You Can Buy Wendy’s Fan-Favorite Menu Item by the Bucket

You can argue that so many of Wendy’s menu items are the best of all time—from the Baconator to the hot and crispy fries. However, there are only a few foods that are truly unique to Wendy’s. We all know that Dave Thomas dreamed up the Frosty to be the perfect balance between a milkshake and soft serve ice cream that you can only get at Wendy’s. But, the original menu board featured another highly beloved item: the chili.

Thomas began serving chili at Wendy’s as a way to use up the leftover beef from the fresh, square burger patties. Today, the chili remains a fan-favorite menu item, ordered à la carte, on top of the Taco Salad, on the fries, or with a baked potato.

Recently, though, we discovered that diehard Wendy’s chili fans have found a way to “hack” the menu to super-size their favorite item. Multiple creators on TikTok have ordered a vat of Wendy’s chili to go—similar to the gallon bucket of soup that Olive Garden sells.

However, upon further review, we learned that the family-size bucket of chili isn’t a hack after all, but rather, hidden right in plain sight on the menu board. So, what’s the deal with Wendy’s bucket of chili? We tried it to find out.

How To Order Wendy’s Family-Size Chili

Many of us have known about the two sizes of chili that Wendy’s offers, both regular and large. However, some Wendy’s locations sell a “Family Chili,” too. 

The Family Chili is nearly six times the size of the regular version. While Wendy’s doesn’t provide ounce measurements for its chili cups on its site, it does advertise the amount of calories in each menu item—and, in comparing the calories in the family-size and regular chili, the Family Chili contains about six servings of the regular chili.

Allrecipes producer Natalie Gravois recently tried Wendy’s Family Chili and said it was “awesome.” The bucket serves about four to six, according to Gravois, and only set her back $13.49—though prices may vary by location.

The Family Chili comes with crackers and hot chili seasoning to spice it up. Cheese and onions are an additional cost, so Gravois brought her own bag of shredded cheese from home to try the chili.

While the Family Chili is great for just serving as a bowl of hearty meat and bean-packed chili, and it’s the easiest tailgate addition ever, Gravois has some suggestions to doctor it up—and it’s not just dipping your Wendy’s fries and cheeseburger into it (though that’s acceptable, too).

“I can melt down some cream cheese [and] make a dip. Chili dogs, chili burgers,” she says. 

Or, if you’re feeling extra ambitious, Gravios says swinging through the Taco Bell drive-thru for some burritos to dip would be extra delicious, too. 

Not all Wendy’s locations offer the Family Chili bucket, so check your local restaurant’s menu or the Wendy’s app to determine if you, too, can get in on this fall chili bucket hack action.