While you might think of bacon as a classic — if not boring — burger topping at this point, it looks like the beloved, crispy meat is now at the center of fast-food burger wars. Just days after McDonald’s debuted a new bacon-centric menu, Wendy’s is punching back on Monday with a new deal for free Baconator cheeseburgers.
Here’s the deal: Wendy’s is giving away Baconators free of charge through DoorDash from Monday, January 28 through Monday, February 4, though the company teased that “there’s no telling what we’ll do next week… or the next week.” The timing is no coincidence. Wendy’s deal comes the day before McDonald’s is set to boast its bacon menu by hosting a Bacon Hour with free bacon on any order (including sundaes and fillet-o-fish, which…shudders) on January 29 from 4pm to 5pm local time.
“We’ve always owned bacon and that’s not changing because our competitors are throwing a happy hour to celebrate its importance,” Kurt Kane, Wendy’s executive vice president and chief marketing officer, said in a statement. “Bacon is at the core of what we do at Wendy’s and we aren’t afraid to throw down the gauntlet. After all, that’s why we’re the #1 seller of bacon cheeseburgers.”
While McDonald’s Bacon Hour will take place for one hour on one day, Wendy’s deal will last a full week. There’s a pretty major caveat, though. To score your free burger, you’ll have to spend $10 on something else and use the code FREEBACONATOR at checkout. We suggest fries (Baconator fries, maybe?), a drink, some nuggets — whatever you think will pair well with bacon. We’re not here to judge. Oh, and to be clear, the deal is only good via DoorDash, so don’t expect to score a free cheeseburger by walking into your local Wendy’s.
In addition to the free burger, Wendy’s will be offering free delivery through DoorDash all week. No promo code or order limit is required to get in on that deal, either.
The bottom line: The fight for bacon cheeseburger dominance is on and it looks like we all stand to win.
