Reviewing Taco Bell's 'FirstMeal' Breakfast Menu

This week, Taco Bell rolled out its long-awaited breakfast menu at 750 locations in 10 states across the country. The Tex-Mex titan of fast food, whose parent company is Yum! Brands Inc., spent the past five years developing the 11-item menu, known as "FirstMeal."

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Breakfast menus have a long and storied history in the American fast-food industry. In 1971, McDonald's introduced the first Egg McMuffin. In 1977, they officially unveiled their entire breakfast menu. Today, most McDonald's locations start serving breakfast around 6:00 a.m., and a host of other fast-food chains (Jack in the Box, Carl's Jr., Burger King, Wendy's, and even Starbucks and Subway) have been slow but sure to follow suit in delivering the "most important meal of the day." The one major fast-food chain to hold off on this trend, until now, has been Taco Bell, a seemingly natural addition to the breakfast bandwagon.

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But all you late-night "FourthMeal"-ers won't have to wait any longer - your "FirstMeal" has arrived (does that technically make it five meals a day?). The options include a Johnsonville Sausage and Egg Wrap, two larger burritos (the Grande Skillet costs $2.79 and the Steak and Egg costs $1.99), two smaller $0.99 burritos (Bacon and Egg, Sausage and Egg), a hash brown, a quartet of Cinnabon Delights (fried dough balls with cream filling), fresh-brewed Seattle's Best Coffee (hot, iced, and flavored); and Tropicana Orange Juice.

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So what are early reviewers saying about Taco Bell's "Firstmeal" launch? In the following slideshow, three different types of avowed Los Angeles-based fast-food connoisseurs tested every item on the menu and gave their honest opinions.

Judge number one is what some would call a "fast-foodie," a connoisseur of all things drive-thru, the kind of person who would name their first child Mickey, and their second child Dee. Judge number two is the "breakfast-on-the-run" type, that friend of yours who's always apologizing for stray McMuffin wrappers when you get in their car. And judge number three is the "health nut," the health-conscious provider and parent who recognizes the time-saving benefits of fast food, but also knows the risks.

Nutritional facts are included with each item, but reviews were primarily limited to taste.


Johnsonville Sausage and Egg WrapJohnsonville Sausage and Egg Wrap ($1.79)
Nutritional Info: 360 calories, 220 calories from fat, 24 grams total fat, 780 grams of sodium

Fast-Foodie: "Nice crisp to it. It's almost got a panini type of feel to it. It seems like that's the way with Taco Bell… everything's very airy. The McDonald's Sausage McMuffin comes to mind."

Breakfast-on-the-Run: "First thing, right off the bat, it's half the size of their Crunch Wrap Supreme, which is like a Frisbee. Easy to carry. An easy in-your-car eat. Because it's got a pocket, unlike a burrito which can squish out while you're driving."

Health-Nut: "It's very thin. You have a very thin layer of egg, not much cheese, and then you have a sausage patty. It's not as hearty as other fast-food sandwiches."


Grande Skillet BurritoGrande Skillet Burrito ($2.79)
Nutritional Info: 720 calories, 350 calories from fat, 39 grams total fat, 1050 milligrams of sodium

Fast-Foodie: "It's very potato-heavy, which any breakfast burrito done right should always be. And they aren't your usual hash browns. They're flavorful, like American-style breakfast potatoes."

Breakfast-on-the-Run: "It's 90 percent potato. You can't taste the meat at all. But I think if I had the choice, I would order just one of these, as opposed to three of the smaller burritos."

Health Nut: "The tomatoes and onions are a great surprise. It seems healthier than the Carl's Jr. breakfast burrito. I wish they could turn it into a bowl."


Bacon and Egg BurritoBacon and Egg Burrito ($0.99)
Nutritional Info: 280 calories, 140 calories from fat, 15 grams total fat, 680 grams of sodium

Fast-Foodie: "It's almost ham-y. The first thing I smelled was ham. And it definitely does not taste like bacon. There's no crisp on it whatsoever."

Breakfast-on-the-Run: "It's dinky, but for $0.99, that's what you're expecting. If I wanted only this for breakfast, I'd probably order two."

Health Nut: "I would never order that again."Nutritional Info: 280 calories


Cinnabon DelightsCinnabon Delights ($1.49)
Nutritional Info: 220 calories, 110 calories from fat, 12 grams total fat, 110 grams of sodium

Fast-Foodie: "My initial reaction is I think this will be a big hit. Cinnabon is a recognizable company. You know the smell when you walk into a mall. I think that was a good partnership."

Breakfast-on-the-Run: "I guess this is like the churro of breakfast. It's like a doughnut hole with cream filling. Kids will love them."

Health Nut: "My kids would go crazy over the Cinnabon Delights, but I'm not sure how thrilled I'd be for them to have this for breakfast."


Seattle's Best for Taco BellSeattle's Best Coffee ($0.99)
Nutritional Info: 10 calories, 0 calories from fat, 0 grams total fat, 20 grams of sodium

Fast-Foodie: "It's good. Seattle's Best is solid. But it's not up to the level of McDonald's, who's done real well with their coffee."

Breakfast-on-the-Run: "I'm not so much a coffee snob, but it's not very thick." (Note: The reviewer did take the coffee with them to-go).

Health Nut: "It just tastes like coffee-flavored water."


Click here for More Reviews of Items from Taco Bell's 'FirstMeal' Breakfast Menu


- Josh Morrison, The Daily Meal

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