10 Secrets Taco Bell Workers Say They Can’t Share
Every Menu Item Gets Weighed on a Digital Scale
Taco Bell food workers are required to weigh every menu item, and if a given item is off by more than about 0.3 ounces, it must be discarded and a new one supplied in its place. Scale training is an actual thing and it takes real skill to get everything into a taco or Crunchwrap precisely. This isn’t just about being picky. It’s about uniformity across thousands of locations. Imagine the pressure of rebuilding an entire Crunchwrap Supreme because the scale showed it was slightly off weight. Everything that comes out of the kitchen is weighed on a digital scale.
The Beef Is Cooked in Boiling Water for Half an Hour
The beef at Taco Bell comes in a bag with all of the seasonings already mixed in, and when a restaurant is ready to use it, all the employee needs to do is drop the bag into boiling water for about 30 minutes, pour the beef out, and deliver it to the line cooks. Food is put into hot water around 200 degrees Fahrenheit, and has to be left for 30 minutes to heat up. That’s the secret behind the seasoned beef you love. It arrives pre-mixed, gets reheated sous-vide style, and then lands on your taco. Not glamorous, perhaps, yet efficient as all heck.
Memorizing the Menu Can Take Up to Two Months
Because the menu is always changing and the chain is extremely particular about how the food is made, it can reportedly take up to two months to memorize the menu and all of the prep instructions for each item. Taco Bell is the hardest fast-food restaurant to work at, not only is the menu always changing, but workers are extremely precise with how they make food, and for someone to be able to work the line competently, it takes at least two months, sometimes longer, to memorize the entire menu. That Chalupa you ordered in under thirty seconds? Someone spent weeks drilling ingredient lists and assembly sequences just to make it look effortless.
Refried Beans Come Pre-Cooked from Suppliers
Refried beans arrive pre-cooked and are heated and stirred to reach that creamy, spreadable consistency you find in your burritos. They’re not hand-mashed from fresh pinto beans in the back kitchen. Refried beans are cheap and the store can profit more from them. Still, most employees say they’d still eat them without hesitation. Let’s be real, it’s all about the flavor, right?
Grilled Items Add About 17 Seconds Per Order
Grilling things takes an extra step in the process, and it takes about 17 seconds to grill something, which adds up when you have a lot of orders. That might not sound like much, yet when the drive-thru line is wrapped around the building, those seconds stack fast. Workers are timed. Employees are watched and clocked, and many employees are supposed to get each car out of line within a certain time limit, with one former worker saying their time was supposed to be 3:30. So asking for that double-grilled quesadilla? You’re adding measurable stress to someone’s shift.
Mobile Orders at the Drive-Thru Aren’t Prepared Until You Arrive
If you place a mobile order for pickup at the drive-thru, they won’t start making it until you get there, which is fine for small orders, but if you’ve got a big one that you want them to get started on right away, pick it up inside. Seems counterintuitive, doesn’t it? You’d think ordering ahead means it’s ready when you pull up. Not so in the drive-thru lane. Walk inside if you want your twenty-item party pack ready when you show up. Workers wish more people knew this simple hack.
The Entire Menu Is Completely Customizable
Many former employees have shared that the entire Taco Bell menu is completely customizable, and you can swap meats, taco shells, sides, and more, just by asking. Taco Bell’s POS system gives customers the ability to customize any order using any of the store’s ingredients, anything that involves a hard-shell taco can be replaced with a Doritos Locos shell, and you can literally play around and create anything you want with the ingredients available. Want steak instead of beef? Done. Swap that hard shell for a Doritos Locos? Easy. Just don’t go overboard with changes or you’ll create what employees call the worst type of order.
Most Drive-Thru Customers Don’t Treat Employees Like People
Another incredibly common issue that Taco Bell workers reported is that most customers in the drive-thru don’t treat the employees like they’re people, with many employees mentioning that people will respond to the question “How are you doing today?” with an answer like “Three soft tacos and a Pepsi.” These are human people, and you can say hi back, and if you’re really feeling crazy, you can even ask them how they are, too. Honestly, this one hit harder than expected. We all rush through the drive-thru, yet there’s a real person behind that speaker who asked you a genuine question. Maybe just say hello next time?
Filling Out the Customer Survey Actually Helps Workers Get Rewards
The simplest way to thank any hardworking employees at Taco Bell is to fill out the survey, and saying nice things about an employee can score them discounts, free meals, and more. That receipt code isn’t just for corporate data mining. It directly impacts the people who made your food. Mentioning someone by name in a positive review can mean tangible benefits for them. Takes two minutes of your time. Could make someone’s entire week. Think about that next time you crumple up your receipt.
Nacho Cheese Portions Are Often Guessed During Rush Hours
Workers aim for about 2 pumps of nacho cheese, and if customers get unfair portions it’s probably because Taco Bell doesn’t really give good pumps so workers usually just guess how much 2 full pumps should be, and in high-stress situations it’s a little difficult to fill nacho cheese cups because the pumps don’t always give a full pump. So that’s why your cheese cup sometimes looks half-empty. The equipment is temperamental, the line is backed up, and your friendly Taco Bell worker is doing their absolute best to eyeball the proper amount. Next time you feel shortchanged, remember it’s not intentional. It’s just chaos meeting broken pumps meeting impossible time pressures. Did any of that surprise you, or does it just make you appreciate fast food workers even more?
