Taco Bell can have an intimidating reputation if you’ve never been to the fast-food chain. Whether you’ve heard it called Tex-Mex, Mexican-inspired, or just flat-out fake Mexican food, how to make taco bell cinnamon twists probably know the Taco Bell experience is far from authentic. For starters, it’s best to have a relatively settled stomach before trying the fast-food chain for the first time. Some rumors about Taco Bell can be true from time to time, so just make sure to not go overboard with your first order.

Take it easy and go with some experienced buddies who know the drill, like you would for any intense first-time experience. This comprehensive beginner’s guide will lead you through everything you need to know about ordering at Taco Bell for the first time, including which items are best to try and how to get the best value out of your order. Our first word of advice to anyone trying Taco Bell for the first time is don’t go in the morning. While Taco Bell has offerings that other fast-food breakfast places don’t, like breakfast burritos and Crunchwraps with eggs, these are far from the best items on the menu.

Most of the breakfast options disappoint, but one of the best items on the menu can be purchased at any time. The sweet-and-delicious Cinnabon Delights are usually a dessert, but they are a great morning treat as well. The eggs and breakfast protein options at Taco Bell leave quite a bit to be desired. On the bright side, most of the breakfast offerings include hash browns or potatoes of some sort. As you’ll soon realize, potatoes are one of Taco Bell’s best ingredients.

Considering you can get potatoes in many forms during breakfast, it can be a tasty option. This might be the most important thing to know before making the trip to Taco Bell for the first time: Taco Bell lets you customize and modify items in pretty much any way you see fit. It might just be the best fast-food chain in this regard. So don’t be scared to ask for no sour cream, extra meat, or even more complex substitutions you may have.

Also, before you stand in line and memorize your complex order before reciting it to the employee working the counter, you should know that there are easier ways to ensure Taco Bell makes your first order just the way you want it. Many locations have kiosks where you can order, modify, and customize your items on a touch screen. Not to evangelize too much for the Taco Bell app but — like many fast food apps — it offers users rewards that you just can’t get elsewhere. On the Taco Bell app, there are two tiers of loyalty: Hot and Fire. Getting to 2,000 points in one year will earn you access to the Fire Tier. This unlocks a whole tier of items you can now redeem your points to purchase, and the value of each order also increases.

In the Fire Tier, every dollar spent nets app users 11 points. You might not know if you like Taco Bell the first time around, but it is worth downloading the app anyway for the online exclusive deals that may decrease the price of your meal. Some items and combo specials can only be purchased online, so make you’ll want to make sure you aren’t missing out on the best deals you can get at Taco Bell. While you can find this specialty flavor of Mountain Dew at grocery stores and gas stations nowadays, there was a long period of time when Baja Blast was a Taco Bell-exclusive beverage. The tropical and fruity Mountain Dew flavor can still mostly only be found at Taco Bell. Known for its distinct turquoise color and how it pairs like a magic trick with literally every item on the menu, Baja Blast is a key part of the Taco Bell experience.

Now, don’t you worry, there are a couple of different ways you can get your Baja Blast fix on. All Taco Bell locations offer regular and Diet Baja Blast as a fountain beverage option. However, if you don’t want to replace your favorite Pepsi product with what is ultimately still a flavored Mountain Dew, you can also try the special flavor in the form of a Baja Blast Freeze. We can’t speak to the quality of all of Taco Bell’s exclusive items. Like most fast food places, whatever hot new item the chain is promoting can be hit or miss and it just depends a lot of the time on the quality of ingredients at your location. That being said, many of these items come included in some of the best boxes and combo deals Taco Bell has to offer. Limited-time deals and combos are often a fantastic way to get a lot of food for a price that is much more friendly than usual.