“What if I want to buy it by itself?” I asked.
She responded, “You can buy it by itself but it’s from over here and doesn’t have bacon on it.” The cashier gestured at the value menu, at their value chicken sandwich. At least at this Wendy’s, they do not sell the Crispy Chicken BLT alone. I was being railroaded into buying a meal.
In a true “Mom, don’t tell me what to do” moment, I grimaced. Yes, Wendy’s is offering a “4 for $4” deal that is basically Frankenstein-ed value menu options, and is kicking it off with a new item, the Crispy Chicken BLT.
Here’s the thing: I have piecemealed together feasts from Wendy’s in the past. This is one of my favorite places to do it. But if you’re saying I have to buy a soda and I have to buy some fries, I’m going to push back a bit. No Frosty? No baked potato? As the combinations dwindle, it feels like Dave Thomas’ ghost hand is holding my head under a vat of Wendy’s chili as he mumbles something about how ground beef should have right-angled corners.
The meal comes with a sandwich, four nuggets, a soda and fries. And once the sandwich is unwrapped, it’s clear why it comes with friends. It’s pretty tiny. Turns out, it’s a Jr. Bacon Cheeseburger but with a fried white chicken patty replacing the beef.
The Crispy Chicken BLT boasts a two slices of bacon, a slice of American cheese, mayo, lettuce, and tomato on top of the patty. The bacon is crispier than I’m used to on other Wendy’s items, but it and the lettuce add a nice texture to the entire bite. The bun is soft but dry, and combined with the mild hum of the American cheese and mayonnaise, can get a little overbearing at times.
The chicken itself is fine—the white meat is free of soft bones (unlike a McChicken, sometimes) and contrasts nicely to the sodium boost the pork adds. The patty is nothing particularly special, similar to most other sandwiches on the value menu, but this seems to complement the other ingredients a tad better than the beef counterpart.
How was the rest of the meal? I would have liked a Frosty, to be honest. The fries seemed like overkill, but were fine. And surprisingly, I did not get sick of chicken, as I gulped down four nuggets no problem (didn’t they use to have five nuggets?).
I’m not a fan of the “4 for $4” promotion. It looks too much like 4-4-4, which gives off Illuminati vibes, and the entire situation definitely feels like paying for a cable package when all I need is Warriors basketball, the Property Brothers and the People v. OJ Simpson. “Kar-dash-i-an! Kar-dash-i-an!”
The sandwich is a decent value menu item, and four bucks is a pretty good price for a meal. Just lemme pick my own stuff, Wendy’s.
(Nutrition Facts – 440 calories, 24 grams of fat, 7 grams of saturated fat, 55 milligrams of cholesterol, 950 milligrams of sodium, 37 grams of carbohydrates, 5 grams of sugar, 1 gram of fiber, and 20 grams of protein.)
Purchased Price: $4 (includes meal)
Size: N/A
Purchased at: Wendy’s
Rating: 7 out of 10
Pros: Serviceable value menu item. Better than the Jr. Bacon Cheeseburger. Chicken and bacon go together well, lettuce adds a nice crisp.
Cons: Cheese and bread can overwhelm. You need to buy four things at once.
What is wrong with these jagoff places? I don’t want fries or soda & I’d rather have a 2nd sandwich. Fast food soda is watered down and gross & Wendy’s fries have stunk since 2011. I probably would have ordered a Jr bacon cheeseburger & asked for a crispy chicken patty.
Fast food soda tastes watered down because the ridiculous amount of ice they use. Asking them to go light on the ice not only avoids this but gives you more soda for your money.
At most place these days you pour your own soda so you can do no ice at all if you want.
When I worked in fast food they told us the cup costs them more than the syrup for the soda so there wasn’t really an incentive to water them down, what ticked them off is employees giving away free cups those things cost money.
Isn’t there a huge profit margin on soda, tho? $2-$3 for soda is ridiculous. I’m one of those cheapskates who brings his own tap water.
Well, it’s also a carbonation thing. I find fast food soda is a lot more flat & the bubbles are a lot “looser” and softer than the bite you get from a can or bottle.
“Soft bones”? That is truly disturbing…
Not a fun of un-melted cheese but hot damn that bacon looks good.
As a store manager of a Wendy’s every location has the option to customize or single out something for your order, however not all employees know all the different menu options they have on the register as there is a meat menu, a cheese menu, condiments menu, dressings menu, ect. If you eve experience this at a location I would ask for a manager so they can not only get you exactly what you want but now another Wendy’s employee now knows the other menu options. Keep in mind with the 4 for 4 though there are no substitutes except BLT OR JBC, what size, spicy or regular nuggets and the type of drink. ??