If you’ve been haunting the fast-food scene lately, you’ve probably noticed that spooky season came early for Wendy’s this year with their Wednesday-themed “Menu of Misfortune.” Naturally, it’s begging to be compared to last fall’s Burger King Addams Family collaboration.
Before we get into the battle of the buns (and Frostys), let’s set the scene. Last October, Burger King went full goth with their Addams Family collab: an inclusive, plant-based Impossible Whopper on a purple bun, churro fries, and a Morticia-approved shake, all wrapped in delightfully creepy packaging. It was a perfect storm of nostalgia, thematic flair, and Instagram bait.
Fast forward to this month, and Wendy’s has entered the crypt with their Wednesday-inspired “Menu of Misfortune.” This time, the spotlight is on chicken nuggets, cherry-blooded Frostys, and the now-infamous “Dips of Dread.” The collab comes with moody, collectible packaging and a side of Netflix synergy, as Wednesday Season 2 haunts streaming queues. For the uninitiated, the series follows Wednesday Addams through her macabre misadventures at Nevermore Academy, where murder mysteries, psychic visions, and deadpan one-liners are just another day in class.
In the spirit of macabre culinary journalism, let’s break it down category by category, awarding points accordingly. Why not?
Main Meal: Advantage—Burger King
Wendy’s main attraction? Chicken nuggets. That’s it. The only spooky thing about them is the (adorable) coffin packaging. Delicious, sure—but if you’re vegetarian, plant-based, or simply not in a nug mood, you’re banished from the dining crypt. No food for you! I didn’t think to ask if they could substitute Halloumi Fries (which is Wendy’s only vegetarian option), but that would be a good thing to ask if you are plant-based, just so you don’t have to throw away the nuggets. I was told you could NOT order the different parts of the “Meal of Misfortune” separately, but that would also be a good thing to ask if you’re there.
BK’s main? “Wednesday’s Whopper with Cheese”—a plant-based Impossible Whopper on a delightfully grim purple bun. Accessible, eye-catching, and perfect for anyone craving spooky without poultry guilt. Winner: Burger King. By alot.
Fries: Advantage—Wendy’s (by default)
Wendy’s standard fries come in as a technical win here. BK tried to pull ahead with their “Gomez’ Churro Fries,” which were apparently so popular they vanished into the night (read: sold out). Again, no spooky slant on the fries (except the packaging), but I like Wendys’ fries so that part was ok for me.
Shakes: Advantage—Burger King
Wendy’s “Menu of Misfortune” shake is a Frosty swirled with cherry sauce for a blood-drip effect—playful, yes, but cherry vanilla gives me medicinal vibes so I did not love it. (Pro tip: swap in a chocolate Frosty for a much tastier cherry-choc combo.) Still, BK takes this round with “Morticia’s Spooky Chocolate Shake,” topped with cookie crumbles. It wasn’t just themed—it was one of the best shakes I’ve ever had, period. I still have dreams about that freaking shake. Notes of fudge and cake batter, people. IT WAS OUTRAGEOUS.
Packaging: Advantage—Wendy’s
BK’s collab had cute branding, but Wendy’s design was so good I actually saved the bag and the spoon. For a disposable item to make it into the keepsake pile? That’s saying something. The bag as a dress? Freaking inspired. LOVE the spoon of gloom. So cute.
The Controversial “Dips of Death”
Wendy’s pulled out a surprise twist—four hot sauce dips, each actually delicious. The controversy? No labels, no flavor names, and only two included with each meal, so….no chance of trying all four unless you pay extra.
Here’s the key, in case you’re curious:
You Can’t Hyde: Spicy Ketchup. This is the red sauce. It was good, but when I realized it was ketchup I wished I had just grabbed some regular ketchup when I was there, because I didn’t really want all of my fries to be spicy.
Ingredients: Water, tomato paste, high fructose corn syrup, distilled vinegar, corn syrup, salt, contains less than 2% of aged red cayenne peppers, vegetable juice (color), natural flavors, potassium sorbate and sodium benzoate (preservatives), onion powder, spices.
This Will Sting: Hot Honey Garlic Sauce. This is the black one. This one was my favorite and I thought it tasted the best on the nugs.
Ingredients: Corn syrup, sugar, honey, water, cayenne pepper, distilled vinegar, salt, contains less than 2% of food starch-modified, butter flavor, pea protein, extract (color), fruit juice color, vegetable juice color, citric acid, granulated garlic, spices, natural flavors, sodium benzoate and potassium sorbate (preservatives), xanthan gum.
Grave Mistake: Scorpion Pepper Sauce. This is the light grey one. It is creamy and I thought it tasted weird, but my husband and mother-in-law said it was their favorite. I think this one is supposed to be the least spicy of the four?
Ingredients: Soybean oil, water, hot sauce (aged peppers, distilled vinegar, salt), scorpion pepper puree (scorpion peppers, salt, vinegar, potassium sorbate [preservative]), distilled vinegar, egg yolks, contains less than 2% of salt, sugar, vegetable juice color, garlic powder, onion powder, mustard seed, food starch-modified, polysorbate 60, monosodium glutamate, xanthan gum, sodium benzoate and potassium sorbate (preservatives), sodium acid sulfate, natural flavor, calcium disodium EDTA (protect flavor). Contains egg.
Here’s the thing. I like the fun “element of surprise” aspect of the Dips of Dread, but are we not concerned about food allergies or people who can’t tolerate spice? This seems a little misguided to me. Like, what percentage of people PREFER spicy food to the point where they would just roll the dice on super-hot mystery sauces?
Pro tip: the ingredients (which I have listed above because I care about you) are listed on the top of the individual dip containers. If you are super sensitive to spice (or just want to choose your sauce, which is totally fair), tell the server you have food allergies and that you need to see the ingredients first.
Final Verdict
Both collabs brought fun, photo-worthy moments to the drive-thru, but Burger King’s Addams Family lineup had the edge: a more inclusive main, a killer shake, and a strong thematic through-line. Wendy’s gets points for packaging and novelty dips, but overall… last fall’s BK effort remains the reigning spooky-season champ. I hope it comes back this fall, mostly because I absolutely must have another one of those amazing shakes.
That’s the spooky snack news—now if you’ll excuse me, I need to go petition for a purple-bun comeback.