GrubGrade

Burgers, fries and chicken nuggets are staples of the fast food world.  Wendy’s has decided to dress up the run of the mill chicken nuggets with their New! Boneless Wings.  It’s always nice to have some variety, and the new “wings” come in three varieties: Bold Buffalo, Honey BBQ and Sweet and Spicy Asian.  Each of the varieties are lightly breaded pieces of 100% breast meat.  You can expect to get 7 to 9 pieces depending on the size of the morsels.

The wings, made with 100-percent breast meat, will be lightly breaded and hand-tossed in one of three sauces, Wendy’s said in a statement. The 6,623-unit chain will begin promoting the Sweet & Spicy Asian choice in national advertising scheduled to launch June 22. The other flavor options will be promoted later in the year, said Wendy’s spokesman Bob Bertini.

The boneless wings cost $3.99 on their own or $5.69 when purchased as a combo. The price seems a little steep when you can get 10 nuggets for $2 and change.  So basically they are charging another $2 for the sauce and possibly some fancy new packaging.  Maybe the new items are noticably bigger.  I’m a big fan of Wendy’s in general and am looking forward to giving these a try.

Be on alert. There’s a brand new dance that’s apparently sweeping the nation.

Do you want to be the next Colonel???

To celebrate its grilled menu, KFC is teaming up with MySpace to search for the Ultimate KGC Fan and possible new brand icon.  Just submit a video showing the world why you are the ultimate KGC fan now through July 7, at www.myspace.com/unthinkfc .  Does anyone care about MySpace anymore?  GrubGrade has a MySpace for some reason.  Seems like Facebook and Twitter are the main players these days.

Entrants will have a chance to win KGC for life-valued at more that $13,000, awarded in the form of KFC gift checks as well as the chance to represent KFC as the next American icon.

“America will have the final vote on the brands new KGC ambassador.”  On July 25th, three finalists will be revealed.  Voting will begin on August 1st where fans can watch the final three videos and cast their vote.

MySpace users can view all of the submitted videos at www.myspace.com/unthinkfc.

“Ahhh…we meet again”

Ironic, I thought, as I looked down at the words on the packet of “Fire Sauce” I was in the process of dumping on the Grilled Chicken Soft Taco I had just purchased for $0.89 at Taco Bell.  A member of the company’s “Why Pay More Value Menu,” the Grilled Chicken Taco is not only the company’s latest innovation in cheap fast food, but it served as the driving force behind my first actual eating experience at Taco Bell.  Yes, as in like ever. Hence the irony of the Border Sauce comment.

My first trip to Taco Bell. Wow I feel like a man taking this picture...

Never a huge fan of Mexican food to begin with, I was skeptical about this taco, but decided to give it a try based on both its relative cheapness and apparent health benefits.  After having tried it however I have to say that for a first-time experience at a completely unfamiliar fast food restaurant, the Grilled Chicken Soft Taco sure made a believer out of me.  While I opted out of the cheese and decided to go “Fresco Style,” I found the taco to have just the right balance of spice in the chicken seasoning and sweetness in the salsa to compliment the warm tortilla.  I thought the chicken – while a little sparse compared to the tortilla – had a good seasoned flavor that pushed it past the realm of just “cooked chicken meat,” while the salsa tasted almost unbelievably fresh for having come from a fast food restaurant.  I actually would suggest going “Fresco” (aka fresh for yous gringos out there) on this one, as I think the cool undertones of the cilantro really balance out the chicken (especially if you load up on fire sauce) and help to make this a very flavorful menu choice.  The crazy thing is that I usually hate cilantro, but I actually found myself liking it in this salsa application.

Notice how the chicken is "clumped" in the front of the Taco. That's poor distribution right there folks.

My taco wasn’t packed to the gills like the one the guys from Would I Buy it Again? sampled (read their awesome review right hyah) but I mean for a mere $0.89 I was not expecting it to be.  That (and the fact that at under 200 calories each these things aren’t terribly filling) led me to purchase four of these, which still came out to be cheaper (and healthier) than any grilled chicken product I could get at a McDonalds or a Burger King.  While my usual travels don’t often take me in the direction of a Taco Bell restaurant; the quality, price, and nutritional benefits of the Grilled Chicken Soft Taco just may be enough incentive for me to make some “special” excursions to the Mexican fast food chain in the near future.

• Pros:  Incredibly good value.  Chicken has solid “fajita” like flavor and spice, along with a subtle southwestern sweetness.  Salsa tasted fresh, with a cool cilantro flavor really balancing the spice from the meat and the “Fire Sauce” packets I dumped on the taco.  Probably the healthiest and cheapest grilled chicken item that you can find at any fast food restaurant.
• Cons:  A little skimpy in terms of meat, but for $0.89 that’s to be expected.  Salsa and meat could have been more evenly distributed throughout taco, as the salsa seemed to overwhelm the back portions of my tacos while the meat dominated the front portions.

But who am I kidding? I loved this thing, especially the salsa. And usually I can't stand cilantro!

Taste: 8.00/10

Value: 9.50/10

Grubbing on the Go: 9.00/10

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GrubGrade: 9.00/10 (Exceptional)

(Overall GrubGrade is not an average)

Price: $0.89

TacoBell.com

Nutrition Facts – Grilled Chicken Soft Taco (with cheese)

Calories: 200

Total Fat: 8 grams

Saturated Fat: 5 grams

Carbs: 19 grams

Cholesterol: 35mg

Sodium: 650mg

Fiber: 1g

Sugars: 1g

Protein: 12g

Note: Nutritional information not available for “Fresco Style”