Taco Bell either has very clever marketing people who fully believe that any publicity equals good publicity, or it completely does not know its customer base.
The Yum! Brands (YUM) chain brought back its beloved Mexican Pizza earlier this summer after it had been taken off the menu for pandemic-related reasons.
The return was met with a joy that's generally not typical for a fast-food chain bringing a menu item back. Taco Bell may have underestimated how much people liked Mexican Pizza, or perhaps the very weird past year-and-a-half caused by the pandemic made customers extra nostalgic.
For whatever the reasons were, the company "permanently" brought back the beloved menu item only to have it sell out in a matter of days. That caused it to disappear almost as quickly as it appeared at many Taco Bell's. The company insists this was not a marketing plan, but simply demand being higher than expected.
"Our fans’ love is all-consuming, and they’re consuming all the Mexican Pizzas. Demand for the Mexican Pizza was seven times higher than when it was last on menus, and replenishing the beloved menu item is taking longer than we’d like," the chain shared on its website.
The company does have a plan to bring back the popular favorite, but Mexican Pizza fans may not be happy about the timeline.
TheStreet
When Is Mexican Pizza Coming Back?
Taco Bell insists on its website that it never intended the return of the Mexican Pizza to be a limited-time offer, addressing the question "so was this whole thing planned, was this a limited-time offer" directly.
"No. As soon as we’re able to get the Mexican Pizza back in the hands and stomachs of our biggest fans, it’ll be for good," the chain shared.
The problem is that Taco Bell has been especially vague on when the popular menu item will make its return.
"You can check back here for the latest details and information, including when we plan for the Mexican Pizza to come back to its permanent residency on the Taco Bell menu, expected this fall," the chain shared on its FAQ page.
Simply saying "this fall" is especially vague but a number of social media accounts have pegged the return as being in mid-September. That's not a hard and fast date by any means as some of the chain's restaurants have been saying "the end of the year," when asked by customers.
The return has been complicated by the fact that the chain has not completely sold out of Mexican Pizza. You can still find it at some locations (and a whole website exists to track it).
Taco Bell Fans Are Angry
As you might imagine, many Taco Bell fans are not happy about what they see as at best a bait-and-switch by the fast-food giant. Many people have taken to Twitter to express their displeasure.
Some customers seem unwilling to give Taco Bell a chance to make it up to them (though it seems pretty likely that customers will come back no matter what they post).
Some fans, however, do seem very devoted to Mexican Pizza.
