Taco Bell Brings Back the Beefy Potato-Rito for a Limited Time

Potatoes: though you might not think of them as a foundational component of Mexican cuisine, they've nonetheless played a crucial role in Taco Bell's vegetarian menu options. So much so, in fact, that the 2020 removal of various potato-based items as part of Taco Bell's menu streamlining efforts left many plant-based eaters with no choice but to live less mas than they may have liked.

Not only are some of those potato-based menu items now back, but Taco Bell's out to prove that you don't have to be a vegetarian to enjoy the bounty of starchy spuds. That's thanks to the return of the Beefy Potato-rito, part of the larger, ongoing potato push.

First launched in 2017, this particular item is more or less exactly what it sounds like: a fusion of ground beef and potatoes that's drizzled in nacho cheese and chipotle sauce, all snugly secured inside a tortilla. It also sports a pretty tasty price point: retailing for just $1, it's a pretty easy impulse buy.

Take the Beefy Potato-rito's return as another sign that Taco Bell is trying to regain some of the goodwill it lost in 2020 with a slew of menu changes that fans will hopefully welcome. In addition to the return of potato items like Cheesy Fiesta Potatoes and the Spicy Potato Soft Taco, the recent return of the Quesalupa shows that T-Bell is truly serious about stuffing its menu with fan favorites in 2021.

If this south of the border take on potatoes and beef seems up your alley, it'll be available at Taco Bells nationwide beginning April 15. Should you be an esteemed Taco Bell Beta rewards member, you can order one right now and rub it in people's faces (don't literally do that, though).

So though it won't be around forever (in the end, what is?), we tip our cap to the Beefy Potato-Rito, another show of good faith from Taco Bell. Maybe the past we've been longing for over the past year isn't as irretrievable as we once thought.