Whatever Happened To Wendy's Salad Bar?

I've always been a fan of Wendy's, but maybe not for reasons other's enjoy the fast food giant. Yes, Wendy's Frostys are tasty, but I haven't ordered one in years. And, while many swear by the famous Baconactor and Son of Baconator burgers, I've never tried them. I love the things that set Wendy's apart from the rest of the fast food world, like its baked potatoes and Wendy's chili (which you can now buy in stores). Sometimes, I order both and pour the chili right on top of the potato, and it's delicious. But the first thing I loved about Wendy's was its salad bar. Even as a child, I always wanted to build a salad and top it with the chopped boiled egg, bacon, and cottage cheese that were always on the bar. I remember fruit cocktail and sunflower seeds, too. But, of course, the Wendy's salad bar is no more, with many wondering whatever happened to it.

Despite its popularity from the time it opened in 1979 through the next decade, the salad bars began to slowly phase out, and by 2006, they were gone completely. Ultimately, the company's customer base wanted pre-made salads that they could pick up at the drive thru, not necessarily ones they had to build and eat on site. Wendy's original pre-made salads included the Grilled Chicken salad, the Taco Caesar, and the Deluxe Garden salad. 

Wendy's focus on salads — bars or premade — ended up changing the way other fast food companies viewed leafy greens doused in dressing. Due to Wendy's success, other chains like McDonald's followed suit, and introduced their own boxed salads as well. 

Due to Wendy's early success with its salad bars, the company introduced its SuperBars in 1987, although I don't remember them as clearly as the former. SuperBars were like all-you-can-eat buffets. Separated into sections such as "Mexican Fiesta," "Garden Spot," and "Pasta Pasta," guests could fill their plates with things like fettuccine Alfredo, customized salads, tostadas, and even desserts, all for under $4 per person. 

The company had hoped to build SuperBars in every Wendy's restaurant, but it never spread that far by the time Wendy's axed the bars in 1998. The word was that employees just couldn't keep up with the upkeep of replenishing the Bars while slinging Frostys and fries for drive-thru and dine-in customers.

Although the Wendy's salad bars and SuperBars didn't last forever, they attracted enough attention for competitors to take notice and create their own versions. Pizza Hut and Kentucky Fried Chicken offered all-you-can-eat buffets for a time, with a few of the latter still in existence. It is rumored that McDonald's and Taco Bell also had buffet options, but, curiously, there is little evidence of their past existence. To be sure, none of them ever came close to the popularity or notoriety that Wendy's salad bars enjoyed.