Can this reimagined Choco Taco compete with the iconic original? We have our verdict

Ice cream chain Salt & Straw launched the “Tacolate” on Friday — a remake of the iconic Choco Taco, the beloved ice-cream-truck treat that was discontinued in 2022.

As a kid growing up in South Gate, California, I consumed dozens — maybe hundreds — of Choco Tacos in the 90s. And when Unilever (Klondike’s parent company) quit making them, I was sad.

So on Friday, before Salt & Straw opened its doors, I lined up outside its shop in Pasadena, eager to see if the Tacolate is as good as the nut-and-chocolate-topped snack of my youth — or even better, as Tyler Malek, Salt & Straw’s co-founder, endeavored.

First impressions

The Tacolate, which costs about $8, is about a third as big as the Choco Taco.

The Tacolate’s waffle shell is sturdy, not soggy like the original’s, which I appreciated. Inside the taco, you’ll find rich, cinnamon-ancho chili ice cream. All this is dunked in dark chocolate, topped with puffed quinoa.

Because the company has teamed up with Taco Bell, each Tacolate comes with two sauce packets: Mango Jalapeño and Wildberry Cinnamon Sauce. The first is tangy, not spicy; the latter tastes a bit like jam. Neither is bad, but the Tocolate holds up better on its own.

At the shop in Pasadena, the first couple in line took home several boxes of Tacolates. The second man in line also took a handful. (He drew the short straw in his family, he told me.)

I bought a single Tacolate box. To be honest, I did not have a Ratatouille moment (you know: when Anton Ego, the prominent food critic, is taken back to his childhood after tasting Remy's “peasant” dish). Still, Salt & Straw’s rendition is tasty — a grown up version of the chocolate taco I once knew.

Here in SoCal, others have also tried their hand at the Choco Taco, including SueEllen Mancini, who’s sold Uruguayan dulce de leche and strawberry tres leches shortcake versions at downtown L.A.’s Smorgasburg. And there will likely be more.