Taco Bell fans who have the Taco Bell app were treated to an early return of the item on May 16 and May 17. The Mexican Pizza officially returns to the menu on May 19.
(CNN) -- Taco Bell's Mexican Pizza is becoming increasingly hard to find just less than two weeks after it returned to menus.
Demand for the beloved item was seven times higher than when it last appeared on menus two years ago, which has prompted many of its locations to sell out. For example, the company said one fan bought 180 Mexican Pizzas in a single order.
"Because of the incredible love for the Mexican Pizza, we have begun selling out across the country," Taco Bell said on its website. "Our restaurant teams trained weeks for what we knew would be a big return, we just didn't realize how big, and replenishing the beloved menu item is taking longer than we'd like."
Taco Bell said in a statement that it's working "diligently with our restaurants and suppliers" to get more ingredients for the pizza, and hopes it returns permanently to menus "by this fall."
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The beloved menu item was eliminated in November 2020 as part of a broader culling of Taco Bell's menu during the height of the pandemic. That helped Taco Bell shed complexities and costs.
The Mexican Pizza consists of a tortilla shell filled with pizza sauce and either beans or ground beef. It's topped with another tortilla shell that's smothered with more sauce, cheese and chopped tomatoes. Taco Bell introduced the item in 1985 and originally called it the "Pizzazz Pizza."
Fast-food chains must constantly compete for customers' dollars and attention, and specialty offerings are a way to try to cut through the noise. Taco Bell, in particular, regularly experiments with its menu by adding limited-time offers to stimulate customer interest.
The brand is a strong performer for its parent company, Yum! Brands. It reported same-store sales growth of 5%, beating expectations, in its most recent earnings report.
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- By Emily von Hoffman
Taco Bell is a favorite late night destination for fans of faux-Mexican cuisine, but even a stroke of virtue in the wee hours won't guarantee that you'll wake up with no regrets. Foods that appear healthy by name are often not so, complicating food-related decision-making by every standard other than flavor.
HealthGrove, a health research site part of the Graphiq network, compiled a list of the most caloric food items on the Taco Bell menu -- not including drink items. The list is ranked according to calorie count (as of July 25), and when ties occur, items are ranked by sodium levels.
Of the top 25 items, three salads containing between 720 and 770 calories make the list. Despite the healthy connotations surrounding salads, all three are more caloric than items like the "Shredded Smothered Burrito," the "Bacon Grande Scrambler Burrito" and the "Steak DoubleDilla." If you're looking for lower calorie options, you'd do well to keep it simple: A visit to Taco Bell's online menu reveals that a taco (even one branded as a "Double Decker Taco Supreme") contains just 340 calories, slightly more than half the number in the least caloric food item on our list.
Click through our list to see if your favorites rank among the calorie-rich items at Taco Bell.
Calories: 1,240
Sodium: 2,250
Carbs: 134
Fat: 65
Protein: 31
Learn More About Your Favorite Fast Food Menu Items on HealthGrove
From the crunchwrap to the quesarito: Which Taco Bell foods have the most calories?
Foods that appear healthy by name are often not so, complicating food-related decision-making by every standard other than flavor.
- By Emily von Hoffman
Taco Bell is a favorite late night destination for fans of faux-Mexican cuisine, but even a stroke of virtue in the wee hours won't guarantee that you'll wake up with no regrets. Foods that appear healthy by name are often not so, complicating food-related decision-making by every standard other than flavor.
HealthGrove, a health research site part of the Graphiq network, compiled a list of the most caloric food items on the Taco Bell menu -- not including drink items. The list is ranked according to calorie count (as of July 25), and when ties occur, items are ranked by sodium levels.
Of the top 25 items, three salads containing between 720 and 770 calories make the list. Despite the healthy connotations surrounding salads, all three are more caloric than items like the "Shredded Smothered Burrito," the "Bacon Grande Scrambler Burrito" and the "Steak DoubleDilla." If you're looking for lower calorie options, you'd do well to keep it simple: A visit to Taco Bell's online menu reveals that a taco (even one branded as a "Double Decker Taco Supreme") contains just 340 calories, slightly more than half the number in the least caloric food item on our list.
Click through our list to see if your favorites rank among the calorie-rich items at Taco Bell.
Calories: 620
Sodium: 1,380
Carbs: 64
Fat: 30
Protein: 24
Note: The image depicts the Quesarito with beef.
Calories: 630
Sodium: 1,470
Carbs: 65
Fat: 31
Protein: 24
Note: The image depicts the Grande Scrambler Burrito with Bacon.
Calories: 640
Sodium: 1,310
Carbs: 64
Fat: 34
Protein: 19
Note: The image depicts the Grande Scrambler Burrito with Bacon.
Calories: 640
Sodium: 2,210
Carbs: 66
Fat: 27
Protein: 33
Note: The image depicts the Smothered Burrito with beef.
Calories: 650
Sodium: 2,190
Carbs: 66
Fat: 29
Protein: 33
Note: The image depicts the Smothered Burrito with beef.
Calories: 720
Sodium: 1,390
Carbs: 73
Fat: 33
Protein: 33
Note: The image depicts the Fiesta Taco Salad with beef.
Calories: 730
Sodium: 1,710
Carbs: 74
Fat: 34
Protein: 32
Note: The image depicts the Fiesta Taco Salad with beef.
Calories: 810
Sodium: 2,120
Carbs: 87
Fat: 35
Protein: 38
Note: The image depicts the XXL Grilled Stuft Burrito with beef.
Calories: 820
Sodium: 2,140
Carbs: 88
Fat: 36
Protein: 37
Note: The image depicts the XXL Grilled Stuft Burrito with beef.
Calories: 1,240
Sodium: 2,250
Carbs: 134
Fat: 65
Protein: 31
Learn More About Your Favorite Fast Food Menu Items on HealthGrove
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