I Tried the Wendy's Spongebob Krabby Patty Kollab. Here's My Honest Review

Fueled by nostalgia, hunger, or both, my fiancé and I drove our car towards a suspiciously empty Wendy’s across town to sink our teeth into the new-ish Krabby Patty Kollab, a limited-time menu item in celebration of SpongeBob SquarePants’ 25th anniversary.

As 90s babies, Nickelodeon’s yellow sponge is dear to us. Ann and I both remember where we were when we watched the very first episode on May 1, 1999. In the 25 years since, we’ve always wondered what it would be like to taste the fruit of SpongeBob’s labor as a Krusty Krab fry cook.

Teased as a secret recipe since the show first aired, there’s been no definitive Krabby Patty preparation, regardless of how many YouTubers or food websites follow the bun crumbs left across various episodes. In fact, we were surprised this was the first time any fast food joint has been so bold as to make its own version of the much-hyped burger. It’s an insurmountable task to recreate an item that’s only ever lived on the imaginative tastebuds of children—no matter how tangy the secret sauce or succulent the beef in real life.

We ordered the Krabby Patty Kollab anyway. The meal consists of the Krabby Patty Kollab Burger, medium fries, and Pineapple Under the Sea Frosty.

The indifferent, Squidward-ian worker behind the register dutifully swirled two vanilla Frosties into clear plastic cups, grabbed a squeeze bottle from atop the ice cream machine, and drizzled a light orange sugar syrup around the edges, which sank and twisted around the frozen treat.

Wendy’s Frosties are notoriously hard to sip, despite the fact they come with a straw. So we grabbed spoons and waited for the rest of our meal. The pineapple-mango flavor meshed deliciously with the creamy sweetness of the vanilla ice cream.

We nabbed seats across the room at a high top table with two tall chairs and continued to prod our ice cream. After a few minutes, our names were called. I stepped to the counter and grabbed two greasy brown bags, warm with steam from the freshly made food.

Inside, I saw the burger wrapped in silver-and-red foil, a well-portioned cardboard container of fries, and a sheet of Spongebob stickers. As is my own personal tradition, I emptied the bag, dumped the fries in, sprinkled in extra salt, and shook it up. Ann went right for the burger.

Its toasted buns held two slices of melted American cheese, lettuce, tomato, onion, pickles (take note, Bubble Bass), secret sauce, and a square beef patty. Although the tomato looked unripe and there wasn’t much sauce, the whole ensemble played together well. It was, in my opinion, a pretty darn good fast food burger.

Notice the qualifiers. I never expected to be blown away by a Wendy’s burger, though the chain restaurant does offer some of the better items in the fast food category. But the whole experience was pleasant. A downright tasty Frosty, salty fries, a decent burger, and a hefty dose of nostalgia made for a cheap and enjoyable Wednesday night out.

I inspected the sticker sheet at the end of the meal. I noticed a QR code to sign up for Paramount+ and tried not to get too cynical about the whole thing. In my rose-tinted glasses, Spongebob was a childhood friend from which time has distanced me. My daily playmate’s now just a buddy I catch in the occasional meme or TikTok.

But he’s also a marketing tool, and Nickelodeon’s best-selling intellectual property. It’s all right there in the press release: “Ahoy! In celebration of the 25th anniversary of SpongeBob SquarePants, Wendy's and Paramount are partnering to launch Wendy's Krabby Patty Kollab, which includes a Krabby Patty Kollab Burger and Pineapple Under the Sea Frosty,” it reads. “Available nationwide in the U.S., Canada, and Guam beginning Tuesday, October 8, the Krabby Patty Kollab menu items are worth the wait for both SpongeBob SquarePants fans and Wendy's customers alike.”

If you like SpongeBob and Wendy’s, head to your nearest location before the Kollab ends in early November.

Related: I Tested Every Wingstop Flavor. My Top Choice Might Surprise You