The Absolute Best Side Dish At Wendy's Isn't The Chili Or Baked Potato

For a fast food chain, Wendy's has quite the eclectic selection of side items. The standouts are the famous baked potato — with all its various iterations — the classic cup of inexpensive chili, and, of course, those delicious french fries. While fries are a mainstay across all fast food chains, you're hard-pressed to find a baked potato or a cup of chili on other menus. 

The great thing about Wendy's sides is the mix-and-match you can create when you combine some of them into one new item. That's exactly what we discovered when we ordered the Chili Cheese Fries. In fact, when we ranked every side at Wendy's from worst to best, the Chili Cheese Fries were our overall favorite. This order is hearty enough to be a main meal on its own, and for only $4.19 (depending on location). Considering today's fast food prices, that's a pretty good deal for a good bit of food.

One of the best features of the Wendy's Chili Cheese Fries is that it's not just one layer of chili and cheese on top of the fries. Instead, the chili and cheese are mixed throughout, making every bite a reminder of how tasty this side item is. The cheese is melted well, and the beefy flavor of the chili cuts through the entire dish, giving the fries a savory, slightly smoky vibe. It honestly took quite a bit of discipline to not finish this whole container in one sitting.

For a side item at a fast food chain, the Wendy's Chili Cheese Fries get pretty good reviews. That said, there are plenty of reviewers out there who have called the fries bland and labeled the overall dish soggy. This is understandable with the amount of cheese and chili that comes in one order.

Still, many love the Chili Cheese Fries. "Those fries are the thing dreams are made of," said one Redditor. Another Redditor commented, "They've got the best fast food chili, which is required to make the best chili cheese fries. You should also try the chili on a baked potato." An Instagram user also gave the fries an 8.1/10. Overall, it seems people either love these chili cheese fries or choose to give them a hard pass.

Maybe we just received a good, fresh order, but we thought the Chili Cheese Fries were the best side on the Wendy's menu — even topping the plain chili and chicken nuggets (which finished second and third, respectively). Not many fast food chains step outside the standard side options you find at most places, but Wendy's has been offering up a few different items for a long time, including the baked potato since 1983. So, good on Wendy's for taking a risk. At least when it comes to the Chili Cheese Fries, that risk paid off.