Price: $3.19
Availability: Lenten season
Location: 3700 W. Touhy Ave., Skokie, IL 60076 (map); phone: (847) 673-1991
Rating: 3 out of 5 – acceptable
Wendy’s Premium Fish Fillet Sandwich: “Hand-cut fillets of North Pacific cod in a crisp Panko crumb breading, served with crisp lettuce and creamy tartar sauce on a warm bun….” If you’ve kept up with Wendy’s latest marketing blitz, you might have noticed a new ad line which states the following about itself: “It’s waaay better than fast food.” Whether Wendy’s qualifies as fast food or not (or is indeed better) is a point to consider, but the only question that concerns me here is whether I’d eat another one in the future. And the answer to that is a qualified yes.
There are lots of things to recommend the new fish sandwich from Wendy’s, even if it is available for just a limited time. First, it lives up to its “crisp” billing by actually being crispy, from the reliably fresh piece of lettuce (that juts out far from under the bun) to the panko-breaded fillet which gives a nice solid feel in the mouth. At first it was hard to tell what distinguished this fish from others, but as the impressions from Cougar Eats recount, the Japanese/Asian fried stylings do lend a slightly more upscale sensibility to the cod.
So if this premium sandwich does such a decent job of feeding me fish, why not rate it higher than a 3 (out of 5)? Well, it’s that “premium” part of the equation that extends further than just a demographic demarcation that prevents me from lavishing higher praise on it. It’s certainly edible enough for Easter, but the relative size of the fillet and the premium price for such a small sandwich (compared to the $2.99 price for McDonald’s equally edible Double Filet-O-Fish) left me wanting more for my money. As good as it could be, I hate feeling ripped off. At least I had a big dinner coming up when I finally managed to land one of these, but judging by the abrupt disappearance of any signage for the new sandwich within the location I visited, it seems that other customers aren’t gonna give it a chance now (especially given the price).
Commercial Judge has posted one of Wendy’s newest TV ads promoting the fish sandwich on YouTube, reminding potential customers: “…If you don’t know what it is, don’t eat it.” You can judge for yourself whether the real-life fish is big enough (and good enough) to warrant a purchase. A little relish never hurts, though.
Tags: acceptable, ads, Asian, breading, bun, cod, commercial, Commercial Judge, Cougar Eats, crisp, crispy, crumb, demarcation, demographic, Double Filet-O-Fish, Easter, fast food, feel, filet, fillet, fish, Japanese, judge, Lenten, lettuce, marketing, mouth, North Pacific, Panko, premium, price, relish, review, ripped off, sandwich, sauce, signage, size, small, solid, stylings, tartar, TV, upscale, waaay better, Wendy's, YouTube