Taco Bell's New Cheesy Chicken Crispanada Brings The Crunch

Taco Bell has just released the first new item from its ambitious 2024 menu, the Cheesy Chicken Crispanada. Available nationwide for a limited time, the Crispanada is "a culinary masterpiece, featuring a delightful fusion of melted cheese, tender chicken simmered in vibrant Mexican spices, encased in a crispy, crunchy outer shell." It's served with a side of spicy ranch for dipping, and a one-piece order costs $3.49 (price varies by location). This year is a busy one for Taco Bell, so we had to determine whether the brand was starting off strong with this new novelty item.

The name of this menu item isn't an overstatement. As soon as I picked up the Crispanada, I could feel just how crisp the thing actually was. And when I tore into it for the purposes of this photo, there was an audible crackle.

My first bite verified that this thing is even crisper than it looks (and sounds). It's fried nearly to the point of being crunchy, but that's not a bad thing. The filling doesn't quite fill the shell, but it's gooey and cheesy, with a decent amount of chicken, making it a fairly respectable fast food version of an empanada.

The spicy ranch almost seems superfluous, however, as the filling is saucy enough to make it perfectly satisfying to eat on its own. I get it: Every fast food menu item is basically required to have its own dipping sauce, and people are already obsessed with ranch. And the ranch does come in handy when you've reached the crunchy edges of the Crispanada and have no more filling left to balance out each bite.

Okay, so the execution of the new Taco Bell Cheesy Chicken Crispanada is just fine, and the flavors are pretty good, even. But there's one major sticking point here: The price sucks ass.

At the national level, the Crispanada costs $3.49. My nearest Taco Bell location in Chicago sells it for $3.89. That price would be fine enough if the item were closer to the size of my hand, but the Crispanada is smaller than my palm. I'd say three would make an actual meal, and at nearly $4 a pop, that's not financially feasible or appealing, especially because you'd at least need to tack on a beverage, too.

If you're a value shopper looking for substance, steer clear of this. Hit up Taco Bell's current Cravings Value Menu instead, where everything listed costs $3 and under, and some of the items are pretty filling, such as the Stacker and the Loaded Nachos. Or dive into the app, where you can assemble a Cravings Meal for $6, which includes a specialty item (like a Crunchwrap Supreme), a classic item (like tacos), a side item, and a drink. If you don't go with the bundled options, the price tag gets steep fast.

If price is no object for you, then yes, then the Cheesy Chicken Crispanada is worth ordering at least once for a fun change of pace from Taco Bell's standard menu. But if you're looking to make a full meal of them, just go with the pre-bundled Crispanada combo meal, which comes with a Crispanada, a Chalupa Supreme, a 5-Layer Burrito, a side, and a drink for $9.99 ($10.49 by me). Yes, the new Crispanada is fun, but it comes with some modern-day sticker shock—the kind felt by loyal customers of every fast food chain right now.