Arby's — Restaurant in Logan

Short version: The half pound roast beef sandwich at Arby's costs the same (in terms of cost per calorie) as a Double Smoked Bacon and Cheddar sandwich from Starbucks. Which would YOU rather have?

Long version: I went there today for the first time in years (and my first visit to the Logan location) and got a half-pound roast beef sandwich and a large chocolate shake, for a total of 1440 calories. I put a packet of Arby's sauce and packet of Horsey sauce on the sandwich, which probably adds a total of about 30 calories or so.

Assessment: The roast beef was cut thicker than I remember it being cut last time I was at Arby's; it was between 1/16" and 1/8", I'd imagine...and the roast beef was a tiny bit rubbery and the bun was a little bit dry. Not bad, but enough to notice it when I thought about it. But as for the roast beef's thick cut...I think I prefer thin slices.

The chocolate shake didn't have a great texture; it was "icy," putting it a far cry from the ice-cream texture of Five Guys or nice texture of In 'n Out's. And the flavor of the shake was very 'fast food,' which you most certainly don't get at Five Guys (where the chocolate shake's flavor is wonderful) or at In 'n Out (where the shake's flavor is, at worst, very good).

The sauces at Arby's, by the way, have a "plastic-y" texture to them; as do the shake's whipped cream topping and chocolate drizzle. That just screams 'fast food' to me....and I'm not a big fan of that.

Cost assessment: I'm going to ignore the sauces for this. The roast beef sandwich was $7.55 (with tax) for 610 calories and the chocolate shake was $4.53 for 830 calories. That totals out to $12.07 for 1440 calories, or about $0.84 per 100 calories. That's actually quite a bit higher than In 'n Out, where a Double Double, fries and a regular chocolate shake works out to about $0.69 per 100 calories....and, honestly, I find the In 'n Out food to be far, FAR tastier than Arby's food.

That "$7.55 (with tax) for 610 calories" is disconcerting, by the way. That works out to about $1.24 per 100 calories....which is nearly the same as a Double Smoked Bacon & Cheddar sandwich at Starbucks (which, by the way, includes the discount from "stars"). Is Arby's as good as Starbucks? Not by a mile, if you ask me. Lower your sandwich prices and/or up the quality of your meat, Arby's. Maybe roast beef isn't a market to be in.

Please, remember that, the next time you get a roast beef sandwich at Arby's: You could be paying the same thing (in terms of cost per calorie) and getting a Double Smoked Bacon & Cheddar sandwich at Starbucks.

Anyhow, you might be wondering, "Why didn't you get fries, at Arby's?" Well sir, there just wasn't really room in the calorie budget for the day. That chocolate shake had a lot of calories.

One area in which Arby's deserves kudos is its protein. Overall, my meal gave me 48 grams (for the sandwich) + 19 grams (for the shake) = 67 grams of protein. The works out to about 4.7 grams per 100 calories, but the standout is the roast beef sandwich; it's a whopping 7.9 grams per 100 calories, which puts in 3rd place on the spreadsheet that I keep, behind two brands of protein powder. (By way of comparison, Optimum Nutrition whey protein powder -- which is #1 on the spreadsheet -- is 20 grams per 100 calories -- so the roast beef sandwich is a far cry away, but it's still on top of the 'prepared food'-sourced protein.)

Conclusion: I think I'll opt for In 'n Out. The Arby's roast beef sandwich has two strikes against it: It costs as much as Starbucks, and it doesn't really taste all that great. And to lower the overall cost per calorie of the meal, I have to accept a mediocre chocolate shake. Ugh, man.

----[8/28/23] Response to store owner's comment: You're kidding, right? You think there's MORE detail to be had? Read my...

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