Entertainment

Are Wendy's chicken nuggets actually any good?

They’re the nuggets that fuelled a record-breaking tweet – but are they worth the fuss?
They’re the nuggets that fuelled a record-breaking tweet – but are they worth the fuss?

We sent reporter Sam Blewett to check out what the nuggs are all about.

Carter Wilkerson’s record-breaking tweet may have earned him a year’s supply of free Wendy’s nuggets – but are they really worth all the fuss?

The 16-year-old student from Reno, Nevada, pulled off a social media master-stroke after asking the fast food chain how many retweets he’d need for his desire to be granted.

The burger store caved to his demands as his post neared 3.5 million shares and Guinness World Records declared it the most retweeted tweet ever, having brushed aside Ellen De Generes’ celebrity-packed Oscar selfie.The allure of the Wendy’s nuggs may seem obscure to people on the other side of the Atlantic, where the fast-food chain hasn’t had any sort of presence for more than 15 years. So what are they like?Wendy’s nuggets, as sampled at a branch on Sunset Boulevard in Los Angeles, are tasty enough.

Wendy's chicken nuggets
(Sam Blewett)

They’re well-seasoned and have a good crunch on them. Wendy’s says they are made from “all-white meat”, but the soft texture of the chicken hints at the processes the meat may have gone through.They’re more flavoursome than their McDonald’s counterpart, at least in a peppery sense, but definitely need a smothering of barbecue dip. So would you eat a year’s supply of them?Wilkerson may have a love for nuggs, but if he dines at Wendy’s twice a day he could be filling himself with 7,280 nuggets in a year (we’ve given him Thanksgiving or another such holiday off to dine with loved ones). This may be too much for anyone to handle.

And depending on whether he’s going for a drink and fries on the side, he could be heading for a scenario similar to Super Size Me, the film where Morgan Spurlock crumbled trying to eat at McDonald’s for every meal for 30 days.

Also, assuming under normal conditions Wilkerson might opt for the odd cheese sandwich for lunch, a diet like this would be upping his meat consumption. For that, he’d win no environmental prizes.

His ambition was bold and, backed by the might of the internet, he somehow achieved it.

And while there’s no sign from Wilkerson yet that he will adopt a Super Size Me-style diet, perhaps it’s best it stays that way. Personally, I’d stick to the cheese sandwiches.