinued or something. They were really good. They also had Pizza Hut Doritos that came out at the same time as the Taco Bell, and were discontinued at the same time as well.
Anyways, I went to Australia this summer, and they had about 10 kinds of Doritos. One of them was Mexican Taco, so I had to find out if it could possibly be the same as the "Taco Bell" Doritos we had in the States, and THEY WERE! I ate a bag while I was there, and brought 2 bags back with me! :)
Having recently found the same website as you and others, and noticing Taco and Ranchero as two flavors I'd never seen or tried, I began trying to find them. I began by calling the local Frito Lay office and they said they couldn't order them, and they might be discontinued. Since they are on the website, I continued on and called their national number. They said that no, they aren't discontinued, and you can still get them -- IF you live in one of the markets where they are sold. I have since found a source for some Ranchero flavor chips, but not for Taco. I suspect the online buying link is valid -- I was going to order from them -- but they require $30 minimum purchase, and I don't need that many bags.
I highly recommend the new Habanero flavor. Spicy indeed! A not just hot, but with some nice chipolte taste to smooth it out.
I just polished off a bag of the Firey Habanero and I suggest you stock up if you can find them. I'm on my way back to Duane Reade to buyout the rest of their stock...
If you can't find these then get Salsa Verde, almost as hot with a flavor just as good...
Idea... start a dorito's trading site :)
If you have a flavor that someone else wants, and you want one from their place, just mail each other a bag of chips
... just a thought.
I just order some Taco Doritos off of ebay. I live in Florida, and I havent seen them here in probably 20+ years..
I saw them in a Wal Mart in Wiggins, MS and Newton, MS. I asked a Lays employee, and he said if the store orders from the Lays company directly, you are more likely to see the Taco Doritos. The Lays distributor in the Brandon, MS area won't get them.
I wish they would, as I love Taco Doritos. I don't snack much, but when I do, Taco Doritos it is.
My husband found Taco Doritos at WalMart in Franklin, TN.
Here's a locator that might help. I'm in SW Connecticut and have been trying to find the Fiery Habanero. According to the locator, it looks like Walmart is my best bet.
http://snackfinder.fritolay.com/
i too love taco doritos i have two bags left i am saving them for awhile not long i got them from omaha nabraska they were mailed to me by a good friend will be getting more soon i wish they would come to rhode island good luck too you all
I live in Tomah, Wisconsin and work at a military commissary that caries the taco doritos as does our local wal-mart. They have the new bag design so they are definetly here for awhile, my question is what happened to four cheese, i mean come on, screw nacho cheese when you can have four.
I live in Bloomington-Normal Illinois and i would like to know where i can buy Ranchero flavored Doritos? they were out for a short period of time and now i cannot seem to find them they are my favorite chips please help i would love to eat more
found some up here in Maine.They were in the small 99 cent bags.My girlfreind brought home half a bag from work and I fliped out.Later that day I went there and bought the five remaining bags.then a week later, my little stash long gone,I was buying my hunting lic. in a different store and saw they had six small bags. I only had enough for one bag. Then the next day at the store right down the road I saw a half eaten bag behind the counter.I was jelous and want more.....
Ran across salt & pepper doritos at a small road store in New Mexico. Are these new? They were okay, we picked up a small bag of the steak & onion ones.....they sucked.
I remember eating taco flavor doritos in the late seventies. I the seasoning powder they used on the tortilla chip was poured really thick on the chips. The best part of eating taco flavor doritos was when you would occasionally pick out a chip were the seasoning was especially thick, Wow what a taste sensation!
There's the old-school style TACO DORITOS and the new-school Taco-Bell Doritos.... the old-school style kicked the new styles A**!!! I'll pay dearly to someone who can lead me to the 70's style, you ain't eaten HEAVEN till you've eaten them puppies!!!
As a couple of others have said, the Taco Doritos of 2007 are no way the same flavor as the Taco Doritos of the early 1980s! I can't believe Frito Lay dicountinued that flavor. They were completely addicting.And for those of you who remember the original TACO DORITOS know EXACTLY what I mean!!!!
Can't all of us who remember the good ol days of the 70's and original taco flavored doritos demand Frito Lay resurect the best flavor they ever had? Can't we start a petition or a demonstration or protest, riot whatever it takes to get them to go find the guy who used to work at Frito Lay who still remembers the recipe??!!
the new tandoori sizzler doritos is very similar tasting to the old taco style doritos except they have a kick to them..i havent had taco flavored ones in years but its a taste i cant forget!
Back in 1973 I was in 5th grade and I would ride my banana seat bike to school in Massachusetts. Every day I would stop at the store and buy a bag of Taco flavored Doritos and hide them in my desk. All of the other kids would ask for a handful and they tasted great !! The giveaway was the orange/red fingertips and taco breath.
Email me on how to get Taco Flavor Dortios back in the stores.
bluejay95240@yahoo.com
i live in michigan, west michigan to be exact and we always have taco doritos, i dont think you can go into a store without seeing them, but we do not have those corn ones you were talking about, are they good?
i live in southern california and loved the taco flavored doritos as a kid...i was so devastated when they changed to the taco bell flavor...i am so glad to see that there are others out there like me trying to recapture that taco flavor experience! well, yesterday at my local market they had "dorito collisions" two flavors in one bag and one of them was "zesty taco"!! i was cautious, i wasnt sure what flavor it was going to be and it was the original flavor! too bad they combined with with a chipotle ranch..but i just pick out the taco chips and im happy! i cant wait to bother my friends to find mail me taco flavor doritos from their hometowns!
Oh we were just talking about Taco flavored Doritos -- they were SO good I could eat a whole bag at a time. So, maybe it's a good thing we can't find any around here at all anymore ;) Still - if I saw a bag on the shelf (a recent dated bag that is) I'd grab it up in a heartbeat!
Also liked those ones in the black bag with the little white happyface on them, jalapeno with salsa verde or something like that -- super hot. Had a craving for those a while back and alas, they too are completely MIA.
Throughout the years I've wondered every now and then what happened to the taco flavored Doritos from the 70's. Well, today at my local Target I saw Archer Farms (Target's store brand) Black Bean & Jalapeno corn chips. Thought they'd be a nice change of pace. As soon as I bit into one, it was 1974 again! Not only do these taste (to me at least) exactly like the taco Doritos, they also pack a nice little spicy punch thanks to the Jalapeno flavor. Well done, Target!
I live on the west coast in California and we still have the corn flavored Doritos but wish we would get Taco flavor back...those were the best...going to have to find someone to ship some out my way
I too had the new collisions with the Zesty Taco it prompted me to search for 'Taco Doritos" to see if they were the originals. The smell is the same. And smell brought me back and smell is closely associated with memory.
I live in Atlanta and also remembered the Taco flavor and your friends are right....it is the best thing since Chocolate as far as Doritos go.
Just by happenstance I was in a CVS yesterday and found a split bag with half Taco and half Chipotle Ranch and the Taco tastes just like I remember. Strangely they only had two bags and saldy I only bought one, but they are very hard to find. Just wish i had bought the other bag.
Good luck finding them!
Growing up in North Dakota my mom would make a great Taco salad from Taco Doritos. When I lived in Cali and now in Florida, I contacted the company and they don't distribute them here. However they can be ordered in large orders. When I go back to North Dakota I always bring an extra suite case for the chips and buffalo sausage I can't get in Florida! I have found a small group of people who remember them and we are going to split an order. One friend of mine found taco and ranch combo recently. He told me he seperated the bag just to enjoy the taco chips.
hey, where are the Four Cheese Doritos?
I became addicted to the Taco doritos a few years ago when they were sold at a walmart in MO, but then I moved to Washington, and they're nowhere to be found!!
Now doesn't it figure that I'm pregnant and ONLY craving Taco doritos, and they don't even sell them in MO anymore so I can't get my family to mail them to me either!! Here I am online, googling "find Taco doritos" and it's simply impossible!!!!
Taco Doritos are EVERYWHERE here in Japan. If you're still desperate for some, as the person whose linkroll first inroduced me to Metafilter, I'm happy to drop some your way when I'm in the States next week and coulc be reached by me-mail.
-whatzit
i have no clue who you are... but I love you. You are my favorite person today and you get a gold star!
I have been scouring the internet to try and find where I can order the Japanese Taco doritos (from here on out known as "crack") since my sister brought some back for me a year ago. I have found it now and I will name my first born after you. Thank you.
TACO Flavor Doritos are back! (By Popular Demand) Found 9/19/2008 at Top Foods in Everett, WA.
I remember Taco Supreme Doritos that had the Taco Bell logo in Nova Scotia when i was a kid, and there was also a Pizza Hut flavour if i remember correctly. But what I'm really curious about are these Doritos that used to come in a solid white bag, back when the other flavours were kinda clear bagged, and it had a tomato drawn on the packaging i think and was called tangy something... BEST DORITO EVER. does anyone please please remember what they were called and/or know where to get any? please email me if you have any information darksephy@hotmail.com
Taco Doritos are back in Mississippi. I haven't seen them for years but I called the company last year about it. Then yesterday I walked in the gas station and there they were, "back by popular demand" Taco flavored Dorito's and they tasted just the same as 15 years ago.
We just got "back by popular demand" Taco flavored Doritos in Los Angeles. YIPEE!!!
I just stumbled across a display of TACO last week in Hillsboro, Ore. These were my favorite chips back in high school, and the first time I've seen them in nearly 15 years. They say "back by popular demand." I hope they stick around for a long time.
I am eating some now! I swear it's the first time I have seen them since the early 90s! And they taste just like I remembered! Now if only they would bring back the plain ones. They were dull yet tasty.
Oh man! I just stumbled upon these chips picking up some Tylenol from Walgreens here in Houston, TX.
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I opened the bag with anticipation that "this could finally be the formula they used in the 80's" - not that Taco Bell crap they put out back in the 90's and then just Taco early 2000's.
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Finally, to my intense satisfaction, I am proud to hereby affix my seal of approval verifying that this IS the 80's flavor.
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Unfortunately, I only got the $0.99 bag - so I will be leaving at lunch to go to HEB to get the family bag and snack here all day at work.
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Thank you SO MUCH Frito Lay!
THEY'RE BACK !!!!!!
I just found them yesterday at my local Miami grocery store. The package says "back by popular demand."
They used to be my favorite in my youth until they got doscontinued in the 80's.
I wish there was a way for us to write to them and say we love them so they will keep making them.
Look for them at your stores; they'll get there evenrtually.
I think I saw some on ebay @ www.katieskandiesandmore.com
YUM!
Ok well to be honest i was in love with the Four Cheese Doritos and for all of those others that also seemed to love this flavor i have great news. They are now bringing back the Four Cheese due to the fact it was loved by many....here is a glimpse at the new bag... http://www.john-wright.net/2008/10/05/economic-woes-and-four-cheese-doritos/
Hope you are as happy as i am :)
jackpot!! San Francisco (bay area) has the ORIGINAL taco flavor AND four cheese flavor's!!The new packaging states "back by popular demand" and " for a limited time". Picked them up in October and the last week of November;once at Wal Mart, the other at discount chain the Grocery Outlet.They are the same flavor as the ones back in the day, maybe not quite as much seasoning!I truly dont get why the flavor being sold helter skelter.If they are that popular them sell them everywhere!!Rock on original Taco flavor!
P.S.
I'd dig trying the dill pickle & Ketchup flavor''s (from Canada).
OMG I love Taco Doritos! I am in Kansas City and I haven't seen any , but of course I haven't beem to every f=grocer in town...lol. I know I haven't seen them in Hy-Vee or WalMart. To the person that lives in KC as well and has found them...can u tell me where please, thanks:)
I really don't care for the Cool Ranch they make nowadays, I really had an addiction for them back in the early 90's...so it that the original corn I seen written in above posts.? I can't describe how different they taste but I know my family thinks I am nutty when I say "I wish they made them like they did 20 years ago" Some one else knows what I mean right? LOL
they don;t make 'em like they used to, years ago the Taco flavor marketed "Now with sour cream!" woo hoo,they ruined the receipe and I can't even get taco in WA state except for the collision bags, then I have to pick out the taco and leave the ranch behind for another family member
When I was on vacation in the Philippines and I was about to go back to N.America, I bought a bag for the trip back home from a supermarket on my last day. Those chips were the best thing ever I swear. I just need to find them again in my local grocery store haha!
spotted small bags of "late night" taco flavored doritos at an exxon gas station in san antonio- corner of i-10 and west ave.
4/28/9
wow!!
You can find it in Turkey. Actually we have just 3 types of Doritos. Taco, Nacho(Cheese) and Hot Corn(Chili)...
Yes, you can find Taco Flavored Doritos in a few parts of the country, but they definitely do not have the original flavor from the 60's and 70's... so disappointing!
I loved the original Taco Flavored Doritos. It was the first "flavored" Dorito and it was heaven. Even though they gave me gas pains similar to a heart attack, I couldn't resist them. Then Nacho Doritos came on the scene and they discontinued the Tacos. Recently, I found the limited edition Taco Doritos (in a black bag). I'm not sure they're the same, but they're close.
The new ones in the black bag are sorta close to the 70's flavor, but something is definately missing, when i was a kid in the 70's I remember 3 flavors, they had the white bag which was plain, the yellow bag which was taco (the best dorito ever) and the red bag which was nacho cheese. Then they came out with that garbage taco bell flavor which was awful. Anyways, I doubt if we will ever get the same flavor taco chips that we who are old enough remember.
I also miss QUISP cereal, wish I could get that.
When Doritos first hit the market... way, way, back... probably in the 1970s, the two original flavors were "Taco" and "Nacho Cheese". Why "Taco" is no longer available is beyond me. I love "Nacho Cheese" but I believe I even loved the "Taco" better. The "Taco" that I sometimes see on grocery shelves now IS NOT THE SAME "TACO" as the original. Not sure why Frito Lay did away with the best "Taco"! Bring 'em back boys.
I REMEBER THE ORIDGINAL TACO FLAVOR BROWN AND IN A BROWN COLOR BAG.IT WAS THE BEST FLAVOR THERE WAS. NOT THIS CURENT TACO FLAVOR TODAY.I CALLED THE DORITOS CO A WHILE BACK AGO AND THEY HAD NOT A CLUE AS TO WHAT I WAS TALKING ABOUT WHEN I ASKED THEM DO THEY STILL MAKE IT AT ALL OR SELL IT IN OUTHER STATES. I WISH THERE WERE SOME WAY TO GET THEM TO BRING IT BACK.
When I was growing up, Taco flavored Doritos came in a white bag. The Corn-flavored came in a brown. Anyways - I saw Tacos at Midnight flavored at Walmart last payday and Hot Dam! I bought a bag and dreamed about hunkering down to a good old movie and a bag of my favorite childhood chips. Nada. It was sligtly like the old Taco Doritos. But the comparison is weak. Why mess with perfection? Bring them back! And don't start out dumping extra flavoring on them until we get hooked...and then sparsley covering any chip later on...dangit, keep them consistent! Or so help me...I'll open up my own tortilla plant! :P
I've recently seen Taco flavored Doritos (in Georgia) in a what I will call "retro-inspired" bag. I have no previous Taco Doritos to compare them to, except for the Late Night Tacos flavor. Just thought I'd add to the ever-growing comments on the search for the elusive Dorito. :-)
They're BAAAACCKKK...after the retro packaging run I found just before the Super Bowl, someone at Frito Lay had the good sense to make the return more permanent--at least I hope so. The current stuff comes in the same sort of packaging as the rest of the Doritos line. The only thing was the first bag of the Original Taco flavor Doritos I tried in the new packaging had a bit of nacho flavor to them. Nevertheless, Original Taco was and will be my favorite Doritos flavor and even accidentally tinged with a bit of nacho flavor it still is tops over all the rest.
As you mentioned, there have been many iterations of the original Taco flavor Doritos that came out in the 60's. None can compare. I've written to Frito Lay requesting their return in the past. Recently THEY HAVE RETURNED! At least they are available in my area of Kenosha, Wisconsin. They are packaged in the original retro package design and taste just as they did back in the day. When they first reappeared the package even stated "They're Back". If they sell them here then they must be available via mail. I'm just glad they're back.
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