I Tried Wendy’s Breakfast Menu and Compared English Muffins From Three Chains—Here’s My Ranking

food photography of strawberries, oranges, and pancakes on plates — Photo by Randy Fath on Unsplash

Is there an easier solution for breakfast than a quick drive – thru? Most folks probably eat fast – food breakfasts sometimes. Maybe they needed it on a road trip or had no groceries at home. Lots of fast – food chains have similar breakfast items. But the quality varies quite a bit. We ranked fast – food breakfast sandwiches before. Now I wanted to test the variety of Wendy’s breakfast items and see how they stacked up against each other.

When ranking them, I think about the balance of flavors and textures. Also, is it a filling enough breakfast? I’m not new to fast – food breakfasts. But I think I’ve never had Wendy’s breakfast before now. Everything I chose for this test was new to me.

Spoiler: Sadly, none of Wendy’s breakfast items amazed me. A couple were downright disappointing, I must admit. Still, each got a fair chance in the ranking here. My overall opinion? Wendy’s breakfast is just okay. I hate saying it, but personally, I prefer breakfast from McDonald’s.

1. **Maple bacon chicken croissant**: This sandwich I would rank below the bottom of the list. It’s not hyperbolic when I say every part of it made me sick quickly. The smell of the maple bacon chicken croissant was horrific – a strange mix of sweet and stale bread with a hint of bacon. It did not make me want to take a bite at all.

Also, I would not have known it was supposed to be on a croissant just by looking at it. The “croissant” looked more like a plain bun. That was not a promising sign.

A sweet and savory breakfast sandwich is normally a big yes from me. But Wendy’s attempt was an absolute no in every way I evaluated it. First, the sandwich was sickeningly sweet – way too much. It did not even taste like maple syrup. The “maple” flavor was horribly fake. Though I enjoyed syrup with Wendy’s French toast sticks later, this syrup tasted very different on the croissant. The chicken was dry and tough and not well – seasoned. The bacon felt flimsy and tough. The so – called “croissant” turned out to be utterly dense and flavorless. There were not nearly enough other flavors to balance the overly sweet, fake maple flavor. It was unpleasant enough that I did not have even a single more bite while testing this one.

Product on Amazon: Jimmy Dean Bacon, Egg & Cheese Biscuit Sandwiches, 4 Count (Frozen)
Brand: Brand: Jimmy Dean
Price: 8.19 USD
Rating: 4.5 Total reviews: 1712
Number of Items: 4
Flavor: Bacon Egg Cheese
Item Weight: 1.23 Pounds
Size: 14.4 Ounce
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2. **Bacon, egg, and cheese biscuit**: Sorry, Wendy’s, they forgot cheese on mine. I then realized that cheese must be a lifesaver for this dry sandwich. Without cheese, the sandwich was way too dry for my liking.

Honestly, I wondered how much cheese could actually help with the dryness problem. However, I’m not going to call it the worst fast – food breakfast sandwich. That title goes to the maple bacon chicken croissant, which is at the bottom of the list. It was probably the worst biscuit sandwich I’ve had the displeasure of trying. It truly left me pretty disappointed after a couple of bites.

Besides the fact that missing cheese made it very dry, the parts of this sandwich weren’t balanced even without that key ingredient. The egg patty was huge and hung over the biscuit. It seemed to take over the sandwich. The bacon was just a couple of limp strips and didn’t add much, as you can see. That said, the best part of the sandwich was the relatively dry biscuit itself. It wasn’t as flaky as a biscuit should be. But it was relatively light, soft, and well – flavored compared to the other parts. Overall, I cannot particularly recommend this breakfast item from Wendy’s.

a piece of cake with nuts on top of it — Photo by Abdelrahman Muhammed on Unsplash

3. **Cinnabon pull-apart**: I thought for sure that Wendy’s Cinnabon pull – apart would score high easily. How could they possibly mess it up? Cinnamon dough pieces are baked together and topped with cream cheese frosting. The concept seems hard to get wrong. Somehow, Wendy’s version fell short of my expectations, sadly.

I can’t call it bad in the sense that it was inedible. But I definitely won’t order this pull – apart again anytime soon. It’s way more worth a trip to a standalone Cinnabon place for a real cinnamon roll. That’s the experience.

The first issue with this breakfast dish is that its name is very misleading based on my experience with it. The Cinnabon pull – apart did not pull apart at all, as the name suggests it should. All the pieces were stuck together in a giant sticky frosting mass. It was hard to separate. When I finally managed to pull a piece off and take a bite, I was met with a dry, stale – tasting bread underneath the frosting. This bread didn’t boast much cinnamon flavor at all compared to a proper Cinnabon roll. The frosting on top was the only genuinely good thing about it, offering a decent sweet part. Even that didn’t make me finish the entire item, I must say. If the bread had tasted moist and fresh, I probably would have ranked this higher despite its other flaws.

4. **French toast sticks**: Next, my preferred choice was what I ranked. They offered Wendy’s sweeter breakfast options. Don’t get me wrong – I don’t totally love Wendy’s French toast sticks. They severely lack many important elements of good French toast. I could not rank them higher than sixth place on the overall list.

However, I wouldn’t call these the absolute worst French toast sticks I’ve ever eaten from a fast – food place. Even next to other reputable options there, it was the only breakfast offering from Wendy’s that I finished testing completely. But I have to admit that it had more to do with satisfying my sweet tooth than with the item’s inherent quality.

The best quality of the French toast sticks was far and away their texture. The outside of the sticks is pleasantly crispy. The inside is soft and spongy, giving a nice break from the dry Cinnabon pull – apart I tried earlier. However, the French toast sticks fell flat in the flavor department. I was expecting a hint of cinnamon or vanilla inside the sticks for a good classic French toast taste. But I found none at all. Instead, they largely tasted like flavorless fried dough. It was quite disappointing. On the plus side, the sticks were a good vehicle for the accompanying syrup. It was one of the better fast – food maple syrups I’ve come across during drive – thru trips. I also appreciated the size of the sticks themselves. They were big enough that I didn’t feel like I was getting ripped off paying a dollar per stick, which is what my local Wendy’s charged for them. If the sticks had a little more inherent flavor from the dough or batter, they could easily rank a couple of places higher, it seems.

Product on Amazon: Amazon Grocery, Cinnamon French Toast Sticks, Frozen, 16 Oz (Previously Amazon Fresh, Packaging May Vary)
Brand: Visit the Amazon Grocery Store
Price: 3.19 USD
Rating: 4.7 Total reviews: 724
Number of Items: 1
Flavor: Cinnamon
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5. **Bacon breakfast burrito**: Who does not love a good breakfast burrito to start the morning? It seems hard to mess up a breakfast staple. Just think about it – you cook your favorite breakfast foods like eggs, meat, and potatoes and wrap them snugly in a warm tortilla. You’ve got an easy, handheld breakfast that is probably also filling and satisfying. Overall, I was not disappointed when I tried Wendy’s bacon breakfast burrito.

This one can prove to be a reasonably hearty breakfast pick. It is a definite plus in my book. If it happens that I get it another time under different circumstances, I might even rank it higher. However, the one I had during the taste test was very salty to a noticeable degree. It detracted a lot from the experience.

Being overly salty was really the only big thing. It kept the breakfast burrito at number five on the list. Considering everything, I genuinely liked the breakfast burrito, which included potatoes. Along with the usual eggs, bacon, and cheese, it was a welcome surprise, adding some substance. There wasn’t a ton of texture variety present in the burrito, though. Perhaps it would have helped if the bacon had been cooked crispier instead of softer. But it’s not a huge knock against it in the grand scheme of things. Overall, it’s not a bad fast – food breakfast burrito. It serves its purpose well as a portable morning meal. If I wanted to, I could customize it. I could give the breakfast burrito a BBQ twist or add hot sauce to raise it a bit. Maybe that could counteract the saltiness.

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6. **Seasoned potatoes**: Not surprisingly, breakfast potatoes would rank toward the top of the list when evaluating a fast – food breakfast menu. Though I have to admit that I’m picky about the kind of fried potatoes I like. I love them so much that a decent – quality one is almost bound to rank high on any ranking list. Fortunately, Wendy’s seasoned potatoes were more decent. They were actually quite good.

These seasoned potatoes hit the spot in every aspect that I look for in a good breakfast potato side dish. The only reason I didn’t rank them higher is simply because they don’t really count as a full, standalone breakfast themselves. However, they are just a side dish to go with a main breakfast item. These great breakfast potatoes are definitely worth ordering.

I particularly liked these wedge potatoes. They are not the typical thin shoestring or standard lunch fries that you run into elsewhere. The wedge cut definitely made them feel like a heartier option and more appropriate as a breakfast side, I felt. They boasted an ample amount of seasoning dusted over them, which gave them a good flavor punch. The outside was also nicely crispy, providing a satisfying crunch. I would have liked the inside of the potato wedges to be a bit more meaty and fluffy. That’s a minor critique, though, and it’s okay. The potatoes themselves felt peppery and warm. I think I also detected a little paprika in the seasoning blend. It added to their enjoyable flavor profile. I could easily eat these with ketchup or a dipping sauce. Honestly, I find myself enjoying eating them plain anyway. The seasoning was sufficient.

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7. **Fresh-baked oatmeal bar**: First, I openly admit that I didn’t expect to like Wendy’s fresh – baked oatmeal bar. I saw it on the menu for the first time. It’s simply not something I typically go for when running through a drive – thru at a fast – food place, which is known primarily for burgers and fries. It just feels outside the usual scope of things. However, after trying Wendy’s version in this test, I definitely won’t quickly eschew it again in the future when looking for breakfast options. As with the seasoned potatoes, though, I ultimately didn’t rank the bar higher on my list because it doesn’t contain the diverse parts that a breakfast sandwich or burrito has. At the end of the day, despite its qualities, it’s essentially just a bar. It is what it is.

This one is just an oatmeal bar fitting into the category. My assessment says it’s pretty good overall. It definitely tastes like there’s significant sugar added into it, which is something to be aware of. However, I can’t honestly let that entirely take away from the fact that the bar is actually tasty. Consider its flavor profile. It has a strong, pleasant cinnamon flavor running through it. It feels like a great base. The added blueberries and cranberries also gave welcome tangy flavors, it seemed, and cut through the sweetness a bit.

I truly felt that the texture of the bar was incredible. It was notably soft, pleasantly chewy, and wonderfully moist all the way through. It made it easy to enjoy eating it too, without it being crumbly or dry. Also, it was a larger size than I first thought it would be. That was a nice surprise for sure. Given its size and density, I believe it would be pretty filling, especially if you only want a lighter breakfast option to get through the morning and maybe don’t love breakfast sandwiches or burritos and are looking for something different from the usual fast – food fare. The oatmeal bar is probably a satisfactory alternative worth considering, and it’s perfectly fine.

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Type: Breakfast
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Crispy bacon, ready to eat! — Photo by Mikey Frost on Unsplash

8. **Breakfast Baconator**: Fans of Wendy’s iconic Baconator burger might already be aware that the chain offers a breakfast version of the sandwich, aptly named the Breakfast Baconator. I admit upfront that the sandwich is pretty yummy – I enjoyed eating it. Still, I’m not sure why the chain felt the need to call it the Baconator. It doesn’t seem directly comparable to its namesake burger in some way. Perhaps it was named that way simply to make it seem more familiar to existing customers who like the Baconator, or maybe to imply that it’s a more filling breakfast sandwich compared to others on the menu.

The only real things that made this breakfast option different from some other standard breakfast sandwiches I’ve tried out were that it was served on a regular lunchtime hamburger bun instead of breakfast – specific bread and that it included both a sausage patty and bacon strips. Other sandwiches might just have one or the other. In my view, it seemed a little bit hyped up. Maybe it was slightly misnamed for what it actually delivered in terms of a unique experience it was supposed to be. Nevertheless, it was undeniably a good sandwich overall. One would certainly eat it again in the future if they happen to get Wendy’s breakfast.

The Breakfast Baconator has a sausage patty, a freshly – cracked egg, American cheese, and bacon strips too. All of these are sandwiched together between that slightly different hamburger bun. I really liked the sausage patty specifically. It boasted nice spices within the meat. It was a surprisingly flavorful fast – food sausage. Serving the sandwich on a standard bun is okay and functional. Honestly, I think I would prefer the sandwich on another type of breakfast bread, like a biscuit or an English muffin. The bun doesn’t really make it feel anything special or particularly breakfast – oriented. In contrast, some other sandwiches feature bacon that is more prominent and noticeable. This one definitely has that. Overall, I find the different parts of the sandwich relatively well – balanced in terms of flavor and texture. Given that, it’s a pretty filling option.

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