Spring, or some days sure felt like Summer, has arrived early in Calgary, so it’s kind of salad season, no? I was thrilled when I was asked to try out Wendy’s new salads. I liked them a lot when I tried a couple of them last year and this time, I got to try all of them!
Prices: $4.99 for a half size; $8.99 for a full size. All of the salads in my review are half sizes.
More information such as nutrition can be found here on the Wendy’s official website.
Taco Supreme Salad
Topped with our famous chili, shredded Cheddar cheese, diced tomatoes, chunky salsa, yellow corn tortilla rounds for a salad that’s anything but ordinary.
I will admit, I was a bit hesitant to eat this one because I’m not a chili fan. I’ve never ate Wendy’s chili before for that reason, but in the spirit of food blogging, I will try almost anything at least once. This was surprisingly good, and I’m saying this with zero expectations too. The chili, being the star of the salad was nicely seasoned, and was necessary because this salad does not come with a dressing. The other components – salsa and sour cream tasted as expected but the chili definitely brought everything together. And by the way, this plate was only half of the salad, but I plated it quite pretty right? 🙂
Asian Cashew Chicken Salad
A tempting blend of delicious flavor with fire-roasted edamame, spicy roasted cashews, warm grilled chicken and Marzetti® Simply Dressed® Light Spicy Asian Chili Vinaigrette.
I’m glad this salad (namely, the dressing) is not that spicy as I have a low spice tolerance. I think my favorite part(s) though is the crunchy ingredients – namely the edamame and the cashews. Salads with just leaves are kinda boring to eat, no? And nowadays we’re all about texture. Wendy’s also season their chicken quite nicely – never bland, and texture is nice and tender.
BBQ Ranch Chicken Salad
Topped with fire-roasted corn, applewood smoked bacon, warm, grilled chicken and Marzetti® Simply Dressed® BBQ Ranch Dressing.
This was my favorite last year. Well I mean how can anything with bacon on it not be a favorite? The star is definitely the BBQ sauce and the BBQ ranch dressing – makes you feel like you’re eating a barbequed salad! I also love the smokiness from the fire-roasted corn – gives it a smokey-sweet flavor.
Apple Pecan Chicken Salad
Wendy’s signature salad with hand-picked red and green apples, crumbled blue cheese, sweet cranberries, roasted pecans, warm grilled chicken and Marzetti® Simply Dressed® Pomegranate Vinaigrette.
At first I wasn’t sure about the blue cheese as it can be very strong, but its creaminess was quite welcoming with the crunchy pecans and pomegranate vinaigrette. The dressing was light and sweet and complemented the salty blue cheese well. This was pretty much a sweet and salty salad (in a good way). I think this salad can be labelled as the gourmet one out of the bunch based on the ingredients!
Spicy Chicken Caesar Salad
Caesar Salad the way it’s supposed to be with fresh-cut romaine, shaved Asiago cheese, French bread croutons and Marzetti® Simply Dressed® Lemon Garlic Caesar Dressing.
Not your average Caesar salad, this is top with fresh shaved Asiago cheese and spicy chicken breast (same one as in their spicy chicken breast sandwich). The chicken does have a kick to it but it’s nothing that this spice wimp can’t handle, and the heat is mellowed out by the delicious lemon garlic Caesar dressing. Oh the dressing. It is lovely. I love the strong notes of lemon and garlic to it. And I am so sad that it’s exclusive to Wendy’s so you can’t buy it to use at home. Which means if I want to taste the dressing again, I need to get this salad. Which is quite alright with me 🙂
I’ll say this again. For fast food, these salads are more than decent especially at the great prices, thus making them great value. They can be quite healthy ranging from 230-540 calories (for half sizes) and a half size is just enough for a light meal. They are also the perfect post workout meal for me, especially when I want to go low carb. If you’re tired of burgers and fries, try these salads for a change!
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