Wendy’s finally releases exclusive ‘Saucy Nuggets’ after popular demand

Wendy’s is finally bringing out their highly anticipated Saucy Nuggets – and customers might get more than they bargained for. 

The Saucy Nuggets were first introduced by Wendy’s back in December 2023, when they trialed the new menu items. However, they weren’t widely available and were only tested in a few select locations in Ohio. 

The nuggets are meant to resemble chicken wings in the sense that they’re placed in a container along with flavorings, then shaken up to give a crispy coating. 

Originally, four flavors were trialed: Honey BBQ, Buffalo, Ghost Pepper, and Garlic Parmesan.

As soon as customers learned these new food items were in the test phase, they were eager to try them, proclaiming: “They literally used to do these — called them bites? Boneless wings, maybe? — and I still miss the Sweet & Spicy Asian Chicken ones.”

“They had something similar to this like over a decade ago and it was dope.”

Wendy’s was the first chain to introduce boneless wings way back in 2009. You could buy three flavors – Honey BBQ, Buffalo, and Sweet & Spicy. Customers could purchase seven to nine wings for only $3.99, or in a combo meal for $5.69

Now, Wendy’s fans’ dreams are all coming true, as the Saucy Nuggets are set to hit menus nationwide by June 10, 2024. 

Digital Media company Tasting Table attended an exclusive event displaying the New Saucy nuggets, and announced they will be available to purchase in four, six, 10, and 20 pieces. It’s unclear how much the nuggets will cost, but Tasting Table speculated they might be a little pricier than the older iterations.

Speaking of the new products, Wendy’s Global Vice President of Culinary Innovation, John Li shared his thoughts on the nuggets, which he called “a very big deal” for the company.

In order to prepare the new products, Wendy’s looked specifically to the Gen-Z demographic, and according to Li’s results, “what they want to eat protein-wise [is] chicken, chicken, chicken.” This is true according to a survey conducted by Piper Sandler, who found that Chick-fil-A was the most popular restaurant among teens.

He said that Wendy’s “already own[s] bacon and … fresh, never-frozen beef,” but there was room to improve surrounding their chicken offerings. 

Perhaps the most exciting news to come from the press event, however, is that Wendy’s hinted toward more sauces in the future, though this won’t be for a while. 

“It’s at least a six-month process. It can take up to a year,” Li said, regarding developing new sauces. “It’s important to us to fine tune something … based on what we know our fans like.”

Wendy’s continues to impress customers with new releases, as the fast food chain also just announced the debut of a new breakfast item.