REVIEW: Wendy’s Updated Taco Salad (2024)

There was a time when I ate a lot of Wendy’s chili. Everybody else would have their huge Bacon Cheese Whatever monstrosities, large fries, buckets of nuggets, and mega Frosties, and I would sit there, primly eating my fiber-rich, beany soup. My will was strong.

But I’ve weakened in my morals since then and have started experimenting with other Wendy’s fare, even burgers. But I still consider myself a Wendy’s Chili enthusiast, so I had to try the latest incarnation of its Taco Salad. This new incarnation of the classic entrée boasts new crispy chili lime tortilla strips, fire-roasted corn, and a “creamy zesty salsa” dressing, in addition to the standard ingredients: lettuce, tomato, shredded cheese, and, of course, chili.

When you open the plastic clamshell, it looks like a normal fast-food salad with a few tablespoons of corn kernels dropped on it; some of the corn had some visible char on it, but most did not. The other special ingredients—the seasoned tortilla strips, the creamy salsa dressing, and, of course, the chili–came separately. Considering the fact that my default portion was pretty close to filling the whole container before any of the add-ins went on, clearly construction of my bespoke salad would be a careful process.

If you eat Wendy’s chili regularly, then you know that sometimes it’s more watery than others. This time, it was pretty watery, so instead of dumping a bunch of it onto my salad and giving it a bath, I went in with a spoon and teased out the solid components, effectively straining out the water. I only got through about a third of the chili before I had enough for my plate, and I didn’t use all of the dressing because it seemed like too much of a good thing. If you want to eat this with all of the chili and all of the dressing, you are braver than I, and hopefully wearing clothes that don’t need to be dry-cleaned.

There is a lot going on in this salad, to put it mildly. I know saying, “It was like a party in my mouth” is totally played out, but my mouth was definitely experiencing some kind of festive event. I mostly enjoyed all the different flavors and textures, although the temperature fluctuation was a little strange; when I went from a forkful of pipping-hot chili to a cold clump of lettuce, it felt a little like something had gone wrong with my meal, but that’s just part of the experience.

Every component I can point to was good (although the “creamy salsa” dressing was basically just a less-tangy Ranch to my palate), yet I found trying to arrange perfect bites and get a little bit of everything in one mouthful was kind of…stressful. Next time I have it, and am confident I will have it again, I need to chillax and remember that I’m not being judged by the Wendy’s Police.

After all that, I’m pretty happy with this incarnation of the Taco Salad. Just be aware that assembling and eating the darned thing is more of a project than you might have been anticipating.

Purchased Price: $5.99
Rating: 8 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: (Salad w/dressing) 640 calories, 39 grams of fat, 13 grams of saturated fat, 1 gram of trans fat, 70 milligrams of cholesterol, 1550 milligrams of sodium, 47 grams of carbohydrates, 11 grams of fiber, 13 grams of sugar, and 27 grams of protein.

SPOTTED (SEASONAL EDITION): 11/28/2024

Here are some interesting new products found on store shelves by your fellow readers. If you’ve tried any of them, share your thoughts in the comments.

Create-A-Treat Minecraft Pyramid House Cookie Kit

(Spotted by Robbie at Walmart.)

Santa’s Workshop 12 Popcorn Cones

(Spotted by Robbie at Sam’s Club.)

Target Bullseyes Crispy Cookies

(Spotted by Robbie at Target.)

The Elf On The Shelf Candy Backback

(Spotted by Robbie at Big Lots.)

Culinary Creations Original Donut Baking Kit

(Spotted by Robbie at Five Below.)

Create-A-Treat Buddy the Elf Cookie Kit

(Spotted by Robbie at H-E-B.)

Spongebob Squarepants Movie Gummy Set

(Spotted by Robbie at Walmart.)

Favorite Day 24 Days Of Chocolate Assorted Chocolates

(Spotted by Robbie at Target.)

Harry Potter Hogwarts 12 Ct Cookie Decorating Gift Set

(Spotted by Robbie at Sam’s Club.)

Frankford Oreo Hot Cocoa Mix Tin

(Spotted by Robbie at Walmart.)

Frankford Super Mario Holiday Countdown Calendar 2024

(Spotted by Robbie at Five Below.)

Culinary Creations Hot Cocoa and Treats

(Spotted by Robbie at Five Below.)

Disney Hot Chocolate Bomb

(Spotted by Robbie at Target.)

If you’re out shopping and see new products, snap a picture of them, and send them in via an email (theimpulsivebuy@gmail.com) with where you found them and “Spotted” in the subject line. Also, if you want to send in photos and are wondering if we’ve already covered something or if they’re new, don’t worry about it. Let us worry about it.

SPOTTED: Special K Triple Berry Blend Berries and Dark Chocolate Cereal

Special K Triple Berry Blend Berries and Dark Chocolate Cereal.

Special K could’ve just stopped with three berries, but it had to include dark chocolate or else it wouldn’t be special, ‘kay. (Spotted by Amanda Y at Walmart.)

If you’re out shopping and see new products, snap a picture of them, and send them in via an email (theimpulsivebuy@gmail.com) with where you found them and “Spotted” in the subject line. Also, if you want to send in photos and are wondering if we’ve already covered something or if they’re new, don’t worry about it. Let us worry about it.

SPOTTED: Quaker Hot Cocoa Instant Oatmeal

Quaker Hot Cocoa Instant Oatmeal.

This should be a year-round flavor. (Spotted by Amanda Y at Market Street.)

If you’re out shopping and see new products, snap a picture of them, and send them in via an email (theimpulsivebuy@gmail.com) with where you found them and “Spotted” in the subject line. Also, if you want to send in photos and are wondering if we’ve already covered something or if they’re new, don’t worry about it. Let us worry about it.

REVIEW: Starbucks Turkey Sage Danish

Alongside the usual sweet suspects like pumpkin spice, peppermint, and gingerbread, the 2024 Starbucks holiday menu brings a new savory offering in the form of the Turkey Sage Danish. It features turkey sausage lightly coated in béchamel sauce and wrapped up in a flaky pastry. As a firm believer that turkey and stuffing shouldn’t be relegated to only a small handful of days each year, I was excited to see if this snack could capture some of those flavors in a neat little dough package.

My danish arrived lightly warmed up, and when I pulled it out of the paper bag, I was pleasantly surprised to see it nicely browned in several places and generously scattered with herbs. Two sides of the pastry are folded over like little dough arms attempting to hug their filling but ultimately letting the turkey tumble out. The sausage crumbles aren’t exactly appealing, looking like the grayish meat morsels you might find in a Hot Pocket. I happen to love Hot Pockets, so that isn’t a knock on either product, but I don’t think anyone will look at these poultry pebbles and think, “Those look tasty!” When eaten alone, they aren’t particularly flavorful. The sausage itself doesn’t seem to have much seasoning, with most of the flavor here instead coming from the herb topping. The bottom of my danish was golden and crisp, and while the middle had a bit of a doughy, not quite done texture, other parts were puffed in the flaky layers you’d look for in a laminated pastry.

This has a very familiar taste that’s less “fancy bakery pastry” and more like a slightly underbaked Pillsbury crescent roll that’s been nestled up to the stuffing on your Thanksgiving plate. I love the sagey, herb flavors here and wish they would be even more pronounced. The béchamel is a welcome addition, bringing a little creamy note and preventing things from becoming too dry, but as stated in the description, there isn’t a whole lot of it.

Sizewise, this eats like a snack more than a breakfast. Mine had a few turkey sausage crumbles in the middle, but mostly what you see on the outside is what you get, maybe two tablespoons worth. Writing up the nutrition facts, I noticed that this item has less protein than the last coffee I reviewed. It seems to be a popular trend now to cram as much protein as possible into everything, but as someone not particularly worried about that, I was happy to eat this as a savory afternoon snack. I enjoyed the Turkey Sage Danish and would probably order it again if I was looking to scratch my stuffing itch while on the go, but if you want a filling breakfast or lunch, you’ll have to pay almost $10 and gobble up two of these.

Purchased Price: $4.95
Rating: 7 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: 270 calories, 13 grams of total fat, 7 grams of saturated fat, 0 gram of trans fat, 55 milligrams of cholesterol, 480 milligrams of sodium, 29 grams of total carbs, 0 grams of dietary fiber, 5 grams of total sugar, and 8 grams of protein.