Taco Bell Is Making Chips Out of Cheese

As Dave Navarro once said on a reality TV show about tattoo artists, Taco Bell is a brand that believes in living mas. That’s plainly evident to anyone who’s seen their menu of Doritos tacos, cheesy gordita crunches, and the like over the years. That Live Mas Mentality also applies to the line of branded snacks that bear the company’s name.

That’s even more true now that Taco Bell seems set on launching a line of Cheddar Crisps that put queso front and center. And by that, I mean these things appear to be made entirely out of cheddar cheese. Spotted by @Candyhunting, Instagram’s busiest snack sleuth, this new ‘Bell offering will be made with 100 percent real cheese and feature “bold seasonings,” according to the packaging. They’ll be available in a spicy “Fire! Sauce” flavor and “(Mild)”, which is for cowards.

The introduction of cheese that’s actually a chip comes at a time when Taco Bell seems heavily invested in cheddar. Specifically, the new Toasted Cheddar Chalupa seems like a spiritual forerunner of these Cheddar Crisps, likely born from the same desire to transform cheese from a taco-topping accent into a crunchier, central element.

As I mentioned earlier, this isn’t Taco Bell’s first time exporting their bold flavors from a fast food restaurant to a store’s snack aisle. These Cheddar Crisps are set to join an existing lineup that includes Reaper Ranch Tortilla Chips, Mild and Fire Tortilla Chips inspired by Taco Bell’s hot sauces, and Classic Tortilla Chips. This does look like the first time that the tortilla has been transcended, however.

Given that we know about this thanks to a snack-loving Instagrammer, official details about the chip are scarce. But if past precedent is any indication, these Cheddar Crisps will join its Taco Bell snack compatriots in stores like 7-Eleven and Target (perhaps among others) on a release date that still seems TBD. Whenever they do drop, though, these things truly look like a cheesetastic fourth meal option.