Del Taco is coming to North Carolina. Here are the first three menu items I want to try.

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Hi foodies,

With summer around the corner, many of us are looking forward to road trips, long weekends and vacations — plus the culinary adventures that come with them.

This June, I’m headed to northern California to hit up the cheese trail, shop at farmers markets and have dinner at The French Laundry, if I can snag a reservation.

It’ll be quite a different trip from last year, when my husband and I went camping and hiking in Utah. On the trails, we ate freeze-dried pad Thai (which is shockingly good) and salami sandwiches. On the road between national parks, we ate In-N-Out burgers and drank Dutch Bros coffee.

There was another West Coast chain, however, that we passed by but didn’t get to try — Del Taco. Luckily, however, the Mexican fast-food chain is coming to North Carolina.

Many have compared the chain to Taco Bell, which is among my favorite fast-food stops. Still, Del Taco has some menu items that Taco Bell does not, which I look forward to trying.

Some say Del Taco burgers are among the best in fast food. Plus, the menu has several options for fries loaded with chili, queso or steak and all the fixings. The chain also has crispy chicken tacos and burritos.

We’ll be able to see what all the hype is about when the first of five Tar Heel State locations opens this summer in Durham.

So, I suppose you could travel around the country to try such iconic chains, or just wait until they come to us.

Happy eating,

Taylor

Taylor Shook writes about food, dining and culture for The Fayetteville Observer. She can be reached at tshook@gannett.com or on Facebook. 

This article originally appeared on The Fayetteville Observer: Here's what I'm ordering at Del Taco's first North Carolina location