Fast Food Review: Arby's Smokin Chipotle Chicken Sandwich

Writing reviews of new or even "new" fast food items is really something I enjoy even if I don't always enjoy the food.  I think it has something to do with possibly finding a new all-time favorite like the Cheesy Gordita Crunch, but when it comes to new menu items as of late I haven't really been so lucky.  The Beefy Melt Burrito and the last Arby's 3 Cheese Bacon Angus offerings were both big strikeouts.  Going into this review I was seriously hoping Arby's could redeem themselves with this latest offering.

Even though Arby's specialty is their roast beef I've always thought their strongest offerings were their chicken items.  During high school the Chicken Bacon Swiss was probably my favorite thing on any fast food menu.  However, I've noticed in more recent years that Arby's chicken just doesn't seem quite as good as it used to back in the day.  I can't put my finger on what it is or why, but the taste and texture is just different.  That being said, since I had a coupon for a free fry and drink with purchase of the Smokin Chipotle Chicken Sandwich I figured it was worth a try.

First of all I have to say I'm glad I had the coupon.  If I wouldn't have my regular sized combo would have been almost $9.  Ouch.  The sandwich was the basic Arby's fried chicken patty topped with the usual thickish "chipotle" bbq sauce, a slice of cheddar cheese, pepper bacon, diced jalapenos and lettuce and tomato which I decided to leave off of my sandwich.  The first thing I have to say here is wholy S this was hot.  I was expecting the usual mildly spicy fast food offering with the jalapenos being sparse and seedless.  Not the case here.  There were a ton of jalapenos on here and it just blew out any other flavors that were trying to come through.  I pride myself on being someone who can take quite a bit of heat, but this was even too much for me.  I had to scrape the jalapenos off just so I could taste a little bit of what else was going on.  Turns out it wasn't much.  The cheese was not even close to being melted which is a pet peeve of mine.  The bbq sauce could as well have been BullsEye.  I tasted no hint of chipotle whatsoever. The bacon was a least redeeming with it being on the crisp side for fast food bacon.  There was also more of it than I expected on my sandwich which was a nice surprise.

Taste 2/10 Damn.  I keep hoping for Arby's to recapture the magic of my high school days, but they just keep failing.  If I want a chicken sandwich spicy or otherwise I'll go to Hardee's or Chick Fil A if there is one even remotely close by.
Value 0/10  This is where Arby's really sucks.  I haven't been happy with the food the last 4 times I've ate there and I practically have to get an Obama bailout to afford it.