Wendy's — Restaurant in Ames

I don’t ever write bad reviews but this Wendy’s genuinely deserves one. My girlfriend and I decided to come here since we had a coupon for chicken nuggets and she craved some. When we tried to order there was a lack of a scan or input for coupons at the self order screen so we went to the register expecting someone to help. We saw there were several people, at least 6 there, but were told that they can’t take our order at the register because they were understaffed. My girlfriend tried to explain to them we had a coupon and wanted to use it but we kept getting interrupted by the workers saying that they can’t take our order.

I’ve worked retail and in food before so I can understand being understaffed, however there were more than enough people there that day: At least two of them just stood there in plain sight doing nothing except standing around and staring at a screen or with their hands on their hips and walking in circles. Most memorably, one of the workers decided to take her break right outside the entrance and was making out with her boyfriend. I have proof of it but will not post it publicly to avoid embarrassing her and her boyfriend. Additionally I consistently overheard trash talk and gossiping about other coworkers, customers, and their job.

My girlfriend did get her food in a reasonable amount of time, but it was frustrating that they couldn’t take our order & coupon when they clearly could have, and also the way we were met with rudeness. Most disappointingly, the food tasted bad and was texturally off. The chicken was spongy, some pieces chewy, and when I tried a piece, there was a weird bitterness with an odd sour aftertaste. The fries also had a weird bitter taste, probably from the oil.

We will 100% never be coming back to this place and if anyone reads this I suggest you don’t go...

being the only Wendy’s in ames, it’s understandable for them to be busy. I am patient until it is evident that the workers ignore the customers in the store. No one will even welcome you in or will tell you they will be with you shortly. I once waited in the drive through for 45 minutes with only 3-4 cars in line because an employee was chatting and laughing with whoever was in the car in front of me. She would look back and see the line and continue to chat for about 20 minutes, a car behind me honked and she just looked and rolled her eyes. My order had not been correct and my food was very cold. I stopped by today around 2pm to get some lunch and it seemed that a young man was still training, he was the only one up front taking orders and bagging food, the other workers were very rude to him and yelling at him in front of every customer in the store saying “this is ridiculous, take an order, make an order”. Also, the dining area is always very dirty, no drinks in stock, drinks spilled all over the floor making it sticky and slippery and they just threw a wet floor sign on top of it. Tables are never cleaned. overall the customer service and cleanliness off this place is a 0/10 coming from someone who has worked in fast food...

I've tried this Wendy's a few different times. The first time was just extremely slow - waited nearly 30 minutes with no one in line in front of me for baconator fries. The second time, walked into the lobby and waited for over 10 minutes (made eye contact with everyone working) before I was told the lobby was closed. There was a sign outside one of the entrances but not the one I went in and the doors were not locked. They still did not lock the doors when I left and other customers made the same mistake. I had my heart set on Wendy's and when we went through the drivethrough it took another 30-50 minutes. The coffee was disgusting and they were out of cream which they did not tell me until after ordering and paying. I was also given a small instead of a large which was not corrected. Both me and the person I was with got sick after eating our food that time. The most recent time I tried this Wendy's was for delivery via DoorDash. I ordered 3 things (nuggest, baconator fries, and lemonade) and they were out of both lemonade and baconator fries but would not cancel the order on their own so I had to process a cancelation through...