Fact: I get paid to taste-test new products for Wendy’s.

How did I happen upon this sweet gig? you might ask. Let me tell you: it’s top secret, so I can’t tell you.

Here is how it happens. Every so often, I get an email from the taste test contract people, asking me if I would like to participate in a taste test. (um, yes. I would.)  I then have to fill out a survey asking me which fast food restaurants I have visited lately, what I ordered, what I would be willing to try (they list individual elements of a product, like “bun,” “lettuce,” “dressing”, etc.), what I am allergic to, when I am available, etc. Then I get an email back that tells me when my scheduled taste test is.

The taste test is at Wendy’s Innovation Center in Dublin. “Innovation Center” sounds pretty impressive, right? Like Willy Wonka’s Chocolate Factory? Well, it is like Willy Wonka’s Chocolate Factory only in that it is closer that that end of the spectrum than it is to, say, state prison. Or the dentist.

So I drive to Dublin, park and walk a pretty long walk to the Innovation Center. (The parking lot is a good quarter mile away from the building.. is that how people who sit in front of Frostys and Quarter Pounders everyday keep their weight in check?) I check in by presenting my drivers license and signing in, and they give me a number. Then there is a waiting area where I can read magazines. (last time I was there, they were like “Cooking Light” and “Gourmet” and stuff like that… heh).

Once it is the time that my taste test is scheduled for, they make an announcement and all the taste-testers gather around the door to the testing center. One of the employees makes announcements about the “rules.”

The rules: You are not allowed to enter the testing center if you are wearing strong lotion or perfume, or if you have eaten or drank anything (other than water) for the last hour. You have to take at least 3 substantial bites of the sample, paying attention to taste, texture, smell, and presentation, and then fill out the survey about the sample. You have to sit at the station corresponding to the number you were given.

So I enter the testing center and sit at my station. The Testing center is very stark and white and reminds me of the apple store. Each station has a chair, a counter with a sliding door above it and a small computer screen. There are little walls on either side so that you have privacy and can’t spy on your neighbor.

I sit in the chair and all of a sudden the little door opens and a hand comes out, placing a tray in front of me, containing a mini water bottle, moist towlette, napkin and sample (last time it was a steaming Double Stacker), then the hand retreats and the door closes.

Eating the sample in that little room is very peculiar. Your eyes burn from the whiteness, there is no music playing. It is very quiet, except for the sounds of people you can’t see smacking their lips, chewing and wetting their palette with the water bottle.

I was very impressed with the Double Stacker last time. Two patties, cheese melted perfectly, a good balance of mustard and ketchup. It occurred to me, as I was devouring it, that the Double Stacker was probably the most perfect Wendy’s cheeseburger I would ever eat. It was created in the Innovation Center, after all, by people who were trying hard to impress me and who were probably getting paid more than minimum wage.

One of the first questions that the computer asked me was what I would change about the Double Stacker. I typed (really I should say “I touched” because it was a touch-screen) “add pickle.”

The first set of questions dealt with the individual elements of the Stacker. I had to rate each element – patty, cheese, bun, ketchup, mustard – on a scale. There were several questions about each element of the sandwich. The other questions had to do with how much I would pay for the Stacker. They asked what was the most I would consider paying for the Double Stacker, and then they asked how little I would pay before I would question the quality of the Double Stacker. Considering I buy and eat White Castle burgers, that was a foolish question.

I don’t remember the rest of the questions, but the survey took about 5 minutes, and I would estimate that there were 60 questions.

After I’m done, I stand up, and a kind employee shows me where I should leave (it’s actually the same door I entered through). I go back out to the lobby and I am handed an envelope, containing two crisp bills (I don’t get paid a lot, but it’s enough to make driving out to Dublin after work worth it).

So here’s the fun news: I have a taste-testing appointment tonight at 6:00! What will it be this time? Fries cooked in a healthier oil? A breaded chicken sandwich? Some sort of dessert?

This entry was posted on Wednesday, November 28th, 2007 at 11:06 am and is filed under cooking + baking, rock + paper + hand grenade. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.