Why It Took 13 Years to Engineer The Taco Bell Crunchwrap 

My lawyers will be in touch

Randomly cutting to Ben doing ungodly things to pseudo-mexican food is the funniest thing

The title and thumbnail made me believe this was a Real Engineering video, so I was kinda surprised to hear Sam's voice lol

Ben drinking on the job? What is the world coming to, next you'll be telling me he's gotten drunk on the job before.

Ben was extremely in-character in this video and I'd very much like to hear him defend himself against that accusation in the next Layover Podcast

4:27 "cannot believe Ohio ruined this for the rest of us" Ohio's ability to disappoint people is a talent

Living in one of the test markets the Croissant Taco was tested in, Ben's iteration may have been fire but Taco Bell's was mid at best

Crossover from Drunk Ben! My favorite Jet Lag character

I lived in Toledo when the Doritos Taco was being tested. They ran strange ads that vaguely seemed like a Taco Bell ad but with 1/8 the budget that said things like "Hey Toledo, try the new doritos taco or nobody else will get it" and "Your purchase will help shape the future Taco Bell menu." Regardless, I tried it, I liked it, and now it's here to stay... or not, Taco Bell likes randomly taking things away (I'm looking at you rolled chicken tacos.)

Ben's struggles is probably one of the greatest topics you ever talked about

The selection of a test market can be a bit more complicated. Usually they target more conservative areas because if that is the worst-case area for adoption of something new. They also like to target isolated market areas so adoption data is better.

As a proud Toledoan, I really need you guys to trust us on the crossiant taco. It was not the move. Neither was the late 2000 run of breakfast items. You can thank us for the Doritos Locos. You can trust us for the stuff we protected you from.

Taco Bell rotates on 30-60-90 day intervals for things to keep it fresh and try to get customer loyalty since burger joints are the super familiar same old stuff. I worked at their Irvine ad agency for a couple years. That's why Nacho Fries keep coming and going. The one item we kicked off that never stayed or returned was the chicken bacon ranch chalupa/gordita thing.

Love the Real Engineering parody thumbnail

I don't care how long it took them to create it. It takes me about 30 seconds to inhale this marvel. We salute you, fiesta engineers!

Only Ben can go out to get fast food and get drunk. Ben, never change. We love you

Those shots of classic Taco Bell have shattered my nostalgic heart.

We all need to know where Ben gets his outfits from. I speak for everyone when I say I want those pants.

Ben eating a Crunchwrap and getting drunk is just a cut Jet Lag challenge that they decided to reuse.

My mom use to work doing this for a different company, and it was delicious when she do testing. Espically when they were testing steaks. Though she did more consumer testing and less professional testing

I like the writers featuring more by name in the HAI videos, especially now 2(ish, I know adam is mostly jet lag now) have faces, and the 3rd is Amy. Makes the channel feel more personal, which I like

That was the best 15 second intro to a youtube video I've ever seen. Bravo, Ben.

Oh god you gave Ben permission to drink on the job again. I think he actually has a problem.

The Dorito Loco Taco story is equally amazing to read, and how close it came to failure

I like to imagine that the engineers unnecessarily wear hard hats like the stock footage.

Crunch wraps are so clutch with their design. I’ve eaten sooo many of them simply because I can hold it while driving, and I’m in the car a lot. Whoever came up with that on their team hit a home run in my book.

3:29 Amy coming in clutch for the channel AGAIN

i am a big fan of ben and amy as recurring characters in hai videos

That breakfast crunchwrap really is a slam dunk

As a European, I am in awe of the sponsor being a subscription service to essentially just have GDPR protections.

As I ate a Crunchwrap Supreme yesterday (substituting black beans for beef) I found myself actually wondering how they made it. I've eaten a bunch of these in my life. They really are an engineering marvel.

Excuse me. It was bowling green Ohio , not Toledo Ohio. Because our Taco Bell was inbetween the dorms of BGSU , and the 25+ bars of downtown bg, our Taco Bell became one the highest grossing Taco Bell in the us , and therefore a test kitchen

this was truly half as interesting

Amy and Ben remind me of that “smart jerk and nice moron duo” TV trope lol

The thumbnail had me thinking this was done by Real Engineering, then I saw that it was about the Crunchwrap and RE talks about aircraft, MRI machines, and other technical marvels... and it's not April 1st either...

Dude really the best parts of the video are IRL videos of your writers just messing around. Dan has nice sense of humor with that taco croissant thing

Thank God the real MVP of all the vids, Amy, came over and saved Ben.

Interesting to hear about an apparently well-known food item for the first time in my life in a Half as Interesting video of all things! Definitely curious to try it out one day.

The ad at the end is actually really useful 82 companies down 60ish more to go and spam calls have nearly gone away

I love the parody thumbnail of Real Engineering ngl, very clever

It’s nice to know that Drunk Ben is still a menace even when he isn’t on Jet Lag.

innovating at taco bell is easy. just slightly vary the exact same ingredients and you have a new item

this is probably my favourite HAI video ever. love the random Ben and Amy tidbits!

So we're getting Ben drunk for HAI episodes now too?

My favorite tacobell item ever was the crispy chicken quesadilla and it was so short lived while I was in highschool. No one ever remembers it but I got it every chance I had

The thumbnail just makes me think the crunchwrap should be an April 1st Real Engineering video

Amy yet again proving herself to be the backbone of this channel

This video is the closest we'll get to the snack zone for a while

If your other writer Amy can make a shell and not get burnt by it unlike Ben, shouldn't she get a chance to be on Jet Lag?

I invented Mexican spaghetti in only a few minutes. Basically I was planning on making regular spaghetti but while looking for tomato sauce in the fridge I noticed the salsa and said to myself "I wonder how it would taste with salsa instead of tomato sauce." And it tastes much better that way. And Mexican spaghetti was born. Haven't made regular spaghetti since.

I'm impressed you got footage of Toledo. Good eye to detail

I cannot believe that Ben's kitchen abilites are that good. A true marvel.

Swapping the Lettuce for Refried Beans makes it an entirely different experience.

Ben's pants are really cool, wonder where he got them

0:50 I work there, Living In Irvine California, next to the recently burnt hangar

Hai never stops finding ways to piss off Real Engineering

Ben got drunk again lol

I don't care what anyone says, the Naked Chicken Chalupa was, and forever will be, the best Taco Bell menu item ever created.

Oh man, I bet you guys would have loved to get your hands on the internal training and marketing videos for the Crunchwrap when it came out. I got my first fastfood job at Taco Bell right when the CrunchWrap came out. The videos we watched during orientation and training were golden. They were really pushing it, largest push for a new product they've had at the time. GD do I miss working there for fresh chalupas and chips straight out of the fryer. I also innovated the pocke-dilla A pocket sized chicken quesadilla taco wrap. Since we weren't allowed food on the line I would make 3 of them and put them in my chest pocket and snack during down time when no one was looking.

As someone in one of the test markets, getting some amazing creations and then having them disappear forever is truly heartbreaking.

Wait, is Amy no longer your outside correspondant?

I know a propaganda piece when I see one.

It took 13 years to make the Crunchwrap but it takes 13 minutes to travel through my digestive system

4:57 CRUNCHWRAP 2 CONFIRMED??!?

Someone needs to make the Mountain Dew - Cilantro blast a thing. I'm thirsty for one.

Taco Bell engineers: Spend over a decade perfecting the exact ingredients and their portions Stoned Taco Bell employee: Forgets the beef, adds an ocean of queso.

Petition for Amy to team up with Ben and Adam on a future season of Jet Lag.

Growing up in Toledo and getting to be a tester for the DLT was an experience im very happy to have had

Diarrhoea wrap

Great video Sam and the HAI team! Wow! I had no idea something we arbitrary and common as the Taco Bell Crunchwrap was so difficult to get right! Thank goodness they did also I didn’t know that Toledo OH tests new Taco Bell items, I know where I’m moving! 😂🎉 Also Why was this not a Real Engineering video or a collaboration between you and Brian?! What the heck Sam!

When the ad spot is literally so good it's almost like a video in itself

Amy is growing in importance. The crunch of a taco.

This is gonna be a top 10 most watched HAI video within a year… calling it now

I knew the Toledo bit was coming; we’ve got a Taco Bell on damn near every corner. And as a Toledoan I just want to say WE WANT THE VOLCANO MENU BACK.

4:24 all 3 of those sound incredible!

3:23 Well all these years later and the DLT shell still breaks without fail. Doesn’t matter as I’ll eat it all the same. 😂

I just found this channel and holy I'm falling in love with the wittiness

“Ready to truly live mas” made my week.

4:05 Toledo, Ohio! Come stay awhile, we have a Burger King down the road. Toledo, Ohio! Don't get killed here! Toledo, Ohio! Everyone is your dad here! - Scott the Woz

This is RU-vid / Nebula creator satire at its finest. 😂 I genuinely thought the Nebula app had a bug mixing the video with the wrong creator for a second haha.

I'm loving these intern-fueled segments, absolutely unhinged

This movie was SO loud in theaters i couldnt believe how loud it was

0:07 Ben forgot for a second, that he isn't playing JetLag, and he doesn't have to be the team member that gets drunk for 25 credits

Ah the good ol Franchise Wars from Demolition Man

the get ben drunk tradition is expanding heck yeah

Literally had one today. They’re the bomb

Sir I was promised this would be "Half" as interesting, but so far this is at least double.

THIS VIDEO MADE ME MAKE MY OWN CRUNCHWRAPS, GUYS PLEASE DO THIS IT'S SO GOOD OMG

Extra fun fact: The reason Toledo is used as a test city is because the demographic distributions in the city are almost exactly the same as those for the country as a whole, and the local geography means there aren't a lot of travelers and tourists. Bigger cities, while having larger populations, usually have demographic distributions wildly different from the national ones. They also tend to have lots of travelers and tourists, further muddying the numbers. Cities like Toledo are perfect for this kind of testing where demographics matter.

0:06 - Never thought a Jet lag Joke would make it into HAI.

I forgot all about Toledo being the test market for the Doritos taco. The local news mentioned it which I think had a impact on sales.

I drive pass this mystical building each time on my way to work!!!

This video was posted while I was in the drive thru at taco bell, ironically getting a crunch wrap combo

I feel proud of having heard about Milwaukee before

Taco Bell selling alcohol is the smartest move they ever made.

my fav taco bell item finally being given the respect it deserves.

I lived right next to the irvine california taco bell innovation kitchen and never even realized it. 😂 feels good for irvine to be finally recognized

Now I need a video explaining why they took the 7-layer burrito off the menu. That was by far my favorite item 😭

The crunchwrap is my favorite item from TB too

Imagine trying to come up with new foods every years but with only 10 ingredients and it so has to be Mexican themed