Del Taco 2 with Kevin Bartelt & Yusong Liu

"Del Taco 2 with Kevin Bartelt & Yusong Liu" is Episode 215 of *Doughboys*, hosted by Mike Mitchell and Nick Wiger. "Del Taco 2 with Kevin Bartelt & Yusong Liu" was released on August 8, 2019.

## Synopsis

From the new podcast *Maybe Don't*, we're joined by Kevin Bartelt (*Hollywood Handbook*) and our own producer Yusong Liu to discuss eating vegan in California and to taste-test the new Beyond Meat options at Del Taco. Plus, a healthy juice-edition of Drank or Stank.

## Nick's intro

Kellogg's: today, it's a widely known breakfast-foods company encompassing products like Rice Krispies, Eggo Waffles, and Nutrigrain Bars, but the man behind this now-staid brand, and the inventor of Kellogg's signature Cornflakes, was himself a fascinating figure: the eccentric nutritionist John Harvey Kellogg.

In 1868, Kellogg, a devout Seventh Day Adventist, opened the Battle Creek Sanitarium in Battle Creek, Michigan. Unlike the common usage of the term "sanitarium" today, his was a health spa for the nation's elite in the late 19th- and early 20th-centuries. Among the practices advocated by Kellogg at his retreat included frequent water enemas to flush out and restore bacteria, followed by the consumption of yogurt, both orally and rectally. He also preached about the health benefits of sexual abstinence, a sort of predecessor to the "No Fap" movement. These sorts of oddities led to Kellogg and his sanitarium later being mocked as "wacko," most famously in T.C. Boyle's comedic novel, *The Road To Wellville* (later adapted into a film).

But some of Kellogg's less bizarre practices strongly influenced thinking in American health - the benefits of regular bathing and aerobic exercise, and the hygienic value of medical circumcision, which for better or worse, became widely practiced in the United States. And Kellogg was also a strong advocate of a vegetarian diet, both for health and sustainability reasons, and personally developed a number of plant-based meat substitutes.

While the use of fake meat, primarily tofu, dates back to the Buddhist traditions of China's Han Dynasty, Kellogg introduced this concept to the westernized diet of Americans. Over the 20th century, meatless versions of American dishes, such as veggie burgers and Tofurkey, gradually became mainstream and as food science iterated, fake meat increasingly approximated the real thing.

In 2009, the Beyond Meat company was founded and its pseudo-chicken and beef were heralded for accurately simulating the taste and texture of animal protein, reflected in the company's explosive growth. And in 2018, Beyond partnered with the fifth largest Mexican-American chain to create veggie and vegan versions of its tacos and burritos. These Beyond Meat-based menu items went live at all of the chain's locations earlier this year and, as of this episode's release, Beyond's biggest competitor, Impossible Meat, will have taken its plant-based burgers nationwide with Burger King.

So while the sexual abstinence and yogurt enemas of John Harvey Kellogg may have receded to the fringe, Kellogg's innovation of meat substitutes, like his breakfast cereals, have become another part of how Americans eat.

This week on *Doughboys*, we return to Del Taco to sample its Beyond Menu.

## Fork rating

As Nick's intro explains, Del Taco now has a Beyond Meat Menu of vegetarian options: a Beyond Taco, Beyond Avocado Taco, Epic Beyond Cali Burrito, and the Beyond 8 Layer Burrito.

* Beyond Avocado Taco
* Epic Beyond Cali Burrito
* Beyond 8 Layer Burrito
 Mike Mitchell
* Beyond Avocado Taco
* Epic Beyond Cali Burrito
* Beyond 8 Layer Burrito
 Kevin Bartelt
* Epic Beyond Cali Burrito
* Beyond 8 Layer Burrito
* Nachos
	+ no cheese
	+ no sour cream
	+ add Beyond Meat
 Yusong Liu

We are using ratings of the Beyond Menu here, and not if they rated the full Del Taco experience. Mitch, for instance, gave two ratings: 3.5 for the Beyond Menu, but 5 for Del Taco.

Thus, Del Taco remains in the Golden Plate Club based on their earlier episode, but the Beyond Menu itself is not.

Mitch did also rank his four Beyond items from greatest to worst: Beyond 8 Layer Burrito, Beyond Taco, Epic Beyond Cali Burrito, and the Beyond Avocado Taco. Nick's ranking matched that, except he but the Beyond Taco first and the 8 Layer Burrito second.

## Drank or Stank / Flavor of the Week

In Drank or Stank, The Doughboys have a drink and rate it either 'Drank' or 'Stank.'

In Flavor of the Week, The Doughboys try a variety of flavors of one brand.

For this episode, they have three varieties of Pressed Juicery juices:

* Greens 2 is kale, spinach, parsley, cucumber, apple, and lemon
* Roots 3 is carrot, kale, spinach, parsley, apple, lemon, and ginger
* Citrus 2 is pineapple, lemon, apple, and mint

 Mike Mitchell
 Kevin Bartelt
 Yusong Liu

Pressed Juicery Greens 2Pressed Juicery Roots 3Pressed Juicery Citrus 2

## Quotes

**Mitch**: What type of pajamas?
**Nick**: *Minions* pajamas.
**Mitch**: I know.

**Mitch**: I started it. Check the tapes.

**Nick**: Stop fucking. Stop jacking off. And put some yogurt up your ass.

## #hashtags

* #GrandpaConnection or #GrandmaConnection
* #NotAStoplight

## The Feedbag

I was just wondering if there was a food and/or drink that you cannot emotionally stomach?

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* 215. **Del Taco 2**
* 281. Steak 'n Shake 5
* 367. Pressed
* 388. BOWL: Acai Region
* 390. BOWL: Semi-finals 2
* DD. BOWL: Bread Dead Redemption
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* THON21. Doughathon