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AISLE 6 · FAST FOOD
Chili Cheese Burrito
by Taco Bell
Never officially pronounced dead — it left the national menu in the mid-1990s (no exact date was ever announced), but select franchisees have served it continuously ever since. After the fall 2025 nationwide encore ended, it's back to being a regional treasure you have to hunt for.
A flour tortilla hiding molten chili and shredded cheddar — arguably the least Mexican and most beloved thing Taco Bell ever sold. It slipped off the national menu in the mid-'90s, but a stubborn network of franchisees in places like Ohio and St. Louis simply refused to let it die.
🧾 One more thingIt debuted in 1990 as the 'Chilito,' a name Taco Bell retired partly because it's unfortunate slang in Spanish — and the recipe wasn't even theirs, inherited when parent PepsiCo absorbed the Zantigo chain in 1986. Devotees maintained an online map of surviving locations for years; a four-week nationwide encore in fall 2025 sold out its welcome, and new chili items were spotted in test markets in 2026.
🕯️ Shoppers also mourned