The Wendy’s Krabby Patty Kollab meal has begun! ICYMI, SpongeBob SquarePants turns 25 this year, and to celebrate their quarter-century birthday, Nickelodeon and Paramount teamed up with several different restaurants to present to fans the “Krabby Patty Kollab.” The brand crossover brings a bunch of SpongeBob-themed foods into the real world, including the famous Krabby Patty and the Pineapple Under the Sea Frosty. This crossover has been highly anticipated everywhere (most specifically in my own household), and now the reviews are in! And they say…that the Krabby Patty is fairly underwhelming while the Frosty is quite tasty. Dannica from Buzzfeed did a fun review of her experience:

A “regular schmegular wrapper:I know it’s probably wild to nitpick at a fast-food place’s packaging, but if having standards is a crime, arrest me! As someone who loved watching SpongeBob as a child (and revisited my Bikini Bottom era sometime in my college years), I feel like some creative opportunities were missed. I wish there had been a different burger wrapper acknowledging that this was a collab burger — a Krabby Patty, at that. There could’ve been some type of flower cloud pattern, as seen in the show, or even something as simple as bubbles. Even the fries carton could’ve been something that nodded to the kelp fries sold at the Krusty Krab.

How it compares to Krusty Krab Krabby Patty: Wendy’s version consists of a quarter-pound beef patty, lettuce, tomatoes, onions, two slices of American cheese, and pickles. What differs, however, is that Wendy’s Krabby Patty includes a “top secret” Krusty Kollab sauce. OK, hear me out — it’s a good burger! This doesn’t surprise me because I think Wendy’s burgers are tasty in general, but the one thing that I was a bit unsure of at first was the sauce. Don’t get me wrong, it didn’t taste bad at all! I think I went in thinking it was going to be some wild, unique sauce but was instead taken aback by how familiar it was.

Similar to a Big Mac? Wendy’s Krabby Kollab sauce is tangy and slightly sweet, much like other iconic fast food burger sauces. In fact, one of my sisters initially said that Wendy’s Krabby Patty “tastes like a Big Mac.” However, I do disagree! Even though Wendy’s Krabby sauce is similar in the pickle-y and sweet department, it packs more of a punch to me. The sauce is more savory than sweet, almost leaning toward a more peppery flavor, which I thought was nice! Even though I almost wish Wendy’s went a little riskier with the sauce (and I know they can because I tried ALL of their saucy nuggets), I honestly just wish the burger had more of it and was creamier.

An overall burger review: As for the burger as a whole, if you take away the Krusty sauce, you basically have a Dave’s Single. And honestly? I’m not complaining. The lettuce was crisp, the tomatoes were juicy, the onions had a nice crunch, the cheese was melty perfection, the pickles were pickling, the patty was JUICY, and the bun was toasted and buttery. What more could I truly ask for (aside from more Krabby sauce)?

The real star of the show is… Now, even though the Krabby Patty is supposed to be the star of the whole meal, I admit that I was most excited to try the Pineapple Under the Sea Frosty! Taking the iconic Wendy’s dessert, this chocolate or vanilla Frosty comes swirled with a Pineapple Mango-flavored puree. Though this Frosty comes with the meal, you can also order it by itself for $3.69 (prices may vary by location). All I can say is WOWWW. Despite the puree vanishing from plain sight, the pineapple and mango flavors stuck around and did the dang thing. First of all, a pineapple and mango combo is always going to hit, and it especially did paired with the Vanilla Frosty. I was a little worried that the pineapple would give a very tart and punchy flavor, but instead, it was sweet — but not in an overbearing or artificial-tasting way. Granted, it might not be overbearing because the puree itself had a more syrupy texture, so there wasn’t much to pick up on anyway. I had to give the Frosty a good mix between bites, but I thought the flavor was tropical, light, and delish.

Overall: I enjoyed the Krabby Patty meal! It’s a fun and tasty collaboration, but it did lack in creativity. Considering this meal was released in celebration of SpongeBob SquarePants — and it’s the first time there’s ever been a “real life” Krabby Patty — there could have been so much more. Mostly, I wish there was more of an effort to push the theme and include elements of the Krusty Krab or anything about Bikini Bottom in the meal’s presentation.

Her favorite part: To no one’s surprise, my favorite part about this meal was the Frosty, and I certainly think the meal is worth trying at least once — especially if you’re a longtime SpongeBob fan and want the experience of ordering a Krabby Patty in real life! But don’t wait too long, as this collaboration is only for a limited time!

[From Buzzfeed]

Has anyone tried the Krusty Patty Kollab? My family and I were actually planning on visiting Wendy’s this weekend to check out this promotion. I cannot believe that they missed the opportunity to use SpongeBob/Krusty Krab packaging! That’s going to get so many kids into it all. If you have built-in marketing and brand name recognition, you should be using that sh-t as much as you can. That said, it’s kind of a bummer that they reportedly didn’t do anything special in stores to celebrate the crossover. That’s how you extend your brand. Create a sauce that will be different enough to bring people back! Other reviewers have also praised how good the Pineapple Under the Sea Frosty is, though, so I guess we’re going to make sure that we try that, too.