Taco Bell #17147: Fill & Download for Free

So, to clarify for all the other people who answered, Taco Bell IS NOT Mexican nor does it claim to be. Taco Bell is Mexican INSPIRED food, and that's the big difference. Now, as to what I think about it, I personally think it's the greatest fast food chain restaurant in the world. Anywhere I go, I know I can have a #2 with a soft taco and still love it. The reason is because the standard that Taco Bell holds its restaurants at is high enough to where (for the most part)I wouldn't ever have to worry about the cleanliness, the preparation, or the quality of the food. That's of course never to say that every Taco Bell in existence is perfect and spit, polished, and shined, but the good definitely outweighs the bad in that scenario. I've had everything on the menu at least once, and I really can't say that there's anything I wouldn't eat again. I DO however miss a lot of their former products. I.e. frutista freezes, chickstars, lava tacos, XXL nachos and crunchwraps, etc. But that's just me.

First of all, I am not Mexican or Mexican American. However, I am married to an amazing woman from Mexico. She immigrated with her large family to the U.S. while she was in the fifth grade. We met in college and married shortly after finishing post grad. Her family lives in the Rio Grande Valley of Texas — just about five miles from the Texas-Mexico border.I’ve read some of the other answers which all make the correct assertion that Taco Bell is not “Mexican food” and was never presented as such. Many point out that it is “Mexican-inspired” food.However, I’ll go one step further: Taco Bell is actually Tex-Mex-inspired food. In other words, it borrows inspiration from Tex-Mex cuisine more so than traditional Mexican cuisine. Of course, Texas was once a part of Mexico too. So, essentially, it is correct to say that it is “Mexican-inspired.”One thing that people don’t realize about Mexico is that its food culture is as diverse as other countries. Tex-Mex is more of a “Norteño” culinary tradition. The climate and pastures of the northeastern parts of Mexico (including Texas) helped the residents to develop local culinary traditions.In this region, vaqueros (Spanish for “cowboys”) and their families used the vegetables, spices, meats and cheeses that were readily available. They developed amazing dishes such as “fajitas” (real fajitas and not just a particular spice sprinkled on common beef), brisket, “carne guisada” (steak stewed in gravy), breakfast tacos, barbacoa (the real stuff and not what you find at Chipotle restaurants), etc.The availability of dairy cattle, jalepeños, beef, wheat flour (for flour tortillas), eggs (from local farms), etc. helped define the culinary culture of Texas and northeastern Mexico. So, things like spicy food, sauces and cheese were a common part of these traditions.Essentially, much of what people consider “Mexican food” really traces its origin to this particular region (Texas and northeastern Mexico) and not the many different culinary dishes found elsewhere throughout Mexico. Despite being located along the Gulf of Mexico, things like fish tacos and “gambas al ajillo” (shrimp) and other dishes aren’t so readily common in this area.Consequently, Taco Bell borrows much of their menu inspiration from this particular region (Texas and northeastern Mexico) rather than the coastal or mountainous areas elsewhere in the country. So, Taco Bell uses those “Tex-Mex and Norteño” dishes as inspiration. They simply make them with cheaper ingredients in a fast-food setting.So, back to the question…Q: What do Mexicans think of Taco Bell?A: My wife likes it. We live in the San Francisco Bay Area where that Tex-Mex and Norteño foods are not very common. So, Taco Bell is one of the “closest” things to it. It is not highly authentic — but it doesn’t pretend to be.