Taco Time

I’m comparing this place to other fast food places, such as TacoBell, Etc. But have to be honest I didn’t know what to expect at first prior to walking in.
I ordered the crispy burrito and my friend ordered the soft burrito #12. Omg it was awesome. Way, I mean way better than TacoBell and Taco Cabana. I have to say that food was delicious. They use local ingredients so you can say it is very Washingtonian this place.
The place was super clean and the staff was friendly. Will definitely visit again.

Food of my Youth-​chapter 37 (lunch edition).
I’m quite happy to 5 Star this place. Going in here opened up new culinary vistas for me. Thank you all to hell.
When I was a kid, fast food was all burgers, hot dogs or corn dogs, all the time. Even pizza was a special treat.
1968; a burger at McD’s would set you back 28 cents. A taco from TT would set you back 58 cents. Please understand that 58 cents was more than the cost of a gallon of gas or a pack of cigs. It was almost an investment. Understand that you had no chance of finding taco shells, tortillas, salsa, chile peppers or re-​fried beans in a grocery store.
No. nonono. Negative. What is tah-​coe and when did you last get a haircut you look like a girl?
So on a fine 1968 June morning, I went in and spent my 58 cents plus tax on my first ever taco.
Wowzers and Holy Shiz to boot. I just looooove the little paper cups of salsa that you can pump out.
As an added bonus, this was where I tried my first crisp meat burrito (taquitos before there were such a thing) and my first order of tater tots.
These people are geniuses.

LOL! Okay… I should be doing «check-​ins» with how much I visit this place… but I can’t bring myself to admit it. I’m a crispy beef burrito ho’…but at least I dial it back a bit by getting the mini mex meal. A satisfying meal under 5.00? awesome! …and yes, I do like playing with their soda machine. {poke} {poke} {poke}…get ice… {poke}
I’m sure the burrito packs enough salt to stop an elephant, but hey… the world was supposed to end today… so did it really matter to me at the time? But that golden packet of beef comes out perfect every time I order it…(oh…except this one time it had some strange thick vein of cheese in the middle)…where was I?.. oh yes, that beautiful packet of beef fried to golden perfection… and tots. (excuse me)… Mexi fries.
I just wish they would move that pole next to the service window. You know the one with the rainbow collection of car paint colors? Yeah, THAT one.

Every time I visit family in Washington I always have to get a crisp beef burrito from here. They are so amazing and the taco hot sauce is to die for. Granted, this is some horribly fattening fast food… but it tastes ohhh so good! (They do have an under 400 calorie menu, but sorry … I can’t resist those fried scrumptious burritos!)

I’m not sure how to rate this. I haven’t been to many Taco Times. It’s fast food and the food we ordered was good for a fast food Mexican restaurant so I guess in the rating I probably need to rate it for what it is – fast food Mexican. In that category it was great except for one major thing.
This particular restaurant had just received a new drink machine. The machine offered lots of drink options, many more than any other fountain. However, it was a huge line creator. They had one machine and everyone ordering drinks, needing ice or refills had to stand in this line. The line was huge … obviously. Was it fast? NO! An employee was even needed to explain how to use it. With just one machine creating lines, we would probably opt to visit the Taco Time in Kelso instead of returning to the one in Longview if we happen to want to stop by again at lunch time. This is where a fast food restaurant could be a slow food restaurant especially at busy times.

We have been eating at Taco Time since 1967 and have eaten at many of them. I have also consistently ordered the Taco Burger Meal so I have comparisons. This restaurant was one of the nicer ones we have been at and looks like it might be their new design. The service is marginally friendly and it is the first Taco Time I have had to pick up my meal — usually they give you a number and deliver it to the table. Overall the Taco Burger was good and probably around 80% of the quantity of meat I am use to but — still fine.
Overall I have no problem with the restaurant — althougb an improvement in the customer service attitude would help significantly.

I went in to eat lunch today and noticed one of the employees picking up the mexi fries with her bare hands. I informed the manager and he proceeded to defend the employee and stated that it’s hard to remember since the rules from the health department only changed a few years ago. Any business that handles ready to eat food with bare hands is risking a food borne illness. Bare hand contact is the #1 reason people get sick. The manger’s behavior is unacceptable.

I just absolutely LOVE Taco Time! At least this one (only one I’ve ever eaten at). It was a staple growing up in Washington. There are none in California, so I have to binge when I come back to Washington.
I don’t even vary my order. The crispy bean burrito and beef burrito are awesome and I love their unique hot sauce. Glad to see a more modern delivery system for it now. As a kid, it was on every table in a syrup pitcher.
This place blows the doors off of Taco Bell by a wide margin. Great Cactus sign too!

i happen to love taco time! i think it is not mexican food, but the food is yummy, cheap and fast! the bean and chesse burito is yummy! with the sour cream/​ranch sauce! and the tots are good too! the jalenpenos on the side if you want alittle kick!

We LOVE Taco Time — as long as it is the Taco Time either in Longview or their new location in Kelso. DO NOT try to eat at other Taco Times (i.e. in Vancouver, Olympia, Seaside) and think you are getting the same food they serve in Longview!
The crisp meat burritos and the mexi-​fries are a great alternative to burgers and fries when you are having fast food. The crisp meat burritos in Longview are the best of any of the Taco Time restaurants I have eaten at. The meat is better and they wrap the ends of the burrito rather than leaving open like the other locations. The meat tastes totally different when you go to other locations — the meat at an Olympia area restaurant was mushy and tasted almost like it was mixed with beans. The meat at Vancouver location is too wet and spiced differently.
They also have the best hot sauce — I always have to ask for lots of extras when getting orders to go so that my family has enough.

So once I was hitting up thrift stores with a friend on our trip from Olympia to Portland… As we passed this Taco Time I remarked ‘What IS UP with all the Taco Time’s, they’re ALL OVER!” Being from SF, Taco Time was a new unknown chain. A new unknown chain I had no intention of EVER trying.
But you learn not to ask some folks these types of things as they don’t get your sarcasm, or they do but have a sadistic streak. ‘OH! Taco Time??! They have Mexi-​Fries. You should TRY the Mexi-​Fries!!!’ Since he was driving the question was settled, we’re going in.
Uh, so what makes a fry a mexi-​fry? ‘Oh, they’re tater tots.” he remarks as we walk in. I bust out laughing since I thought it was a joke.
NO JOKE. They sell tater tots yet try to pass them off as Mexican cuisine. Mexican spices added to frozen tater tots? Don’t get me wrong, tater tots have their merits but foreign cuisine? Taco Time YOU ARE CRAZY.
They also add sunflower seeds to the burritos. wtf?!
However it was priceless when the girl ordering before me asks the Hispanic cashier what ‘Verde’ sauce was. «It’s GREEN», she replies. They must of had this same dialogue for the next two minutes until finally the girl chirpily replied ‘Oh, it’s Green! cool.‘
When I moved to Seattle I had serious doubts about finding decent Mexican food in the NW. Taco Time is the equivalent to someone never having Mexican food, but making a bunch of the recipes out of the Joy Of Cooking (circa 1950s) and thinking they got it down pat. Down so well that darn, we should open a rest-​au-​rant!
On this day it became my QUEST to find decent Mexican food or suffer MANY (oh yes, many) bad meals in the trying. Please help me. Please!