Confessions: Junk Food Betty Edition.
When I was around nine years old, I stole a pack of stickers from a Hallmark store. I don’t even remember what the stickers were; probably Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles or something. I have never told anyone about this before.
Oh, shit, wait – that was the wrong confession! Oh well; I’m pretty sure the statute of limitations has run out on that crime. What I meant to confess is that I’ve been putting off reviewing these Retro Doritos Taco Flavor because I never had the original Doritos Taco Flavor. The best I can do is treat it like any other product I review, offering my opinion on the flavor and leaving it at that. But after I read the comments on The Impulsive Buy’s news announcement, I became even more intimidated. It seems those who actually ate the original Taco Doritos are rather polarized; some say it tastes just like the original, and some are OUTRAGED at the fact that it does not.
Of course, all taste is subjective. Since I can’t give a comparison, I’d like to ask any JFB readers who have eaten both the original and retro Taco Doritos to leave a comment telling me what you think about the two. Also feel free to tell me I got the flavor profile all wrong. You know, whatever.
With that out of the way, let’s take a small exploration into the history of Taco Doritos. Introduced in 1967, it was the second flavor of Doritos to ever hit the streets. The first was Toasted Corn. That’s a pretty prestigious position to be in. Taco went away at some point, not sure when. In the 1990s, there was a flavor called Taco Bell Taco Supreme, which was later just called Taco, and then there was a Zesty Taco flavor in the Collisions line, but then there was also the Late Night line that had Tacos at Midnight, which apparently did not taste-
You know what, I’m basing all of this information off of Wikipedia, which, of course, you can’t cite as a source in your book report, so just read this and try to sort it all out. Long story short: lots of different taco flavors in Doritos throughout the years.
No matter what they taste like, I’m tempted to empty the bag and frame it. Doritos got me on the packaging; as part of the Nostalgia Generation, whenever I see something like this bag, I think back to my childhood, when my worst problems were making sure I didn’t miss Saved by the Bell and nagging my dad to put air in the tires of my Huffy bike. Simpler times, simpler packaging. I love it.
I find the taste of the chips simpler, too. Again, I never had the original (that I can remember), but these Doritos have a nice, clean flavor profile. I’ve never had a taco that didn’t contain some kind of meat before, but these chips have no meat flavor whatsoever, and for that I am grateful. 1967 – simpler times, when people didn’t have to worry about things that weren’t meat tasting like meat.
What it does taste like, however, is Doritos Nacho Cheese with hints of onion, garlic, and maybe a little tomato. That’s it. No crazy extra stuff, no weird aftertaste I can’t quite explain. Just a nice cheese chip with some pleasant complimentary flavors.
Given, that’s not really what a taco tastes like, and it’s not exactly a mind-blowing flavor, but I don’t care. I still like them, and have been shoving them in my mouth for almost this entire review, so that says something. I wasn’t alive in 1967, but maybe this was a mind-blowing flavor back then. Either way, I think it’s a solid chip. And I would hug the retro bag if it didn’t mean crushing all the chips.
Update: Since it took me so long to write this, Doritos has announced in their Snack Chat that Retro Taco Doritos will stay around for good! Now I can hug my bag, because I can just go get another one!
Update the second: As of me putting the finishing touches on this post, there has been TREACHERY! If you read the Snack Chat link in the first update, you will see that I was correct in saying Taco was the second Doritos flavor ever, and that it debuted in 1967. A few days ago, when I started this post, The Wikipedia link I posted reflected this fact. But look what the Wikipedia article says as of 12:37pm MST, 2/28/11: “The first flavor of Doritos was Toasted Corn followed by Nacho Cheese (known for a time as Nacho Cheesier) flavor was released in 1972 while Cool Ranch (known for a time as Cooler Ranch) flavor was released in 1986.”
THIS IS NOT TRUE! DO NOT BELIEVE WIKIPEDIA! BELIEVE SNACK CHAT! Just more proof that on Wikipedia, “any jackass could have written that”. And this is why Wikipedia isn’t allowed as a citation for book reports! Or my website, apparently!
- Score: 4 out of 5 sombreros
- Price: $3.29
- Size: 12 oz. bag
- Purchased at: Fry’s Foods
- Nutritional Quirks: Despite being taco flavored, Doritos Taco does not taste like meat. GOOD.
Definitely not the same taste – the original ones had a much more garlicy bite to them that literally stunk up my entire house. My mom stopped buying them when I started reeking of garlic/onions.
Having said that, these chips are fantastic. I love the review and agree wholeheartedly. Definitely worth buying.
I bought my first bag of Taco Flavored Doritos in ’67 or 68′ in Panama City, FL. I was 11 or 12 years old, loved them, these new ones are close but not exactly the same. I’m glad they are back, and to see the bag, brings back memories.
i grew up in the 70s as well and LOVED taco doritos! so when i saw them in the local albertson’s (and the retro bag) i bought them. I LOVE THESE! same taste as back in the day! thank goodness doritos brought them back! they’re at walmart in the old-school bag still. my happy snack.
Well not exactly.. but you can fix it like I did. The original Doritos Taco flavor were much more coated with seasoning and if you looked into the bag, you could pick out the one’s that were full of flavor. When I first tried the new flashback return I was disappointed and thought they tasted like Fritos was taking the nacho chips and adding a small amount of flavoring that didn’t seem to bring back the memories I had. It was like they were not using enough seasoning or changed the mix all together. Recently I was reading an article about how they had a little café at Disneyland and someone got the idea to fry up older tortillas and season with taco seasoning . It became a big hit in Southern California and soon went national. After reading the article I went into the kitchen with my bag of Taco flavor Doritos and poured a little bit of Lawrys taco seasoning on it and it wasn’t too bad. But then I pulled some McCormick Premium taco seasoning down from the cabinet that we get in a big container from Costco and it tasted just like I remember them in the sixties. I opened the bag up and poured some more in and shook it up real good and I feel like a kid again eating one of my favorite foods from the past. Hell Yeah! Now can someone bring back the best of the best from the 60’s and 70’s…FLINGS! They started in a box but ended up in a foil bag and man these things just melted in your mouth and were so full of flavor. While your at it, how about bringing back some Screamin Yellow Zonkers again. Or how about a bag of chicken bones you’d get when you went to the mall and inside stores like Sears there were candy and nuts kiosks full of all kinds of different goodies but those chicken bones were Mmmm damn good!
I remember when I was about 6 years old my grandparents would give me a dollar to go to the store. Each time I woukd akways buy a bag of Taco Doritos. I was mad when they discontinued them. Cooler ranch became the replacement bag of chips. I walked into the Shell gas station near my house the other day and I saw a stock of Retro Dorito bags; and I said that looks like the old Taco Doritos. I was shocked! I just googled it to show my daughter the way the Dorito bags looked about 25 years ago when I was 5 years old.
I LOVE the bag. I saw these tonight and didn’t buy any, but after reading all these reviews, I am definitely getting some!!!
I AM old enough.
In fact everyday, I had taco doritos in my GI Joe lunch box with a variety of different sandwiches
(depended on the day) & a Little Debbie’s oatmeal creme pie:)
SO, I live in VA and about 2 years ago I sent Fritolay a request to make these again! I sent e-mails out asking all my friends to do the same. Now, I don’t know if that had anything to do with bringing them back, BUT I’m on vacation in Maine – (2 years later) & I walked into a quaint seaside village store & THERE THEY WERE!!!!!!! I bought all of their bags afraid I may never see them again (they don’t carry them in VA). I came back to my room & started searching the internet to find your blog:) They aren’t quite as covered with flavor as they were back in 1967. Back then (like cheetos) the powdery flavoring stuck to your fingers (now THAT was finger lickin’ good),but they still are VERY close to their original flavor. In my ancient opinion the BEST flavor they ever put on a dorito.
They are not the same. Original Taco did not have a sour cream taste to them. I was around for the originals and these aren’t as good. BTW if you call the Dorito comment line they will send some great coupons!
I came here after searching google to see if they had changed the Taco flavor to more like nacho cheese flavor….I have bought several bags of these and they did taste EXACTLY like the old taco flavor from the early ’70’s….but the ones I bought today, taste like they are making them taste more like nacho cheese…..anyone else notice this?
Well these retro taco flavored Doritoes do not taste the same.
When I was growing up our Friday night treat was Doritoes and Pepsi.
I am really dissapointed. There was definitely not a sour cream hint of flavor in the 70’s !
The flavor was bold and the spices were dark and chips heavily coated. I have missed the original taco flavor for years !!!!
Bring back the total original flavor !
Although I’m only 20, Taco Doritos bring back memories of my adolescence and are my only reason for eating Doritos (besides Salsa Verde, of course. Why do they take the best flavors away?) I never understood why they went away, maybe just too similar to Nacho Cheesier.
BUT NOW THEY’RE BACK! REJOICE! and for good? thank jebus
The original recipe sounds great, and Rancheritos may be similar as they are tomatoey and spicy without much or perhaps any cheese and sour cream.
I just had these for the first time since I was a kid, this flavour is a million times better than the other specialty ones (Tandoori?!) so Im glad they’re keeping it around. I found myself dipping the chips into hot Peruvian aji amarillo sauce and wishing I’d bought a bigger bag!
I am aging myself here, but I ate 1 large bag of these Doritos Taco Flavor chips every week when I was a child in the early 70’s. The flavor, to me, is fairly represented, down to the smell nside the bag when you open it. When they came back out as “Retro” for a few mon ths of testing i horded all the bags I could, even asking the Publix manager how I can order by the case, as I thought they would go away after the promotion last year. The bags were introduced at $3.29 per bag last year, and are now going for $4.29. I guess enough Baby Boomers remembered this product for Doritos to bring them back full time. I am eating a bag as I type this, with a case in the garage. LOL! Welcome back Retro “Taco Flavor” Hoo Yah.
Foolow-up: Good point above.do nt taste “Sour Cream” in these Taco Flavor Doritos,and originally it was not there. But I love them anyway!!
I was born in the 1972 but i rember when i was 12 to my teens the Taco doritos falavor was the BOMB back than an now i bought a bag the 260gs big bag they taste the same when i was a kid back than to now they also bought back the retro pepsi it is in the small plastic bottles an it brouht me back inti time like a time machine lol even they came back with my favoriet retro cartoons as well called teltoon Retro the 80’s were more better than now so im going to buy more bags when i go shopping for food “EVERYONE KEEP IT RETRO REAL 😀 IM FROM WINDSOR,ONTARO,CANADA MY NAME IS ROB.W.
I purchased a bag of the Taco Flavor Doritos the other day and was sadly disappointed. I thought that the chips would taste like taco shells but instead they have a strong taste of sour cream. I ate a couple chips and then threw the rest of the bag in the garbage. It would have been nice if the sour cream taste had been advertised on the bag so that I could have avoided this purchase.
They are GROSS, wait of money!!!!!
thank you Doritos . My dad passed ten yrs ago now these chips are
sitting here eating them now!!!!!
They are still very close to the original style chips & I’d rather have these than ANY OTHER flavor they have on the market today. Frito Lay, thanx for bringing these back. Those who don’t like them, didn’t taste them in the 70’s. It’s suppose to be a “taco” flavored style chip, not a taco shell chip flavor. My local store can’t keep enough of them on the shelf. Glad I bought a bunch when I first saw them come back out!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I was born in the 60’s (shhhh don’t tell anyone) and I started eating these as a kid in the 70’s and I have to say they do taste like the original. If they have actually brought them back for real and not just for a limited time only then I am one happy camper. Reminds me of the beach, rootbeer, dead jellyfish and the boardwalk. Ahh yes…being hit in the head with a dead jellyfish…fun times…fun times.
Opened a new bag of the Retro’s just minutes ago. Although I am turning the big “5” “0” this year I feel like skipping school and sneaking off for some sun at the park. These chips ROCK just as they did back in the day!!!
I just found these in my grocery store today. I grabbed ’em because I’m old enough to remember the original roll-out of these chips in this bag. They taste like I remember them, completely. At the time they were a new, exotic flavor for me — I was just a kid — and I grew to love these and actual Mexican food. My palate has expanded since then, too. I saw another poster mentioned something about Tandoori Doritos; now THOSE I’d like to try!!!!
I use to eat the taco flavored doritos when I was young as well, they were only given to us kids as a special treat.
I believe that the newer version taste somewhat stronger and saltier. The original taco flavor was softer in flavor with not as much salt. It seems both the Nacho Cheese and the Taco flavors of today is a bit richer and saltier in taste compared to the 1970’s. I’m just saying…
These are a recreation of the second wave of taco flavored Doritos, which added a sour cream flavor to the taco flavor. I prefer the original taco flavor which were a very dark brown color – not the sort of coppery color of these chips. They’re ok, but I really would have preferred the original taco Doritos.
The current Taco flavor Doritos chips is as different from the old as nice and day
The Old Taco had more and for me (better) flavor-it was tangier, visually had a darker seasoning and they were a bit saltier (not necessarily a good thing)
The seasoning was much more interesting, complex and flavorful than today’s chip
Much more so
There is no comparison. If you have nothing to compare it to then fine but if you tried and remembered the old flavor you are probably disappointed with the new stuff
elles sont bonnes mais c’est pas vrai qu’elle ont le meme gout. Trop de fromage et pas assez de saveur poudreusede taco. j’adorais le gout de ces chips, au environ de 1980
Now now, let’s not be nasty to each other over chips guys. How old are we again? Calling each other “clowns” and “idiots” over TACO SEASONING? Hmmm.
Jen, why would you comment on three posts from 18 months ago as if they are representative of all of the posts? Shouldn’t you be commenting on the chips themselves?
I’m going to say it again: The original recipe from 1967 until the late ’70s had no cheese or sour cream whatsoever. They were just spicy. They then changed the recipe, adding cheese and sour cream, making them overpoweringly cheesy/sour creamy, completely ruining them. The current chips are using the second, horrible, recipe.
They taste exactly the same as the original to me, and I grew up loving them in the ’70s. After they disappeared from the state I grew up in, I missed them greatly. Then I went to Texas for college in the ’90s and found them again out there! Guess they were still in that market, though not my home state. Loved them again! Now they’re back and taste the same. I think some people are confused who grew up on the Taco Bell flavored ones that were put out by Doritos in the 90s. I never liked them, and they stopped making them after a short time. I teach now and have told my students for years about foods and such that were once out there in the market and then went away. Now I’ve let them taste the Taco Doritos and they are in agreement that they are terrific! Glad it came back! Wish a few other things would as well, like Frostie Rootbeer and Almost Home cookies. 🙂
I do realize that the ones I grew up on may not have been the first incarnation of the Taco Doritos, as Steve just above me mentioned. But they were what I first experienced in the mid-70s, and they are awesome!
I’m still eating them:) I was SO GLAD a few years ago when these returned to the market! I’m also happy to say that they are about as close to the old taste from 46 years ago as they could be:)
Now I just wish Kelloggs’s would bring back
Danish Go Rounds!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Mills, they changed the recipe in the LATE ’70s, not the mid ’70s.
Robert, in order to be anywhere close to the original taste of 46 years ago, they would have to completely remove the cheese/sour cream. The original chips had none whatsoever.
Sure thing Steve:) More for me & others!
Blessings & THANX!
While the latest TACO Doritos are very good, they are NOT as good as the original. The original chips were so coated with seasoning, that the chips were almost dark brown in color, and your fingertips would reflect it! I will admit when I eat one today, that first twang of taste conjures up great childhood memories, and for that I am grateful!!
Jinelle or ANYONE ELSE that can tell me where I can buy the TACO Doritos. I mean the original in the orange bag. They stopped carrying them in my area?
I went on the Frito Lay website & it shows they are still available. I contacted Frito Lay, but they were ABSOLUTELY NO HELP! If someone knows where to get them PLEASE let me know:( This has been SO frustrating!!!!
Blessings,
robert
They are available everywhere in Branson, Missouri
Bob, I appreciate the info about Branson. I called several stores. They either did not have in stock or were not willing to ship:( You did inspire me to keep looking online when you said they were still available. I found a company on Amazon called usfoodz. I placed an order & they arrived today. Thanx for your help!!!!!!Blessings!
I want some but cannot find them anywhere. I love in a small town in KY and Walmart carried them last year but no longer sells them. Anyone know where I can get them. Love them! Old or new….I didn’t notice any difference!
Wait a second! Who remembers the sour cream and onion Doritos in the green bag, back in the day?? I wish they would try and bring those back! 🙂 🙂
Miss my pal bubble gum too! 🙁
I found a company on Amazon called usfoodz. That’s where I get my Taco Flavored. The sour cream & onion are listed on the Amazon website, but none available now. It has a place to sign up & be notified. What I’ve found out is different flavors are manufactured in different areas. I saw some dill pickled flavored available from Canada. Haven’t gotten the guts or money (tooooooo expensive) to try them yet.
All – our taste buds are no longer as innocent – hot coffee, alcohol, even possibly smoking since 1970 – mean it’s impossible to judge if these are the same by pure taste memory… but kudos for bringing them back so we can try to compare!
Why is it so hard to find the taco flavored doritos
When I took my first bite, I was instantly transported back to my childhood, eating these with my friend Debbie while watching Saturday night live with the original not ready for prime time players….I think they taste the same…and love the bag, I completely forgot how the bags looked, but when I saw this, instantly, I remembered it, instantly
Definitely not the same recipe as the original Taco Flavored Doritos. I was expecting that same spice bomb but it fell short. I was once known for eating the Taco Flavored Doritos on a daily basis so much that the sales man would even come to my house to drop off “extras” that he had on a weekly basis.
I remember the old flavor of Taco chips very well. They were my favorite. Excited to see the bag back with the chips. The flavor may have changed a little but the taste is one that I still love even though there has been a tweak to it. Taco flavored chips is the only Doritos that I eat. I don’t care for any of the other flavors. So glad the taco is back and hope they will always be around.
The flavor is pretty close to the same. I remember it being a little more tangy and a little more spicy than it is today. However, I was probably 8 or 9 years old at the time (maybe younger when I first tried them) and certainly my taste buds have changed by now.
I was excited to see the retro packaging and flavor as well! I prefer Taco over any other flavor.
Reincarnations and relaunches of taco-flavored Doritos, including the 2008 “Back By Popular Demand” campaign, were different from the original taco flavor (A sour cream flavor had been added to the recipe around 1985). The taco chips included in the Zesty Taco and Chipotle Ranch “Collisions” bags were thought by customers to be closer to the original, but were later discontinued in most of the United States.
i dont like those i like the red orgenal