The Biggest Heartbreak of My Life Wasn't Breaking Up with My High School Sweetheart, It Was with Wendy's

I didn't eat my first hamburger until I was 17 years old. It's not that I was raised by vegetarians or had some philosophical aversion to fast food. I was just what everyone at the time called a “picky eater.” Whereas my peers could be enticed by Happy Meals with nuggies and cheeseburgers, I was the rare salad child whose favorite foods were tomatoes, cucumbers, and mushrooms.

How My Love Affair with Wendy’s Began

So, in 1997, at the age of 13, I was thrilled to encounter a novel new fast food item: Wendy's Fresh Stuffed Pita, a clever response to the wrap craze of the mid-’90s. Touted by a jolly Dave Thomas as the alternative to burgers (and marketed, at the time, to women, who were assumed to prefer ”healthier” options), these stuffed pitas were available in four varieties—Chicken Caesar, Ranch Chicken, Garden Veggie, and, my personal favorite, The Greek. For non-burger-eating me, this Greek salad in a folded pita was ideal fast food.

How My Love Affair with Wendy’s Grew

I remember one middle school field trip where a charter bus full of kids got to vote on where we would stop for lunch. The contenders were Burger King and Wendy's, and I lobbied with the full force of a hungry 13-year-old girl for everyone to vote for Wendy's, playing on their love of Frosty's and square burgers. Despite some petitioning for Burger King's char-broiled offerings, Wendy's and I won that day, and I enjoyed my salad-stuffed pita with the smug satisfaction of someone who had actual persuasive powers over her peers.

How My Love Affair with Wendy’s Came to a Tragic Halt

But my satisfaction was cut short in 2000 when Wendy's abruptly discontinued the Fresh Stuffed Pitas, despite their popularity. In those pre-ubiquitous-internet times, there was no cohesive backlash of disappointed fans, and the pitas went gently into that good night. Now, however, the internet has fomented a belated outcry for the pitas. There's a five-year-old Change.org petition that fell about 100 signatures below its 500-person goal that includes comments like, "No fast foods offers anything close to this. Not just a lighter & healthier option, they were absolutely delicious & fresh." And you can also find several Reddit sub-threads devoted to recalling the glory of the pitas, with comments like, "I was 8 years old when they came out but I would beg my parents for a Chicken Caesar Pita."

A Chance to Reconcile? 

At a press event earlier this year, Wendy's Vice President of Culinary Innovation, John Li, teased that they would be bringing back an old menu item, stirring speculation that the pitas might be destined for a return. Instead, for now, the closest thing on the menu are Wendy's new Grilled Chicken Ranch Wraps, a drastically simplified version of the pitas of yore. 

From Denial to Acceptance… and Action

What to do? I decided to try my hand at making a Fresh Stuffed Pita of my own.

I revisited the specifics for recipe clues. Rather than a pita pocket that's cut open at the top and then stuffed, Wendy's used a fluffy pita-style flatbread that was warmed and then folded in half, creating a sort of pita taco. The pitas were filled with a mix of chopped romaine lettuce with shredded red cabbage and carrots. (Luckily, this is easy to find bagged versions of, but if you prefer, you can create your own blend by combining 2 parts romaine with ½ part each of shredded red cabbage and carrots.) Then there's the veggie component—a simple melange of tomato, cucumber, and red onion, mixed with chunks of feta cheese. In TV commercials for Fresh Stuffed Pitas, Wendy's put a lot of emphasis on the feta, which was an emerging ingredient back in the late 1990s, especially in a fast food setting. It's also the only source of protein in the pita, unless you decide to gild the lily with grilled chicken or throw in some chickpeas, both of which are welcome in my updated version of the bygone meal.

Without further ado, meet the DIY revival of the dearly departed, but never forgotten, Wendy’s “The Greek” Fresh Stuffed Pita.