At Wendy’s, high-quality food, produced responsibly and delivered transparently, is our promise to every customer. And we prioritize offering choices that suit the wants and needs of our customers while continuing to live up to our food vision, Fast Food Done Right.
Without specifics, “quality” is just another word that sounds good but has no real meaning. So, we decided to write those specifics down for everyone to see. Wendy's is Fast Food Done Right: your go-to for real, fresh, craveable, forward-leaning food that doesn't cost a fortune. These five pillars guide our menu innovation and the way our team members, restaurant operators and suppliers all show up to work each day.
Get an inside look at the way the Wendy’s culinary team, led by John Li, decides what makes the cut when it comes to our menu, and how we continue to innovate and look toward the future of Wendy’s food.
We make real food for real people – food we’re proud to enjoy with our own family and friends.
We start with fresh, high-quality ingredients and prepare them fresh to order.
Our chefs combine familiar flavors with fresh twists to make food that's "gotta-have-it-now" delicious.
We track and apply food trends at the right time in the right way.
We build in value where it matters, so you can count on food you love at a price you feel good about.
It’s part of our brand promise to let our customers know what’s in our food and how we bring these menu items to our customers, which is why we make it a priority to be transparent when it comes to listing ingredients, allergens and nutritional information.
Menu & Ingredient Spotlights
Read on for a deeper look at the story behind these quality ingredients only found at Wendy’s:
Wendy’s is proud to serve fresh, never frozen, North American beef in restaurants in the contiguous U.S., Alaska and Canada. We only source beef with high quality grades, such as Prime or Choice, and we always cook your hamburgers fresh to order. We’ve been working with industry experts, including the Wendy’s Animal Welfare Council, to launch the Wendy’s Animal Care Standards Program to help advance responsible sourcing practices.
We’re not chicken when it comes to quality. In 2017, Wendy’s invested nearly $30 million to begin sourcing chicken from smaller, younger birds. We found that smaller chickens = tastier, more tender and juicy chicken on salads and sandwiches. Through the Wendy’s Animal Care Standards Program, we will continue to drive advancements in animal care.
We were the first quick-service restaurant to offer a salad bar way back in 1979 – and turned that into a full line of salads in 1992. We prepare our salads fresh every day in every restaurant, and we start with our signature blend of lettuce made with romaine and spring mix.
We hand-slice tomatoes for our sandwiches right in the restaurant, every day. But we want our tomatoes to sing with flavor. That’s why in 2019, Wendy’s North American tomato supply moved to vine-ripened tomatoes from greenhouse farms. Any way you slice them, these tomatoes are a step above.
At Wendy’s, we serve center cut, Naturally Smoked Applewood bacon, made from fresh pork bellies and cooked daily in our restaurants. We also work closely with the pork industry and our suppliers to support responsible sourcing practices through the Wendy’s Animal Care Standards Program and the requirement that all Wendy’s suppliers receive Pork Quality Assurance® Plus certification or the equivalent.
Fun fact: One of our original bacon suppliers sent representatives to personally deliver the first eight cases of bacon directly to Dave Thomas at a Wendy’s in downtown Columbus. They cooked it with Dave and tested it on a hamburger in 1982. And that was the year the bacon cheeseburger hit our menu.
We work hard to serve fresh ingredients and bring in fresh flavors and in-season produce wherever possible.
We only use fresh-cracked, Grade-A eggs on our breakfast sandwiches, and all our egg suppliers are required to have independent, third-party audits conducted annually by PAACO-certified auditors. We’ll continue to work closely with our suppliers and industry experts as part of our responsible sourcing goal and through the Wendy’s Animal Care Standards Program. Before a supplier can be approved for the Wendy’s system, they must undergo and pass a Wendy’s Animal Welfare audit as well as a third-party audit.
One of the five original products on the Wendy’s menu in 1969, the Frosty is a one-of-a-kind sweet treat. Made with real milk and cream, this cool, creamy, dessert is thick enough to use a spoon and perfect when enjoyed on the end of a French fry. Dairy is also included as part of our responsible sourcing goal and through the Wendy’s Animal Care Standards Program.
Our Hot & Crispy Fries, made with skin-on potatoes, demonstrate innovation in merging real ingredients with world-class culinary application. We developed our fries after testing more than 20 different cuts to land an optimal design built for heat and crispiness.
Wendy’s is proud to serve fresh, never frozen, North American beef in restaurants in the contiguous U.S., Alaska and Canada. We only source beef with high quality grades, such as Prime or Choice, and we always cook your hamburgers fresh to order. We’ve been working with industry experts, including the Wendy’s Animal Welfare Council, to launch the Wendy’s Animal Care Standards Program to help advance responsible sourcing practices.
We’re not chicken when it comes to quality. In 2017, Wendy’s invested nearly $30 million to begin sourcing chicken from smaller, younger birds. We found that smaller chickens = tastier, more tender and juicy chicken on salads and sandwiches. Through the Wendy’s Animal Care Standards Program, we will continue to drive advancements in animal care.
We were the first quick-service restaurant to offer a salad bar way back in 1979 – and turned that into a full line of salads in 1992. We prepare our salads fresh every day in every restaurant, and we start with our signature blend of lettuce made with romaine and spring mix.
We hand-slice tomatoes for our sandwiches right in the restaurant, every day. But we want our tomatoes to sing with flavor. That’s why in 2019, Wendy’s North American tomato supply moved to vine-ripened tomatoes from greenhouse farms. Any way you slice them, these tomatoes are a step above.
At Wendy’s, we serve center cut, Naturally Smoked Applewood bacon, made from fresh pork bellies and cooked daily in our restaurants. We also work closely with the pork industry and our suppliers to support responsible sourcing practices through the Wendy’s Animal Care Standards Program and the requirement that all Wendy’s suppliers receive Pork Quality Assurance® Plus certification or the equivalent.
Fun fact: One of our original bacon suppliers sent representatives to personally deliver the first eight cases of bacon directly to Dave Thomas at a Wendy’s in downtown Columbus. They cooked it with Dave and tested it on a hamburger in 1982. And that was the year the bacon cheeseburger hit our menu.
We work hard to serve fresh ingredients and bring in fresh flavors and in-season produce wherever possible.
We only use fresh-cracked, Grade-A eggs on our breakfast sandwiches, and all our egg suppliers are required to have independent, third-party audits conducted annually by PAACO-certified auditors. We’ll continue to work closely with our suppliers and industry experts as part of our responsible sourcing goal and through the Wendy’s Animal Care Standards Program. Before a supplier can be approved for the Wendy’s system, they must undergo and pass a Wendy’s Animal Welfare audit as well as a third-party audit.
One of the five original products on the Wendy’s menu in 1969, the Frosty is a one-of-a-kind sweet treat. Made with real milk and cream, this cool, creamy, dessert is thick enough to use a spoon and perfect when enjoyed on the end of a French fry. Dairy is also included as part of our responsible sourcing goal and through the Wendy’s Animal Care Standards Program.
Our Hot & Crispy Fries, made with skin-on potatoes, demonstrate innovation in merging real ingredients with world-class culinary application. We developed our fries after testing more than 20 different cuts to land an optimal design built for heat and crispiness.