REVIEW: Wendy’s Cheesy Bacon Cheeseburger

When I first saw promotional pictures of Wendy’s new Cheesy Bacon Cheeseburger, I thought the chain was offering a value menu item—something that doesn’t take a big bite out of your wallet. However, after looking at its price in the Wendy’s app, my jaw dropped enough to fit two of these Cheesy Bacon Cheeseburgers stacked on top of each other into my mouth simultaneously, because this value-looking burger cost me $7.69.

Yes, like many of my fast food reviews, you’ll see a disclaimer that things are pricier here because I live on a rock in the middle of the Pacific Ocean. But I was curious about how much other regions were paying for this burger, with a quarter-pound beef patty, Applewood-smoked bacon, two slices of American cheese, and cheddar cheese sauce on a premium bun. It can also be ordered with two or three patties, if you want to pay even more.

So I did some digging, and here’s what people around the country are paying for this thing:

• $7.79 Seattle, WA
• $7.69 Los Angeles, CA
• $7.49 New York City, NY
• $7.39 Philadelphia, PA
• $7.29 Portland, OR
• $6.69 Dallas, TX
• $6.69 Des Moines, IA
• $6.49 Kansas City, MO
• $6.49 Miami, FL
• $6.39 Ann Arbor, MI
• $6.29 Chicago, IL
• $6.19 Bountiful, UT
• $5.99 Percell, OK
• $5.79 Durham, NC
• $5.29 Phoenix, AZ

The $7.69 I paid lands near the top of that list, but I look at the cities paying in the five- and six-dollar range, and I still feel like it’s too much for a burger that looks so unimpressive in person. Yes, it has a quarter-pound beef patty, three bacon slices, a cheddar cheese sauce, and two slices of American cheese, which justifies Wendy’s price for it, but all of them stacked on top of each other creates a menu item that makes me feel like I got pickpocketed by Wendy.

If it had a second patty, it might look more reasonable. If the cheese sauce elevated the burger’s flavor mightily, it might’ve made this taste a bit more worthwhile. While there’s a smidge of cheddar flavor, it’s not enough to make this something you must try while it’s on the menu. Overall, its flavor is pretty much what you’d expect from the bacon cheeseburger: cheesy, meaty, smoky, porky, and savory. But it’s also dinky and pricey.

Purchased Price: $7.69*
Size: Single
Rating: 5 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: 560 calories, 33 grams of fat, 15 grams of saturated fat, 1.5 grams of trans fat, 95 milligrams of cholesterol, 1180 milligrams of sodium, 32 grams of carbohydrates, 1 gram of fiber, 5 grams of sugar, and 34 grams of protein.

*Because I live on a rock in the middle of the Pacific Ocean, things are a bit pricier here. You’ll probably pay less than I did. Or not, Seattle.