del taco epic burritos + a giveaway

Recently I was invited to check out one of Del Taco’s newest creations: the Epic Burrito.

Let me start by saying that I’ve hardly ever eaten at Del Taco before. I’ve had french fries there… and I think a hamburger once when we were in Palm Springs and needed a bite to eat… and uh… yeah, that’s about it, really. There isn’t one really close to Mira Mesa and it wasn’t something I was ever dying to check out. Jake’s been tons of times so naturally he (and T) were my partners in crime for this visit.

We tried a whole slew of things, including the new Epic Burritos. There are three flavors available and all price at $4.99 each.

[steak & potato epic burrito / $4.99]

The Steak & Potato burrito is filled with carne asada steak, crinkle cut fries, chipotle sauce, bacon, cheddar cheese and sour cream. It’s sort of akin to a California Burrito – the idea of steak and potatoes anyway. It’s a hefty burrito, too, and we shared this (and all of the ones we tried) between the three of us. Jake and T liked this one the best out of the three, but I thought the french fries were too thick for the burrito and I don’t like soggy french fries anyway (they got a bit soggy being mixed in with the sauce). Jake and T liked the carne asada and fresh flavors plus the mix of fries in the burrito.

[fajita epic burrito / $4.99]

The Fajita is inspired by a sizzling fajita platter and includes chicken or steak (we chose chicken), roasted vegetables, pinto beans (which are slow-cooked and made from scratch throughout the day), cotija cheese, lime rice, black beans, sour cream and guacamole. Being a person who is not a fan of beans, I thought this burrito was very bean-heavy and felt like it had a lot of filler in it. It did taste freshly made though with good ingredients, just not a fan of the beans over here. Jake thought this one was not bad, but the steak & potato was still his favorite.

[chiptole chicken ranch epic burrito / $4.99]

Of the three, the Chiptole Chicken Ranch was the winner in my book, probably because there were no beans in it! It is filled with marinated grilled chicken, lime rice, chipotle and ranch sauces, bacon, cheddar cheese,  lettuce, guacamole and pico de gallo salsa. I particularly liked the marinated chicken and the flavor from the sauces added to make this is a tasty burrito.

[cheddar potato poppers]

We tried a few other items since I hadn’t really tried much off of the Del Taco menu before. One item Jake thought I would like were the Cheddar Potato Poppers. This is a seasonal item and it’s sort like a fried, cheesy, hash brown but looks like a fat mozzarella stick. It had a nice crispy coating and the inside was cheesy good. There are a few jalapenos in the mix, but they didn’t make it too spicy – just a tiny little kick. I liked these a lot! 

[deluxe chili cheddar fries]

T wanted from chili cheese fries so we got this Deluxe Chili Cheddar Fries bowl. I think my favorite topping for chili is fresh onions, but that’s maybe because I love onions a whole lot (yes, even raw). I thought this was just okay – I wished everything was on the side instead of on top. This is a wish I have a lot of the time. Jake and T gobbled this right up and I helped out a little bit!

[caramel cheesecake bites]

Jake really wanted me to try these Caramel Cheesecake Bites. Upon arrival, I didn’t think much of them. They just sort of looked like mini fried burritos.

But, with one bite I could see what he meant. It was actually kind of good! This was the first thing to come out so I tried it right away since we figured it wouldn’t be as good cold. Dessert first!

The filling is a smooth, creamy cheesecake like filling with warm caramel. It seemed like the caramel was only on one side, but it melted and as you ate it, it all kind of blended together. The outside has a sugar/cinnamon coating for a little extra touch of sweetness and I have to say, I would eat this again. It was maybe not the BEST dessert ever, but it was surprisingly tasty.

Here I am, showing off my caramel cheesecake bite. 

Jake enjoying one of the burritos we shared.

And T, who looks like he’s in his happy place eating this burrito.

If you’re down with trying out fast food and want to get your burrito on, then I’ve got a chance for three lucky readers to win a $5 gift card to Del Taco to try out the Epic Burrito of their choice!

If you want to enter to win, just tell comment below and tell me: which of the three Epic Burritos would you get if you won a gift card?

After commenting, please use the PromoSimple box to record your entry and find out more ways to enter.

This contest is only open to residents of the United States. Three different winners will be chosen for each gift card via the PromoSimple interface. This contest is sponsored by Del Taco. Contest runs from now until January 6, 2013 at midnight PST.

Disclaimer: The food featured in this post was complimentary. I was not further compensated for this review and all opinions relayed here are my own.