Fast Food Review: Smokin’ Chipotle Chicken Sandwich from Arby’s

Posted August 10th, 2011 | 3:52pm by Ryan

“Would you like to try our new SSSSSSSSSSSSSMMMMMOKIN’ Chipotle Chicken Sandwich for only $3.99 for a limited time!!!!!!!” was what I heard as I approached the Arby’s drive-thru speaker box. The dude was loud and enthusiastic to say the least. I did indeed come for the Smokin’ Chipotle Chicken Sandwich and I replied with a somewhat lackluster, “Uh… yeah can I get one of those please?” It was odd. Anyways, I was hoping to find this sandwich because it’s a limited time offer at a select number of locations. Our news post made me crave it and I was happy to get my hands on one.

Arby’s describes the Smokin’ Chipotle Chicken Sandwich like this:

Kick up your mood a notch with Arby’s® Smokin’ Chipotle Chicken Sandwich. A new crispy all white-meat Prime-Cut™ chicken fillet topped with Chipotle BBQ sauce, pepper bacon, cheddar cheese and diced jalapenos on a toasted bun with lettuce and tomato. It’s spicy good!

Most everything about the description of the $3.99 Smokin’ Chipotle Chicken Sandwich is drool-worthy if you ask me. I’m big on BBQ sauce and a chicken breast patty. The addition of Arby’s pepper bacon and cheddar cheese are worthy additions that I’d welcome on most any sandwich. I did enjoy the Smokin’ Chipotle Chicken Sandwich to some extent… I’m just not cut out for majorly spicy jalapeno peppers. This thing was chock-full of some really crucial heat. Chipotle BBQ sauce should already have an extra little kick of peppery goodness right? This sandwich would be close to perfection for me if not for the heat of the jalapenos. Sometimes you’ll get a mild batch and other times you’ll get the intolerable sort. I can’t take much heat, but I can take a decent amount. This thing was on fire. It’s hard to give a solid description of specific tastes because of the jalapeno takeover. I was also a little disappointed by the tomatoes, a little on the “too soft” side. The toasted bun could’ve been toasted a little better and it fell apart easier than I’d like. The usually tasty combo of cheddar cheese and Arby’s always solid pepper bacon unfortunately had almost zero impact after the jalapenos assaulted my tongue. As an overall package though, it’s tasty, just too spicy. I’d gladly get it again and see if I could possibly have it without the jalapenos… or maybe get them on the side? I think the jalapenos would make all the difference in the world. I’m sure you could still call it “Smokin'” without the jalapenos. There should just be the option.

It’s not quite fair to give an assessment on something like the Smokin’ Chipotle Chicken Sandwich when I clearly can’t cope with my tolerance for spicy foods. I wanted to love this sandwich, but in the end I felt it was just good, not great. Maybe on a second visit I’d get lucky with some crisper produce and milder jalapenos. I’m sure then I’d rave at the brilliance of this fast food gem. For review purposes, I feel it’s necessary to order items “as is”. So I guess the bottom-line here is watch out for the jalapenos. They will more than likely make or break the meal based on how well you can handle your batch. Knowing it’s a roll of the dice, I might just opt for asking to have them on the side and maybe apply one or two. Ugh… take my man-card now, I don’t deserve it. 🙁