Behind the Scenes with Wendy’s Fresh Salads
I have to be honest — I was skeptical when I was invited to get a behind-the-scenes look at fresh salad prep inside of a Wendy’s restaurant. I haven’t been a fan of “fast-food” for quite some time. In the past, I’ve tried drive-thru salads, only to be sorely disappointed. But as of today, Wendy’s has completely changed my mind! Let me start at the beginning.
Last week, myself and a couple of other bloggers met up at a nearby Wendy’s for our behind the scenes event. I had no idea what to expect, but — low & behold — my expectations were completely exceeded.
As it turns out, Wendy’s staff hand-prepares each salad with fresh vegetables every day. We got to check out the produce and watch as the vegetables were washed, chopped, and added to salads. The process reminded me so much of the way that I prepare salads for my family at home, which was really refreshing.
The Wendy’s that we visited receives its farm-fresh produce three times each week. That means that often times, produce is making it from the farm to your plate at Wendy’s in less than a week. That’s even faster than most supermarkets. (Check out the journey of Wendy’s romaine lettuce from farm to drive-thru on the Wendy’s YouTube channel.)
Wendy’s founder Dave Thomas opened the first Wendy’s restaurant in 1969 grounded on the premise that “Quality is our Recipe®.” Watching fresh produce get washed, chopped, and placed into salads with so much care gave me a first-hand look at Wendy’s commitment to that promise.
After we watched the produce and salad prep, we got to “glove-up” and give it a try ourselves. We each picked a salad and went to work. I chose the Apple Pecan Chicken Salad featuring ripe red and green apples and crunchy roasted pecans. The salad is then topped with cranberries, creamy blue cheese crumbles, and a pomegranate vinaigrette. Finally, every salad entrée is topped with premium white meat chicken breasts that are grilled at the time of your order and placed warm on your salad. I opted out of the blue cheese — I’m going dairy free for Marina’s sake — but even without it, the salad was seriously delicious. We also got to try out Wendy’s new organic HONEST Tea and it was the perfect compliment to the salad.
The entire experience opened my eyes and completely changed my opinion about what a “fast food” salad can be. Wendy’s gives you the best of all worlds — combining healthy with fresh and quick. It’s everything that a busy mom like me could ask for. I’ll definitely be heading back to test out the other premium salads soon.
What about you? Would you consider trying a fast-food salad? Have you ever tried a Wendy’s salad? Which one is your favorite?
I was selected for this opportunity as a member of Clever Girls and the content and opinions expressed here are all my own.
Comments (2)
Tina
May 11, 2015 at 2:42 pm
I have had fast food salads before when traveling. Many long road trips on expressways where the only food stops are full of fast food and I don’t feel like getting off the high way. I had no idea they would be made fresh or with fresh ingredients (from Wendy’s at least haha). Makes me feel a little better!
Scott
May 20, 2015 at 1:43 pm
My boys love going to Wendy’s to celebrate any occasion that we call “special lunch”. This past weekend, it was my youngest son’s 5-year old birthday. Every time we go though, my wife, she will always get the Wendy’s salad. She’s always been a fan.