When we got a chance to visit Wendy’s test kitchen to try their new Ciabatta Bacon Cheeseburger, we leapt at the chance to try something new and learn more about the process of rolling out a new sandwich to America. When we left, we had learned a lot about what makes Wendy’s unique amidst all of the fast food titans.
Guyism
Our team finds its way to Wendy’s for lunch around once a week. For Cass and I (and BroBible’s Andy Moore), Wendy’s is typically a refuge from whatever alcoholic mistreatment we subjected our bodies to the previous night. Old standbys like their Frosty, old fashioned hamburger, and chicken nuggets are stalwarts, comfort food items you’ve probably known and enjoyed since you were a child.
What you may not know about Wendy’s is how innovative is, particularly when compared to its large national competitors. If you walk into any Wendy’s across the country, you won’t just find their classic square burgers piled up to three levels high. You’ll also find pretzel buns, chipotle chicken and cheeseburgers, even an Asiago cheese and ranch spin on their classic chicken sandwich. While fast food has become gauche in some circles, Wendy’s prides itself on making fast food fresh and accessible despite their massive scale — around 7,000 restaurants nationwide.
“We want to be innovative with what we want to do,” Dwayne Adams, Wendy’s manager of culinary and product innovation, told Guyism. “We’ll take a chance with things and see what works.”
Wendy’s
What works for Wendy’s right now is their new Ciabatta Bacon Cheeseburger, an Italian-themed burger that eschews the standard quick-service restaurant trope of slapping marinara sauce and mozzarella on something then calling it a day. According to Wendy’s research, 65% of Americans prefer Italian cuisine over any other. And their new Ciabatta Bacon Cheeseburger is authentic Mediterranean fare to the max, consisting of a ciabatta bun, a creamy garlic aioli sauce, smoked bacon, roasted tomatoes, and a non-overpowering dose of Asiago cheese.
The goal is to marry these flavors, all freshly prepared at Wendy’s locations across the U.S., and bring them to market with the same quality we experienced at the Wendy’s test kitchen in New York City’s SoHo area.
Of course, the Wendy’s test kitchen is a whole other experience. Upon arrival there, we were greeted by Top Chef contestant and Food Network’s Cutthroat Kitchen judge Chef Antonia Lofaso. The experienced chef — owner and Executive Chef at Los Angeles’s Scopa and Black Market Liquor Bar — prepared sides designed to complement the experience including an Asiago rice ball, a fresh tomato soup, and a salad with fresh roasted tomatoes. Not exactly the same experience you’ll get at a Wendy’s drive-thru at 3 A.M. but an example of the quality Wendy’s hopes to achieve each time their burger is produced at one of their outposts.
“We do a lot of analytical work to ensure the things we’re doing can be replicated,” Adams said. “There’s a lot of numbers work [that goes into producing a high quality burger at scale], a lot of food science that goes into it.”
Guyism
The level of detail it requires to produce any artisan-styled burger, particularly one with unique ingredients like their latest release, is a delicate balance when being unleashed upon thousands of local franchises whose commitment to the process may not be as diligent as Wendy’s corporate may be.
But Wendy’s is focused on ensuring that their franchisees fall in line with the tasks at hand. According to Adams, Wendy’s is acutely aware of the challenge it faces going up against localized competitors like Umami Burger who tout a wide variety of fresh ingredients as their difference maker in the marketplace. But if they’re able to bring quality to scale, they might be able to not only stave off upstart fast food restaurants, but also seize more marketshare from a faltering Burger King and a stagnant McDonald’s more concerned about its place next to Starbucks.
Which is a long way to say: The burger is good. I’m not an Asiago fan but the flavor components combine in such a way where it doesn’t overpower the other ingredients. The ciabatta itself is also tremendously done, thankfully not as hard as some others I’ve had but packing a nice crunch that flows nicely with the burger. The tomatoes and greens both were exceedingly fresh and crisp in a way you don’t often experience in fast food. It’s just a good burger, top to bottom, in a way you wouldn’t expect from the third largest fast food chain in the U.S. And for that, all of us burger fans should all be grateful.
Wendy’s Ciabatta Bacon Cheeseburger is available for a limited time only, starting January 27 and continuing until March, for a recommended price of $4.79.
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