The best items on the Arby’s menu, ranked

Although the Raffel Brothers who started Arby’s (phonetic for RB, Raffel Brothers) in Ohio in 1964 were not Greek, this item has been on the menu permanently since 2016. This sandwich passes the smell test (you can smell the cucumbers before you take a first bite), and the vegetables are doled into generous proportions: red onion, shredded lettuce, and tomato. The pita was perhaps a bit too soft, and the meat was not as thick or chewy as you expect from a typical gyro, but it’s a decent rendition. Part of the taste test team commented, “If I was drunk at 4am, this would taste really good.”

Inspired by the New York standard, Arby’s Reuben sits inside marbled rye bread with corned beef and Swiss cheese. We felt the dollop of sauerkraut was generously sized yet bland, and that the Thousand Island dressing was a little salty. The rye bread was flavorful but way too soft. Despite these small missteps, we felt the sandwich was overall pleasing, although we fear New Yorkers will scoff.

These bites are only around for a limited time, so we really shouldn’t include them, but they were the main staple for the vegetarian member of our taste test team (we’ll note that there were zero salads or veggie wraps for this plant-based eater). These include a bite-sized dollop of four-cheese mac and cheese, bread and fried into a rounded oblong shape that’s like an outsized pill capsule. The noodles on the inside were perhaps too soft (“too soft” being a repeated comment throughout our visit), but the overall crunch factor was great. Some preferred these to the mozzarella sticks, below.

These garlicky battered and fried mozzarella sticks have a great crispy coating, but the cheese flavor didn’t really come through. We wanted a bit more umami—but come to think of it, isn’t mozzarella just a really bland cheese anyway? These come with a delicious marinara sauce, so all is forgiven.

We warmed up to this little crunchy slider—the sauce was great with a little heat. The thick chicken nugget starts life being dipped in spicy buffalo sauce and then cooled with a parmesan peppercorn ranch sauce...we had a momentary “ooh that’s a little spicy” moment and fell in love. The bun can tend to get soggy fast, but you just have to gobble it up, and the tiny format makes that easy.

We tried the apple and the cherry turnovers, both on the permanent menu (the seasonal pumpkin turnover looked amazing, too). There’s a nice, multi-layered turnover crust with haphazardly applied zig-zag glaze and fruit filling inside. We looked to see if we could find actual fruit pieces but other than a bit of cherry skin inside the cherry turnover, it’s more of a gel filling. We preferred the cherry; the acidity reduced the sweetness of the apple. You don’t hate yourself after indulging in these, but even so, we think these could be sweet enough without the icing.

Heyyyy, this is the ultimate party snack and we loved it, especially paired with the Bronco Berry sauce. The bites aren’t spicy at all, but you still get the uplifting swell of pride at eating something considered to be spicy. The cream cheese that surrounds these deep-fried Jalapeño slices is sweet and creamy. Getting back to that Bronco berry sauce, the ingredient list (we took a photo of the sauce bucket for later contemplation) mentions red bell peppers, corn syrup, and vegetable juice, but not a lick of berries. So how does it have that sweet berry flavor that pairs so nicely with the jalapeño, probably the closest thing approaching a foodie moment you can have at Arby’s? We’re not the only ones who thought so: the Internet is full of people trying to copycat the sauce recipe. On the other side of the spicy green coin, “Those were so gross, I don’t even know why you’re praising them,” says a member of the taste test team looking over our shoulder as we type.

For those that may have settled into complacency about the chicken nuggets you can get at another fast food outlet (hint: two arches form its first letter), this is a refreshing change. It’s not processed meat but instead bite-sized pieces of all-white meat chicken (maybe that’s why they’re called “premium”) in a crispy, seasoned breading. Perhaps best of all, these are a great vehicle for delivering sauce to your mouth: may we recommend the horsey sauce again?

These are another treat you can’t get at that double-arched place. The potatoes—which Arby’s calls the “meats of the field”—are sliced to curl right up on themselves, coated with a light garlic and onion powder taste, and fried up crispy. The only other choice is the crinkle fries which are so reminiscent of childhood diners. You won’t find any straight, straightlaced French fries here.

We like this for the crispiness of the chicken and the lightness of the brioche bun. The tomatoes were fresh and the shredded lettuce was beautifully slathered with mayonnaise. Is there anything better than lettuce and mayo clinging to each other like Jack and Rose post-shipwreck?

Arby’s definitely leans towards quirky, and that’s reflected in their drink offerings. Where else can you get a Jamocha shake? Speaking of which, this chocolate and coffee shake comes with whipped cream and a very special thick fudge drizzle on the top. One taste team member said it was “better than I was expecting” and proved it by hunkering down and drinking the rest of it, although it was not actually his drink. As we know, sometimes a shake can be so thick that it’s hard to draw it up through a straw, and that was not the case here. We also tried the chocolate shakes and found that all three shakes had that beautiful texture that comes with minuscule chips of crunchy ice.

The beef n' cheddar is the signature dish for a reason: it’s a wonderful sandwich—and you can’t get it anywhere else. Served on an onion bun, the sandwich has bountiful amounts of roast beef, cheddar cheese sauce and red ranch (vinegar-paprika) sauce. One taste team member suggests holding the red ranch (“too sweet”) and just leaning into the cheddar sauce, but either way, this is the sandwich you’ll think about the next day and wish that you had another one just floating around your kitchen.