I’m going to pull back the curtain on this one and admit I had to try the Spicy Guacamole Chicken Club from Wendy’s twice before I could give it a fair assessment. About three weeks ago I gave this sandwich a shot and was floored by the $5.49 price tag for the sandwich alone. I came away slightly unsure on how I felt about it and thus held off reviewing it. So getting the sandwich again for lunch today has helped me finalize my thoughts.
Wendy’s describes the Spicy Guacamole Chicken Club like this:
The Spicy Guacamole Chicken Club starts with Wendy’s original Spicy Chicken whole fillet that gets its kick from Wendy’s own special blend of seven spices, and brings extra heat with a slice of all-natural pepper jack cheese. To balance the heat, add a zesty ranch sauce and creamy, natural guacamole. And, what’s a club sandwich without bacon? Wendy’s thick-cut applewood smoked bacon, a full slice of tomato and crisp, hand-leafed lettuce, all on a buttered, toasted bun.
Wendy’s has done spicy chicken sandwiches really well for years now, so nothing much is new in that department. Going into trying the Spicy Guacamole Chicken Club, I felt that the major player being a determining factor in how I’d grade it would be the guacamole.
I’m sort of avocado obsessed and I wouldn’t hesitate to spoon out fresh avocado straight from the source with nothing else added. When I first tried the Spicy Guacamole Chicken Club, the guacamole was so weak and ineffective, I almost believed it wasn’t there. Only by dissecting the sandwich did I notice the faint slathering of green to prove that at least some had made its way in the package. With a hearty spicy chicken fillet, pepper jack cheese, bacon and ranch sauce, you can see how barely an ounce of guac could get lost. When guacamole is in your name, you better step up and show yourself.
On my second try, the Spicy Guacamole Chicken Club proved to live up to its name a little better. I could taste the guacamole, although still a bit weak, but a much better showing than the first time. Although some ingredients could easily get lost with so much going on, the sandwich did actually impress me in the taste department.
The spicy chicken fillet is the star and that’s how it’s always been. The fillet is sized well enough to satisfy most and the heat is tame, but just right for someone like me. The pepper jack provides a little sharpness and the applewood smoked bacon was salty and perfectly crisp in the right areas. In terms of produce… the full slice of tomato hooked up the moisture a tad, but the lettuce was a bit much. I felt the “zesty ranch sauce” could have been left off as it didn’t make enough impact to warrant the extra fat and calories.
While I wanted to love this sandwich, my impressions were that it was just good not great. Even though the sandwich was filling, the $5.49 price is about a dollar too much to be considered a good value in my opinion. The cost of avocados led me to expect the higher price, but the slacked application of the green stuff has me thinking ripoff. Overall, the Spicy Guacamole Chicken Club was a Wendy’s creation that I liked enough to try twice. I can’t justify paying around 8 bucks for a combo meal at a drive-thru window, but there’s something to be said about being compelled enough to be a repeat offender.
