Freshman John Sproat is distraught over the fact that a small number of franchise-owned Taco Bells will be taking breakfast off the menu. However, the company-owned locations which total to about 500, should continue to serve breakfast.

John described this change as “a terrible decision” and said that “so many people use [breakfast from Taco Bell] to fuel their day.”

This change is set to take place sometime in October. The number of Taco Bells with these menu changes is not yet disclosed, but Taco Bell gave franchises the option to make changes  with the hope that it will help the business grow.

On the other hand freshman Dylan Eadie said that, “I think that it’s a pretty good decision…if they are having [left-over food], there’s no need for [breakfast menu items].”

This change will take fan favorite breakfast items such as the Breakfast Crunchwrap with sausage, Cinnabon Delights and the Hash Brown Toasted Breakfast Burrito with Steak off the menu.

Since January of 2021, local families and students have been left searching for a new Taco Bell location, due to the Westlake Taco Bell location permanently closing. 

Eadie said that he, like many other students, now goes to the Taco Bell on William Cannon, but some other students have even reverted to not going to Taco Bell at all.

“I eat at home…since it closed down, there’s only so many [Taco Bells] around me. I don’t enjoy those [Taco Bell’s in other locations] as much as the one that was near me,” Sproat said.

The percentage of company-owned Taco Bells is around 15%, but the branding of company-owned Taco Bells and franchised owned are indistinguishable. The company-owned locations are owned directly by Taco Bell and Yum! Brands, the parent company of Taco Bell.

Yum! Brands also owns companies such as KFC and Pizza Hut who have made similar menu changes in recent history. KFC has taken off items including the KFC wings and Chocolate Chip Cookies as recent as earlier this year.

There are three general categories of breakfast items on Taco Bell’s breakfast menu: Burritos, Quesadillas, Crunchwraps, with miscellaneous items including Hash Browns and the Cinnabon Delights which come in two-packs and 12-packs.

“Because I go there for breakfast…this will definitely impact my decision to go to Taco Bell,” Sproat said. “Now we are all going to die because of you Taco Bell.”