“W” can mean a lot of things. It is the 23rd letter in the alphabet. It could be the line of luxury hotels owned by Starwood properties. It’s the name of the glossy fashionista magazine that nobody reads but it looks great on your coffee table. It also reminds me of a campaign used by a certain former President. Currently, it means a hamburger that promises each heady mouthful will be packed with the flavor of pickles.
Meet Wendy’s new and arrogantly named hamburger The “W.” Yep. It. Is. THE. “W!”
I have to admit the name commands attention. The “W” conjures up ideas that this burger is the beginning and end of all fast food hamburgers. The ornate packaging would have me believe The “W” is not merely a double meat patty with cheese between two pieces of bread. No, it is the sandwich that will bring about world peace, help you find the mysterious God particle (that’s Higgs Boson to you brainiacs) and hold promises of giving your partner multiple orgasms.
Like the hucksters of yesteryear offering a tonic for all that ails you, most things that promise too much are bound to disappoint. Anybody who has played Skyrim or seen this season of The Walking Dead knows what I am talking about.
The burger is eloquently wrapped in white paper to suggest that what you are actually carrying is a fine marbled rib eye freshly cut from the butcher. Underlining the importance of this sandwich and adding to the pomp, it is tucked in a folder shouting all kinds of things like “fresh!” and “quality!!”
That, however, is where the façade ends and what you have is the fast food equivalent of a Pandora’s Box. Comparable to the Big Mac, The “W” has two patties, special sauce, tomato, pickles, red onion and two slices of cheese. And trust me, the sauce is very special which I will get to in a minute.
The promotional pictures for The “W” appeared nothing like the actual burger. My sandwich consisted of two limp square beef patties bordering on a chic gray color scheme. There’s the obligatory cheese topped on each slate. A wilted leaf of iceberg, a depressing slice of tomato, some pickles and slivers of red onion complimented the disaster. Then the sauce was slathered sloppily on the bun, which was toasted but not buttery as Wendy’s promised. I could be wrong since freckle face was so heavy handed with the sauce.
Now about that sauce…the website states it’s the savory signature sauce with hints of tomato, pickle and red pepper. To hint is to suggest slightly, but for Wendy’s it means to grab you by the head, slam your face into the wet spot on the carpet, nose buried deep and then scream in your ear “BAD DOGGIE! BAD BAD BAD DOGGIEEEEEEEEEE!!!!!”
If the sauce is signature, it is not a graceful Hancock. It is a scrawled letter X signed by an incompetent psychopath who flings their own poop at the television when the theme song to “The Price is Right” comes on. The sauce is so briny and strong with pickles, it tastes like thousand island dressing amped up with mega-ultra-relish. It is also very vinegary which intensifies the brine and is off-putting. Honestly, drinking a douche would rival the tang of the sauce.
This did not help the cadaver-like meat or the drippy cheese or the lettuce which seemed like an afterthought. The toasted buns were soggy. It was like a victim of a circle jerk but the loser did not eat the bread. The only positive note was the red onion which added a nice sweet and spicy bite. However, you would be wise just to buy a red onion and eat it like an apple.
I am surprised by this evil offspring from hell because I normally like Wendy’s. I have fond memories of The Baconator. The website said “it is doubly amazing” and they list it as a premium hamburger. This sandwich is no more amazing in the single sense than it is twice. Forgetting to flush the toilet after a dinner of tripe sautéed in black bean sauce and reconstituted dried salted fish is more amazing.
Damn, emptying the contents of my used condom on to a hamburger would be more amazing! Wow, I’m really angry about this. When I eat at a fast food place, I’m not expecting meat at Luger levels but I’m also not expecting inmate cafeteria dreck.
I agree there are so many tasteless “potty jokes” in my review. Yes. But they taste much better than this burger. “Big flavor doesn’t have to mean big bucks”, touts the website. The flavor is indeed very big, but Wendy’s forgot to make the flavor good.
(Nutrition Facts – 580 calories, 290 calories from fat, 33 grams of fat, 14 grams of saturated fats, 105 milligrams of cholesterol, 1,480 milligrams of sodium, 40 grams of carbohydrates, 3 grams of fiber, 9 grams of sugars, and 32 grams of protein.)
Other Wendy’s The “W” reviews:
Grub Grade
Grub Gripe (video)
Foodette Reviews
Item: Wendy’s The “W”
Price: $2.99 (sandwich only)
Purchased at: Wendy’s
Rating: 3 out of 10
Pros: You can pick up a Frosty or a Baconator while there. The red onions add a good kick. Images of people flinging poop in top hats make me laugh. Toasted buns are a good idea. Freckles.
Cons: The beef, the cheese, the pickle, the tomato. The sauce is too briny. Saying things that are “double amazing” when you cannot even get to the “singular” amazing. Loser eats the bread. Speaking of bread, the nice texture of toasted buns are nullified when it becomes soggy due to too much sauce. Skyrim, like seriously what am I supposed to do next?
Maybe our usually worthless staff at the local Wendy’s just managed to make a good burger for me this time, b/c I got the W this weekend and I enjoyed it. Tasted fresher and less heavy than a big mac. The sauce was substantial but not too heavy. It could also just be my expectations, we usually stick to value menu, and they’ve been terrible a lot lately, so even a mediocre job might seem “enjoyable” by comparison.
Too bad you feel that way cause the “W” is our lunch crew’s new go-to burger! It’s just the right size and it at least has vegetables on it. Big Mac onion crumble and lettuce shreds are no longer recognizable.
And there is something to be said for what Wendy’s brings to the table. Sure their fries aren’t the best, but you can get chili and frostys and even their side salads are decent.
I used to like Wendy’s like you, but then I took an arrow to the knee.
That made me laugh…I needed it. Thanks.
Hahaha – Mike’s comment is great, as was your review, Jeff. It really made me laugh. I felt similarly about the Hot N Juicy a few weeks ago.
Didn’t care for it that much, the new juicy double was much better, but you can never go wrong with a good old jbc on the value menu
Great review guys! You can check out our review too! http://www.fastfoodgeek.com/2011/11/wendys-w-burger.html
the hijack!
Hmmmm I’d like to say that I am surprised, but somtimes I think many fast food companies overhype, a just plane bad burger… I find that what makes burgers is just good basic ingredients, not a bunch of special sauce or overhyped toppings.
I bought 2 of them expecting something good. OMG!!! they were horrible. The sauce tasted like Tuna fish. It was like I was eating Tuna Fish on a hamburger. YUCK!!!..If I ever get the burger again it will not be with the sauce. Everything else was fine. Take the sauce and toss it Wendy’s.
I’m just not sure how the burger gets a 3. We can all pretty much agree that the standard Wendys burger is at least a six. Does the sauce alone drag it down three points into three territory? I’m not so sure.
The gray meat, the cheese, the tomato, the sauce. I can go on…
All the burgers a fris have a fish taste and I cant eat any more… wendys was my favorit
This review single-handedly cast a cloud of doubt over the credibility of other reviews featured here. I really enjoy this site, and will continue to be a fan, but wow it is on probation now.
I just finished eating it. 3 is harsh, 6 would be the minimum based on the one I had. I think a “bad one” was had by this reviewer. Deserves a second try perhaps from a different location.
It was well crafted, and looked nothing like the one pictured here. The bun was buttery and enhanced every last bite.
I suspect the sauce is the sticking point for some…it has tang, and different palates will take it differently. I like it.
I don’t understand how disagreeing with you hurts our credibility. It’s one person’s honest opinion about this burger, and I’m sure there are other people across the United States who feel the same way as Jeff. For example, she didn’t care for it either.
If people didn’t disagree in the world, it would be a better place. But people have different opinions about EVERYTHING. Because I know people disagree about things, I link to others reviews at the end of our reviews. And I try to find reviews that disagree with ours because in real life people disagree, just like how you disagree with this review and how many folks disagree with my excessive use of the word disagree in this paragraph.
I think it’s because Wendy’s is generally considered to have very good burgers & fries. So unless the sauce is especially horrible, using new meat, cooked wrong, or whatever, then it probably makes alot of people suspicious.
When reviews go against the grain of general opinion like this 1, do you guys ever go get the same item at a different time or different location to double-check it’s quality?
Have you tried this burger? If so, what was your impression of it?
As for your question about ordering a fast food item again at a different location to double check its quality, no we don’t. Should we? Maybe, but I don’t want to kill writers by filling them up with more saturated fats and sodium than they really should be eating. I don’t pay them enough to do that.
I just saw the ad for it last week of feb and tried it march 2nd. In Pompano beach,Florida. The ad said its juicier but it was such dried out garbage,that I couldn’t finish it. I threw it and the bag out the car window into their parking lot in protest. I don’t think Wendy’s corporate pays attention to the franchises. Dave must be rolling over in his grave.
Skyrim is disappointing? Stick with reviewing food. :p
Sorry I’m a gamer too and I hate the game, stick with eating food.
This post is nothing short of vulgar and disgusting. What happened to this website?
Dude, it’s always been like this.
This burger is overpriced and not any kind of a deal. I couldn’t even taste the “special sauceâ€. There was more bread than burger. When I checked, the patties are actually the same patties that come on the Jr. Cheeseburger Deluxe(on the value menu). The better option would be 2 Jr Cheeseburger Deluxe – same amount of beef, more lettuce, tomatoes, onions, and bread; all for $2.00! The only thing missing would be the tasteless special sauce. Rating = D-.
I work at Wendy’s and I know that everyday we cook fresh food not the stale peice of burger this writer talks about. Maybe she went to the bathroom or was to busy texting and her food got cold but we make everything the right way everytime. Period.