Mexican Pizza Is Coming Back to Taco Bell Menus on May 19
After 17 long months, the wait is finally over!
Taco Bell
Mexican Pizza fans from Dolly Parton to Doja Cat to the more than 171,000 fans who signed an online petition pleading for the popular Taco Bell menu item’s return can probably all share some of the credit. But whoever made it happen, the rumors are true: Mexican Pizza is coming back to Taco Bell menus on May 19.
Taco Bell announced the popular dish’s resurrection Monday, hours after Doja Cat broke the news onstage at the Coachella Music Festival on Sunday night.
"I brought back the Mexican Pizza, by the way," the Grammy-winning singer hollered into her mic amidst the flashing lights and over the sound of the music and roar of the crowd.
You’ll recall that Taco Bell cut the super popular item from its menu in November 2020 as part of a “streamlining” process to make way for several new items.
Fans took to social media immediately following the September 2020 announcement of Mexican Pizza’s menu removal to express their dismay, began signing the online petition to Save the Mexican Pizza, and never gave up the fight to reinstate the item, which the chain officially describes as a “delicious love child of Mexican and Italian cuisine” featuring “two crispy flour shells, layered with beans, pizza sauce, seasoned beef, tomatoes and a melted three cheese blend.”
Taco Bell CEO Mark King said that, while the chain’s menu is “full of fan-favorites,” the Mexican Pizza may be its most beloved item.
“From its flashy introduction to menus in 1985 as ‘Pizzazz Pizza’ to its inspiration behind the creation of infamous jingles, Mexican Pizza has a long history with the brand and I’m glad we could give fans what they crave and bring our classic Mexican Pizza back home where it belongs,” King said in a news release.
Part of the dish’s popularity was its appeal to vegetarians: You can make it vegetarian by subbing in beans for the beef.
Krish Jagirdar, the super fan who launched the change.org petition, said the menu item was especially beloved by the South Asian community.
“Like many Indian-Americans who grew up vegetarian, we had limited access to the ‘fun’ fast food, so Taco Bell became a bridge to belonging in American culture for many kids like me who grew up in immigrant households,” Jagirdar explained. “That’s what made it especially devastating when the Mexican Pizza was pulled from menus in 2020, but fast forward two years later and I found myself on a conference call with the Taco Bell team as they shared news of the return of the Mexican Pizza, showing that listening to their fans is clearly embedded in their DNA. It’s one of the many reasons Taco Bell is more than just another fast-food restaurant.”
To reintroduce Mexican Pizza, Taco Bell took steps to streamline its production and source ingredients with an eye toward greater sustainability. One environmentally conscious innovation: a sauce-packet recycling pilot program launched with TerraCycle, as part of Taco Bell’s commitment to transition to all recyclable, compostable or reusable consumer facing packaging by 2025.
Starting May 19, Mexican Pizza will be available at Taco Bell locations nationwide, priced at $4.49 — and as part of a combo, featuring a Mexican Pizza, two Crunchy Tacos and a Large Fountain Drink for $8.99. It will also be available at participating restaurants in Aruba, Costa Rica and the Dominican Republic.
Additional offers will also attend Mexican Pizza’s return: For example,
Taco Bell Rewards Members who snagged a “mystery reward” during the Big Game can claim a free Mexican Pizza on May 19, and loyalty members will get early access to the menu item beginning May 17.
DoorDash customers can place a delivery order of Mexican Pizza during its first week back on the menu — May 19 through May 26 — before it becomes available via other delivery platforms on May 27. DoorDash members will also save $2 on a Mexican Pizza with a minimum purchase of $12, if they use the promo code MEXPIZZA at checkout.
And Taco Bell is rewarding fans who tweet #IBroughtBackTheMexicanPizza with exclusive merch emblazoned with that message.
Really, Mexican Pizza fans, what Mas can you ask?!
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