For those nights when the whole family demands Taco Bell but no one can be bothered with driving ten minutes to order it, Old El Paso has come to the rescue: In August, Bold Nacho Cheese Flavored Taco Shells will hit stores, whether you like it or not, and unlike the last time the company dabbled with nacho-flavoring a shell — Stand ‘N Stuff, back in ‘06 — these get what R&D; manager Rob Clements calls “a more topical approach,” meaning their cheesiness is “blasted” on like Day-Glo orange graffiti. Also, since “nacho” isn’t a flavor of cheese of or anything else, they let the people decide what went into it (verdict: some sort of Cheddar-blue-cheese symbiosis). A PepsiCo rep tells Businessweek they “don’t have anything to share at the moment,” but the chain already has plenty of skin in the hard-shell-at-home taco game, so that means they’re probably giving Old El Paso at least a few weeks’ head start before they get all Loco on their boxed kits. [Businessweek]
