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Home » Travel » After A Bad Flight, Taco Bell Saves The Day
Travel

After A Bad Flight, Taco Bell Saves The Day

Matthew Klint Posted onAugust 18, 2022November 13, 2023 38 Comments

a quesadilla on a paper wrapper

Folks, there’s nothing like a bit of comfort food after a long flight with bad food served onboard. I’m thankful Taco Bell is open late.

Taco Bell After A Long Flight With Bad Food

I mentioned it in passing in my review of the Hyatt Regency Chicago O’Hare, but after arriving from Krakow on LOT Polish, I was hungry. Like, really hungry. Now normally in Chicago I would prefer a pizza from Lou Malnati’s or Giordano’s but it was approaching midnight and both were closed. Thankfully, Taco Bell was still an option.

If I’m having Taco Bell, I’m going to eat a lot…I don’t understand how people make do with one taco or one burrito. If I’m hungry, I need 5-7 items to satisfy my hunger.

a brown paper bag with a white label

several packages of food

a taco in a paper wrapper

All my life, Taco Bell has been a treat. We used to have an old-school one near my house in the Adobe style exterior Taco Bell abandoned about 20 years ago. There was one near my grandmother’s house too. It was always great fun to stop there on special occasions.

a sign on the corner of a building
Taco Bell in Monterey, CA.

While living in Philadelphia, there happened to be one on the ground level of my law school library. That was destructive…

These days, I don’t eat at Taco Bell much anymore. It’s one of the many things I’ve given up this year as I try to shed body fat and regain my early-20’s physique. The great thing about giving up most junk food (there are exceptions…I had did decide to stop and have a Mexican Pizza when that was introduced a few months ago…)  is that as time goes by, I no longer crave it. I used to eat a healthy breakfast, lunch, dinner, but then would have a late-night snack at Taco Bell and then pile it on with a bag of candy after. There’s an extra 2,500 calories right there…and all the wrong kinds…

a pizza box on a table

a tacos in a box
Mexican Pizza at Taco Bell.
a tortilla in a wrapper
Cheese quesadilla with extra creamy jalapeño sauce…my favorite item on the menu.
a quesadilla on a paper wrapper
Nasty and yet always the best…
a plate of nachos with cheese sauce and salsa
Nachos…always good.

While I have drastically curbed my Taco Bell consumption, it still truly hits the spot after a long flight in which mediocre food was served onboard.

CONCLUSION

There’s nothing like an In-N-Out burger or Taco Bell when feeling famished after a flight. Even with my new diet, I will make the occasional exception to feast on these treats. It’s one of the small pleasures of life.

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About Author

Matthew Klint

Matthew is an avid traveler who calls Los Angeles home. Each year he travels more than 200,000 miles by air and has visited more than 135 countries. Working both in the aviation industry and as a travel consultant, Matthew has been featured in major media outlets around the world and uses his Live and Let's Fly blog to share the latest news in the airline industry, commentary on frequent flyer programs, and detailed reports of his worldwide travel.

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38 Comments

  1. Stuart Reply
    August 18, 2022 at 3:46 pm

    Well, this explains why you love the UA Cheeseburger. Just saying.

  2. Aaron Reply
    August 18, 2022 at 4:04 pm

    If you’re going to cheat on your diet, there have to be better places for that than Taco Bell.

  3. Bandmeeting Reply
    August 18, 2022 at 4:07 pm

    When I woke up this morning I said to myself, “I’ll bet that at some point today I read a paean to Taco Bell”. Et, voilà.

  4. William Robert Reply
    August 18, 2022 at 4:19 pm

    As bad as that flight was, you were certainly risking an even worse night with all that taco bell

  5. Jan Reply
    August 18, 2022 at 4:25 pm

    Hell yeah.

  6. dfw88 Reply
    August 18, 2022 at 4:33 pm

    Matthew, I’ve been a long-time reader of the blog and have supported you through many controversial moments. But this is a bridge too far. An adult human enjoying Taco Bell is something I cannot support. I’m done.

    (all in good fun, but Taco Bell really is gross) 🙂

  7. Ed Reply
    August 18, 2022 at 4:51 pm

    I remember in high school getting tacos there for $0.49 each…

    I still do Taco Bell for lunch sometimes… Always a Burrito Supreme and soft taco. Best faux-mexican deal out there!

  8. Andy K Reply
    August 18, 2022 at 4:55 pm

    Saw this somewhere else:

    Taco Bell is really the great equalizer. You will see every social class and level of wealth in line. Somebody driving a Tesla, Lambo, 1996 Kia, all here for the same thing.

    • mojo Reply
      August 18, 2022 at 9:25 pm

      “…all here for the same thing” : diarrhea

  9. Shaun Reply
    August 18, 2022 at 4:57 pm

    Gross

  10. Delynn Reply
    August 18, 2022 at 5:37 pm

    Everyone has their guilty pleasure-glad you enjoyed it!

  11. Robert Reply
    August 18, 2022 at 6:35 pm

    Gone are the days of overeating at Taco Bell for $3 but I agree with you, it’s a guilty pleasure. At least for the old-school Taco Bell items… I can’t force myself to eat any of the new Doritos items.

    I love that you shared your love of Taco Bell, even first class travelers need comfort food every now and then! Growing up with rare trips 10 miles to McDonald’s I still have a soft spot for the little hamburger!

  12. Dave Edwards Reply
    August 18, 2022 at 6:42 pm

    We have to sometimes admit we all eat cheap garbage food to say we can relate to the Ham & Eggers flying coach occasionally.

  13. Steve Reply
    August 18, 2022 at 6:54 pm

    I was good tonight. I had a salad for dinner.
    Then I read this article and saw the images of all that greasy, doughy, cheesy food that wanted to be in my belly.
    SIGH

    • Matthew Klint Reply
      August 18, 2022 at 7:23 pm

      Stay strong Steve! Good for you for eating the salad. That’s what I am going to have to, with some lean chicken on top. Taco Bell must a once a quarter type meal!

  14. Madge Reply
    August 18, 2022 at 7:29 pm

    When I think of Taco Bell, I imagine unenlightened Midwestern Republicans

    Just remember to use Palmolive dishwashing liquid. It softens hands while you do dishes!

  15. jns Reply
    August 18, 2022 at 8:17 pm

    Finally, a post about food that I can really relate to.

  16. Zara Reply
    August 18, 2022 at 9:45 pm

    I love this honestly!!! I lived near a Pizza Hut in university good memories!

  17. Christian Reply
    August 18, 2022 at 10:17 pm

    This may be remembered as The Taco Bell Review post in years to come. I still get a snort of amusement at the fact that in a city with enormous Mexican food options, presumably including many late night choices, you choose to run to The Bell.

  18. Erick Reply
    August 19, 2022 at 12:02 am

    Ignore the haters and trolls…. We are two peas in a pod, I personally LOVE your Taco Bell posts–I recall a year or two ago your post about your TB visit in BKK. (I kind of regret not stopping at the local Bell when I was in PTY). The Bell has it’s place in the ecosystem, and as long as you the natural order (i.e. not eating it every week) all will be good.

  19. Maugrim Reply
    August 19, 2022 at 5:03 am

    How bad must airline food be in America to prefer that slop ?

  20. Michael D Reply
    August 19, 2022 at 8:12 am

    I made my initial millions on the appetites of the such as you so I do appreciate your love of junk food and food in general. But you’ve just turned 36 and you will soon discover that while your appetite is not decreasing your metabolism is. So be wary and you won’t be spending the first few years of your retirement getting rid of those extra kilos as I.

  21. rich Reply
    August 19, 2022 at 9:05 am

    One place I have never visited. My wife won’t go there either although she likes Tacos, etc.

    When I was a young full time worker in my first job, I had never been out of the country. We had a work trip to England and I was a bit nervous about it (not the flying but just going somewhere different). I recall once we got somewhere and got out of the car and I saw KFC, Burger King, etc. I was relieved and thought “I can handle this.”

    Although it is very rare we ever eat at any of those kinds of places while traveling. Every time we see a McDonalds I kid my wife about us going there and just gives me one of those looks. However after seeing a show on McDonalds around the world, I definitely want to visit some just to see the interior of them.

  22. Now Medicare Eligible Junk Food Junkie Reply
    August 19, 2022 at 9:45 am

    Geez Matthew, I too (used to) love Taco Bell. I’m a Yankee, so no Del Taco. Prior to COVID, one of my “cheat days” was once weekly Taco Bell. I’ve got a few years on you so 4 items were usually enough and I’d be happy to regain my early-30’s physique :-). FWIW, I didn’t eat Taco Bell (or my other bi-weekly cheat day treat Pizza Hut) at all during the first 6-9 months of COVID in 2020 when I also changed my diet dramatically from 70% eating out to 0% (zero) eating out, 15% fruits and vegetables to 80% fruits and vegetables, lost almost 30 pounds and 5-8% body fat, and got within 6 pounds of my ideal/target weight.

    Since then I’ve managed to maintain 20-25 of those lost pounds and have not yet had TB or PH and again eat out (healthy) every so often. My cheat days now are airport lounge and airline flight biz class comfort food and snacks, I even managed to snag 2, count ‘em TWO :-), ice cream sundaes on my last JFK-LHR flight. As you wrote “as time goes by … no longer crave it” and now it’s become a personal challenge to not go back to TB or PH, kinda like an ex-smoker having a first (again) cigarette or a recovering alcoholic having a first (again) drink.

    Oh yeah, while many people say they don’t feel any different after losing some/significant weight, please believe, they do, they just don’t want to admit it. And, very importantly, as most of us age it becomes MUCH more difficult to lose weight, your chances to regain “early-20’s physique” will never be better than RIGHT NOW!

    • Matthew Klint Reply
      August 19, 2022 at 10:41 am

      A good word. Congrats on your weight loss and I hope you can keep it up!

  23. Kevin Reply
    August 19, 2022 at 10:01 am

    I also usually try to avoid Taco Bell these days, but occasionally the warm glow of a Taco Bell sign after a night of getting hammered with co-workers draws me in. It’s usually 3 Taco Supremes, Chicken Quesadilla, and a Mexican Pizza… Damnit, now I can’t stop thinking about TB for lunch…

    • Matthew Klint Reply
      August 19, 2022 at 10:40 am

      So sorry about that! 😉

  24. Ralph Reply
    August 19, 2022 at 11:58 am

    I hope this guy ain’t serious, just paid by Taco Hell. If not he has my condolences.

    • Matthew Klint Reply
      August 19, 2022 at 12:49 pm

      No, I’m serious and appreciate your condolences.

  25. PolishKnight Reply
    August 19, 2022 at 1:03 pm

    What an indictment of LOT business class but to write that you went to an airport TACO Bell because you were in such an emaciated condition.

    This blog post ought to go viral.

    • Aaron Reply
      August 19, 2022 at 3:47 pm

      Yeah, he never says in the LOT review that he didn’t most of the food, just that it wasn’t good quality.

  26. Jerry Reply
    August 19, 2022 at 1:39 pm

    I love Taco Bell too! I mean, really love it. I was in Madrid this week, and the item they were promoting were “beef squares” which looked like mini crunchwraps. They were only €2, to boot! Unfortunately, I got hung up eating a proper dinner and didn’t make it in time. I’m not lying when I say I truly regret it.

  27. Now Medicare Eligible Junk Food Junkie Reply
    August 19, 2022 at 2:18 pm

    Almost all junk and snack food in the USA is a near perfect example of capitalism its best … or worst. The companies have become experts at flavoring and marketing their products to appeal to a massive audience (both collectively and individually) and consequently have become wildly successful. But, not one of their menus is predominantly healthy. This world would be a much better place if McDonalds (and Taco Bell and Pizza Hut and cookies and chips and ice cream etc. etc.) wasn’t so addicting (in which case they probably wouldn’t exist) but instead healthy. Vast profits at the cost of individual’s and society’s health, is that the best or the worst of capitalism?

  28. tcdtcd Reply
    August 19, 2022 at 7:18 pm

    “Regain my early 20s physique” Really? That’s what your goal is?

    Probably not going to happen, and with a spouse and two young kids, seems like your objectives should be elsewhere! Just sayin’

  29. Reno Joe Reply
    August 19, 2022 at 8:05 pm

    After multiple experiences of seeing fast food workers emerge from a stall, exit the restroom without washing their hands, and immediately resume food assembly without gloves, I discontinued fast food. These are thoughtless, filthy, disgusting pigs. Then, there are the intentional and thoughtful ones. YouTube has an ample supply of videos showing these workers (among other things) dropping hamburger patties on the ground and mashing them with their shoes, picking the patties up, and placing the patties on a soon-to-be-wrapped hamburger buns. One on-duty manager at a well-known fast food outlet was caught after hours on a security camera “enhancing” the contents of the milk shake dispenser (with solids and liquids, think about it). That was not an isolated event. This guy had a “pattern of conduct.”
    Enjoy your meal and enjoy its “secret sauce.”

  30. Asa George Reply
    August 20, 2022 at 4:16 pm

    LOT uses DO&CO for their in flight catering,just like TK,Austrian,British,etc.,clearly some trailer park thing at play here.Lou Malnati’s,sure,but Chicago serves the best hot dogs on earth found all over the city.even when living in Cali,I’ll go to Del Taco before TB,which is definitely not comfort food except maybe Sunny Daze trailer park

  31. AsaGeorge Reply
    August 20, 2022 at 4:43 pm

    P.S.I was appalled years ago flying AA premium first class Lax-Ewr,being served a quesadilla and chocolate chip cookie.Never forked out for AA first class again.Your ecstatic review over the meatloaf served on Austrian and Swiss,(did you get a mountain dew or kool-aid too?)plus the cheesy blonde dye job in one post,are real trailer park giveaways.Now TB…busted!

    • Matthew Klint Reply
      August 20, 2022 at 4:59 pm

      Blonde dye job?

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