As with any fast food chain, there are all kinds of rumors about Arby's that have circulated over the years, and the internet has only made them spread faster. Arby's stands out by making roast beef their staple instead of hamburgers, but you have probably heard some pretty unsettling things about their roast beef over the years, including that it is actually liquid in origin. If this has made you question whether you should eat at Arby's again, don't worry, because we're here to separate the fact from the fiction about this fast food mainstay. Let's take a look at the truth about Arby's roast beef.
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00:00Even if you have a favorite fast food burger, you gotta admit, you can go anywhere to get
00:05one of those.
00:06If you want something different, head to Arby's and pick up a few of their roast beef sandwiches.
00:11They're delicious, but here's the thing, they're weird.
00:15Here's why.
00:16Arby's built its business on roast beef.
00:19Don't worry, Mom, I'm eating right.
00:23Don't worry, Ma, he's eating right.
00:26But the fast food giant has been broadening its horizons in recent years.
00:30In 2018, Arby's launched a brand new ad campaign with this slogan.
00:34Arby's, we have the meat for sandwiches.
00:38According to The Wall Street Journal, the entire campaign was designed to let people
00:42know there's much more to Arby's than roast beef.
00:46The campaign features a character referred to as the Head of Sandwiches, whose whole
00:50shtick is wondering why people only associate Arby's with a certain kind of meat.
00:55Why do people still think Arby's is just roast beef, when we have 17 other sandwiches?
01:01Or maybe it was because the last time you went to Arby's, you were with your grandparents,
01:05who ate exclusively roast beef.
01:08Every meal.
01:09Don't worry, Arby's isn't turning its back on roast beef.
01:13The fast food chain just wants to appeal to a younger generation, people who gravitate
01:17toward a more diverse array of sandwiches, and not their grandparents' roast beef.
01:23You've probably heard this one before.
01:25A lot of people believe the name of the fast food chain is a pun on roast beef.
01:29Arby.
01:30Arby's.
01:31Get it?
01:32Well, you might as well forget it, because it's simply not true.
01:36Arby's has tweeted more than once about how it got its name.
01:39We came up with the name Arby's from the initials of our restaurant equipment company, which
01:44was Raffle Brothers.
01:45That became our period, B period, Arby's."
01:48Arby's might be trying to clarify the misconception now, but it was a different story back in
01:52the 80s, when the company even used an acronym in its advertising slogan.
01:57In 2015, Arby's invested in redesigning its restaurants and kitchens.
02:05We have our 10th remodel under construction right now.
02:08That's 10 this year, and we've been so excited about the results."
02:12To understand what goes into serving up America's favorite fast food roast beef, Business Insider
02:17went behind the scenes in one of the new locations.
02:21They discovered that Arby's roast beef is left to marinate in, quote, a roasting bag,
02:25and then it's slow-roasted for approximately four hours.
02:29After that, it's sliced to order for each customer, whether they're standing at the
02:33counter or waiting at the drive-thru.
02:35Sounds unlikely, right?
02:37But this has been confirmed by numerous employees on Reddit, including one former cook and cashier.
02:42All of the roast beef is cooked daily and sliced to order just moments before it gets
02:47on the sandwich and into your hands.
02:50Now that people are paying closer attention to the food they're eating, fast food chains
02:54have been under more scrutiny than ever.
02:56Take a peek at Arby's nutritional information, and you'll find there's a way to eat pretty
03:01well and lots of ways to eat not so well.
03:04Read up on the classic roast beef, and you'll find it's actually not that terrible for you.
03:09It's only 360 calories and contains 14 grams of fat, which is pretty good for a fast food
03:15sandwich.
03:16It also contains about 970 milligrams of sodium, which ain't great, but there are definitely
03:22way worse selections out there.
03:24The new smoked Italian porchetta, meat gift wrapped in meat, a present you give to yourself.
03:32Don't be fooled into thinking all of Arby's roast beef options are healthy.
03:36If you opt for something a little meatier, like the half-pound beef and cheddar, you're
03:40looking at 740 calories, 39 grams of fat, and 2,530 milligrams of sodium.
03:48To put that in perspective, the American Heart Association claims your daily sodium intake
03:52shouldn't be more than 2,300 milligrams, and ideally, it shouldn't be more than 1,500 milligrams.
03:59Just one single half-pound beef and cheddar will take you right over the limit.
04:04According to Snopes, a particularly disgusting urban legend about Arby's dates back to at
04:09least 1997.
04:11This long-standing rumor suggests Arby's roast beef is actually imitation meat made from
04:16gels, liquids, and pastes that are later shaped into a vaguely meat-like lump and turned into
04:21sandwich filler.
04:23Arby's, still making sandwiches filled with, filled with sliced something."
04:32Fortunately for humanity, Snopes confirms there's absolutely no truth to this story
04:37whatsoever.
04:38Delightful!
04:39Selectable!
04:40Delicious!