What The Taco Bell Menu Looked Like In 1985

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Taco Bell looked pretty different in 1985 — and we're not just talking about the much lower prices (though, to be fair, it's still pretty cheap despite everything). The menu itself was also far simpler, with new items rolling out more frequently. And this was a few years before Taco Bell started the trend of fast food chains partnering with major movie blockbusters for marketing promotions (the first being "Batman" in 1989), so it was truly all about the food.

Some of the chain's future bestsellers were just being introduced, while others were still in early development. A few discontinued items even went on to inspire future menu staples, so in a way, are they ever really lost? Who's to say. Regardless, Taco Bell has changed a lot over the years — here's a look back at what the menu looked like in 1985 (and RIP to these delicious treats).

The Enchirito came out in 1970 and lasted until 1993 (though it's been brought back a few times since). It was a combination of an enchilada and a burrito covered in red sauce, cheese, and exactly three olives. It was served in its own tin — and was even advertised as being reheatable.

First introduced in 1975, the Bell Beefer (formerly known as the Bellburger) was essentially a taco (seasoned beef, shredded cheese, lettuce, taco sauce) inside of a hamburger bun. If you think this sounds like the Taco Bell version of a sloppy joe, you'd be correct. First introduced in the early 1960s, it returned for the entirety of the 1980s before disappearing again in the mid-1990s.

Cinnamon Crispas were on the menu at Taco Bell from 1979 to 1988. The treat consisted of deep-fried tortilla chips coated in cinnamon sugar and sold for just 39 cents. Eventually, they were replaced by a new — but very similar — dessert, the Cinnamon Twists. So in a way, they still live on.

The taco salad had its big debut in 1984 and remained on the menu until 2020. It went through many changes over the years before being discontinued, but in its early years, it was a shell filled with beef, lettuce, olives, cheese, sour cream, and tomatoes. And it was huge. In 2026, a mini version of the beloved favorite returned to the menu.

In 1985, Taco Bell offered combination platters, which were a lot like combo meals today — except everything came on one plate. You could choose from a Burrito Supreme Platter, a Taco Bell Grande Platter, or a Taco Light Platter. Taco Bell, of course, offers many different kinds of combination meals today, from Luxe Boxes to deluxe combos, but now each menu item is wrapped in its own packaging rather than served together. 

The Pizzazz Pizza first hit the Taco Bell menu in 1985, only to be eventually replaced several years later in 1988 by the Mexican Pizza — a menu item that has had a complicated, on-and-off relationship with the menu over the years (including being "brought back" in 2022 despite fans claiming the recipe changed). It was Taco Bell's take on pizza, and had a "crust" of two crisped flour tortillas, a tomato-based red sauce, cheese, lettuce, tomato, olives, and optional ground beef.

In 1981, the Taco BellGrande arrived on the menu and promised to be the restaurant's biggest taco ever. Was it pretty much just a huge version of a regular hard taco? More or less. It was so big that you, allegedly, needed both hands to hold it. This big taco lasted until the '90s and is survived by its nacho version, the Nachos BellGrande.

The Taco Light was introduced as a "light-tasting, flaky flour tortilla" designed to let the flavors shine. Instead of a standard taco shell, it used the same shell found in the chain's taco salad. It contained double the meat of a regular taco, along with cheese, lettuce, tomato, and sour cream. Many people mistook it for a healthier option, but that's definitely not what "light" meant in this case.