Taco Bell Chicken Flatbread Sandwich Reviewed

by Slashfood Editor, Posted Sep 14th 2010 @ 1:00PM

Taco Bell Flatbread Chicken Sandwich Photo: Elizabeth Hait, AOL

Introducing Taco Bell's newest menu item, the Chicken Flatbread Sandwich. According to their site, it's a "warm, square-cut flatbread, filled with marinated all-white-meat chicken, and a melty three-cheese blend of cheddar, pepper jack, and mozzarella topped off with flavorful chipotle sauce and melted to perfection to seal in the flavor."

While the picture may not do it justice, every bite was filled with the ingredients as advertised -- cheese, chicken and sauce -- which doesn't happen often.

We were surprised how this sandwich all came together.

We're not going to lie, some of Taco Bell's recent offerings have scared us, especially the Cantina Tacos. However, after eating this flatbread, we're willing to be more open-minded and give them a second chance.

Taco Bell Chicken Flatbread Sandwich
Grade: B
Nutritional Information: 290 calories, 15 grams fat, 720 mg sodium

Our testers said: "Surprisingly good. All of the ingredients seemed to be fresh -- the bread was soft and the cheese wasn't a disgusting, chemical-tasting mess." "While it says there's a chipotle sauce, it seems like the heat is coming directly from the chicken. The spices give the sandwich just the right amount of kick and heat down the throat. I would actually eat this again."

The sandwich was admittedly on the small side; you'd probably need two to fill you. On the bright side, it was pretty cheap. In New York City, where prices are inflated, it only cost $1.52 -- that's the cheapest lunch we've had in a while.

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Starbucks Toffee Mocha (Hot)
Grade: C
Our testers said: "Very sweet and not a very good toffee flavor to me. It tastes more like the regular mocha coffee that they already have." "I wouldn't mind a stronger hint of toffee. Leaves a very filmy taste in my mouth, though, which I don't like. It's a little bit too thick -- I don't like my coffee (or even my lattes) to be as thick as hot chocolate." "All I really taste is sugar. Maybe a little caramelized, but mostly just overwhelmingly sweet."

Starbucks Toffee Mocha (Cold)
Grade: B
Our testers said: "Was able to taste the toffee flavor in this one more and it was slightly bitter -- in a good way, I hate drinks that are too sweet. It also had a nice aroma." "I can taste the toffee more in the cold drink. But I don't really think I can taste much coffee. Still tastes like chocolate milk." "I'd rather just have some ice cream or a milk shake."

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Denny's Fried Cheese Melt
Grade: A
Our testers said: "I thought the mozzarella sticks were amazing. I was concerned that the breading around the sticks would either get lost or soggy because of the other cheese surrounding it, but it held up well. The marinara sauce was delicious. It had just the right seasoning with an incredible amount of basil in it. The sourdough bread was fresh, crispy and had just the right amount of butter on it to make this grilled cheese sandwich one of the best I've ever had."

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McDonald's Deluxe Angus Wrap
Grade: C-
Nutritional Info: 25 grams fat, 410 calories
What's in it: Angus beef, tomato, American cheese, pickles, lettuce and red onions.
Our testers said: "I wasn't sure how I would feel about eating my burger in a wrap, but turns out it wasn't so bad. However, when looking at the calories and fat compared to the actual burger, I might as well go for the full-fat option." "When I think of a 'snack,' I think of something less heavy and something that will boost my energy level. After eating this, I just wanted to take a nap." "My favorite part about this wrap was the crunchy pickles."

Bacon & Cheese Angus Wrap
Grade: F
Nutritional Info: 21 grams fat, 390 calories
What's in it: Angus beef, bacon, American cheese, pickles and red onions
Our testers said: "The ketchup mixed with the fake, stringy bacon produced a pungent taste in my mouth -- close to drinking tomato juice while eating a dry beef burger with waxy cheese -- it's not a good combination." "This wrap left me with no words -- it was that bad."

Mushroom & Swiss Angus Wrap
Grade: F
Nutritional Info: 26 grams fat, 430 calories
What's in it: Angus beef, mushrooms and Swiss cheese
Our testers said: "If there was a grade letter lower than F, this wrap would have received it." "This is a complete mess in my mouth -- the mushrooms tasted like they came right out of a can (with a metal aftertaste)." "I would much rather eat any one of those Taco Bell Cantina Tacos than ever eat this wrap ever again."

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Taco Bell Cantina Taco - Chicken
Grade: B+
Nutritional Info: 2.5 grams fat, 170 calories
What's in it: "Southwest" chicken, onions, lime, cilantro (wrapped up in corn tortillas)
Our testers said: "This taco is easily better than any other item on their menu. The moist chicken had just the right amount of spice and the corn tortilla's were still warm, not gummy. If we had just one request, it would be to add more sauce or a spicy salsa."

Cantina Taco - Steak
Grade: D
Nutritional Info: 2.5 grams fat, 160 calories
What's in it: Onions, lime, beef, cilantro (wrapped up in corn tortillas)
Our testers said: "The steak and wrap were both dry -- when we tasted the beef alone, it was extremely chewy and lacked the simple basics like salt and pepper. It wasn't worth more than two bites."

Cantina Taco - Carnitas
Grade: F
Nutritional Info: 7 grams fat, 200 calories
What's in it: Onions, lime, shredded pork, cilantro (wrapped up in corn tortillas)
Our testers said: "Never has food looked so completely different in real life than in the advertised photograph. A pile of mush and odd flavors, this mixture of sweet pork and onions never came together. To be brutally honest, when opened up, this taco looked like cat food -- and not chunky style. We couldn't get through more than one bite."

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Grade: C+
Nutritional Info (small): 23 grams fat, 470 calories
Our testers said: "This is a much better combo -- the saltiness of the fried chicken balances out the sweet bread." "I'd much rather have the sandwich with the Colonel's Sauce rather than the honey mustard BBQ." "While the bun itself does not taste good, it is soft and fresh -- like it just came out of the oven, which is surprising for a fast-food establishment."

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Grade: D
Nutritional Info: 11 grams fat, 360 calories
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Nutritional Info: 1500 calories, 97 grams fat, 2090 mgs sodium
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KFC's Double Down Sandwich
Grade: B
Nutritional Info: 540 calories, 32 grams fat,1380 mgs sodium
This sandwich isn't for the faint of heart. The sodium intake alone will knock you off your feet: Our testers determined the salty culprit seemed to be the breading on the chicken, though it was pleasingly crispy and the meat itself was quite moist. The bacon was legit -- it didn't have the usual weirdly chewy, artificial bacon-bit taste -- but it was essentially lost, both physically and flavor-wise (along with the cheese), between the two behemoth chicken filets. And there was a lot of discussion around whether the cheese was really a cheese spread, or if it had just melded with the special sauce.

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Grade: --
Nutritional Info: 49 grams fat, 740 calories
What's in it: Romaine lettuce, grape tomatoes, shaved Asiago cheese, French bread croutons, Wendy's spicy chicken with a lemon garlic Caesar dressing.
Our testers said: We can't officially give this salad a grade because Wendy's forgot to put the salad dressing in our bag. However, we can say that the garlic croutons with sea salt, black pepper and garlic were absolutely delicious. And with Wendy's classic spicy chicken filet on top, we believe this salad has potential. We look forward to going back and trying this one again (with the dressing this time).

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Grade: B
Nutritional Info: 47 grams fat, 670 calories
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Our testers said: "Of course I'm going to like this one, it's full of fat and calories!" "The bacon was surprisingly good -- didn't have that chemical aftertaste most fast-food establishments can't avoid." "The combination of the chopped eggs, chicken and blue cheese went perfectly with a really light ranch dressing (which is hard to come by)."

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Filed Under: Taste Test, Fast Food, Reviews
Tags: chicken flatbread sandwich, fast food, taco bell