Wendy’s Launches Black Bean Burger Commercial

Fast-food chain Wendy’s recently launched a commercial for its new Black Bean Burger, which can be made vegan upon request by removing the pepper jack cheese and parmesan-ranch sauce. Wendy’s began testing the new veggie burgers—made with black beans, brown and wild rice, farro, onions, carrots, corn, green and red bell peppers, and grilled separately from meat—in early 2015 and recently expanded test markets to include Salt Lake City, Columbus, OH, and Columbia, SC. The commercial, while comical in tone, features a commentator answering the questions posed by various characters (including a werewolf, a centaur, and a singing man from Hamburg) about the contents of the burger, while adding text to its originally simple name until it is called the “Now more than just a sandwich with a corn-roasted red pepper and black bean patty perfect if you, like, don’t eat meat or if you just don’t feel like meat today that you eat with both hands that’s a good source of protein you can order in Spanish and/or English available at the pick-up window even if you come in galloping on a hearty multi-grain bun.” The spot might be silly, but the funds allocated toward advertising a meatless option to its customer base is evidence that Wendy’s intends to capitalize on the demand for cruelty-free options.