Place: Taco Bueno
Lunch: Big Freaking Taco (no romato), Mucho Nachos (no tomato), Pepsi
Nobody makes better fast food nachos than Taco Bueno. A big plate of beef, beans, chili sauce, nacho cheese, and sour cream. And tomatoes if you want them. None of that nonsense like avacados, guac, pico, whole black beans. None of it. Go to a fancy bar if you want that crap. Wife #1 agreed...they were her favorite too.
One thing that is surprisingly consistent with this particular Taco Bueno is the number of times I hear customers ordering things that are no longer on the menu. Sometimes for years. But it seems to happen every time I'm here. But something happened to me today that's never heappened here or anywhere else that I can recall...the counter guy actually offered me a menu item they didn't have, and couldn't produce.
Me: "Big Freaking Taco, no tomato..."
Counter Guy: "Beef, chicken, or steak?"
STEAK?!?
I had NO idea this was an option.
"Beef," I say. BUT...I'll take a steak one too."
I mean, why not try it, right?
"No tomato on that one too?"
"Right."
I finish ordering and get my drink, salsa, and what not. I catch up on Twitter while waiting what seems like forever for my food because this location is slow at doing anything even on a slow day, and they're busy today.
I get my food, unwrap the first taco (happens to be the beef one) and chow down. It's quite awhile later when I grab the steak one.
But it's immediately apparant this isn't going to be what it's supposed to be. It's limp, like a soft taco. It's a Muchaco, Taco Bueno's version of a Chalupa. (It may actually pre-date the Chalupa.) Also, it has chicken in it.
I take it back to the counter. A girl from the back appears.
Me: "This is supposed to be a steak Big Freaking Taco, but it's a chicken Muchaco."
"We don';t have steak," she says flatly. "Do you want something else?"
"Then why is the cashier offering it up as an option?:"
She just shrugs.
I'm so dumbfounded, I just turn and go back to my table and finish my nachos. She eventually comes around to my table and mutters "Here's a refund" and drops money.
The receipt she printed for the refund shows exactly what i ordered...a steak Big Freaking Taco. But if they don't have steak, why is this even an option in the register? There's nothing on the menu that includes steak, thus my surprise when the guy offered it up.
And what food maker looks at the screen, sees a crispy taco with steak in it, and thinks "I'll just give him a completely different menu item with a completely different meat instead"?
Jerks.
Took a five-day weekend to go to an out-of-town concert last night, where I proved that, stamina-wise, I'm still a long way from being me again.
Not that I'll ever be me again.
