11 Ways To Upgrade Your Fast Food Order

There's nothing quite like stopping into your favorite fast food restaurant and ordering your go-to off of the menu after craving it all week. What most people love about fast food chains is the consistency between them all. No matter the location, your McDonald's single cheeseburger is always going to taste the same. The consistency makes going to these places feel like a comfort, and although fast food isn't the healthiest option, there's something to be said about eating food that feels like home.

Now, there are so many ways to branch out and upgrade your fast food order to make it taste even better, to make it more filling, or to create an interesting combination. There's even an entire section of TikTok dedicated to doing so (just search "fast food combinations"), and once you get down the rabbit hole of these videos, there is no turning back.

I've combed through these TikToks, asked frequent customers of different chains, and included my own favorite concoctions into the mix. At Mashed, we love that you don't have to just stick to what's listed on the menu. From orders that can save you money to amazing combinations that you didn't think would go well together, the possibilities are endless. Any prices listed are based on the New York City region, and are accurate to when the article was written. Good luck reading this article without ending up at your favorite chain immediately after, drooling to try one of these upgrades.

Starting off strong with a viral TikTok fast food concoction, we have something you're going to want to try from Chick-fil-A. TikTok user @how.kev.eats rates viral fast food meals, and he shared a video trying out this specific concoction. He rated it a 7.9 out of 10, which for him, is a pretty high score.

To order, you'll need to get the waffle fries, chicken nuggets, and mac and cheese. You'll also need to ask for some Buffalo sauce, ranch, and Chick-fil-A sauce. In a container, mix or shake all of the ingredients together. You'll have created a cheesy, spicy, creamy, tasty meal filled with all of Chick-fil-A's best menu items. @How.kev.eats says that the Buffalo sauce specifically makes the concoction addicting.

Another tip to make this meal taste even better is to ask for the fries to be extra crispy when you order them. You can do this on the app by simply writing it in the notes section for your order, or in person. This way, the sauce won't make the waffle fries too soggy, and instead you'll have a nice crunch to juxtapose the soft mac and cheese.

Jersey Mike's has some of the best subs out there. You can order classic cold subs with things like turkey, ham, bologna, chicken salad, different cheeses, and more. Or, if you're more of a hot sandwich type of person, you can get different variations of a steak or chicken cheesesteak. Whatever you're craving, you'll find something to satisfy you at Jersey Mike's.

If you're not in the mood for a sandwich, however, don't count Jersey Mike's out. One of the best hacks is that you can order a full sandwich in a bowl instead of on a roll. They take everything that would have been inside the sandwich and place it in a bowl for you. The best part is, there are usually more ingredients in the bowl than there would have been if you had ordered a regular sized sandwich. From there, you can mix it up and eat it with a fork or use a tortilla chip as a vehicle to pick up the ingredients.

"I'm gluten free, so I order my sandwich in a bowl and put it on my favorite gluten-free roll at home. I'm usually able to make two full sandwiches that match the size of Jersey Mike's regular size roll. Both the bowl size and the regular size sandwich are the same price, so I feel like I am getting two meals for one when I do this!" shares Karen, a Jersey Mike's customer.

McDonald's never gets old. Whether you're moving to a new town or traveling the world — you can almost always find a McDonald's nearby to satisfy your cravings. Most people have a favorite menu item, but have you ever thought about mixing them together?

The McDonald's hash browns are particularly tasty. They have an extra crunchy exterior while the interior is soft and delicious. There are many fun things to do with a hash brown besides eating it by itself. Drizzling honey or your favorite sauce on top is a good way to level it up. Many people love to put it on their breakfast sandwiches, adding extra flavor in every bite.

You don't need to reserve the sandwich and hash brown mixture for breakfast items only, however. One of my favorite combinations is ordering a single cheeseburger and a hash brown. Take off the top bun, place the hash brown into the sandwich, and put the bun back on top. The American cheese will melt onto the hash brown, creating a mixture of cheesy-potato goodness. The flavor of the beef patty with the potato is like a flavor explosion, and the extra crunch from the hash brown brings the sandwich to a whole new level. It's taking all of my willpower to not order this combo right now on my favorite food delivery app, it really is that good. For around $7 total, don't knock it till you try it.

With the use of the Starbucks app, people have been getting more and more creative with their drinks. The app lets you customize drinks however you'd like, and there are choices available that many people didn't even know existed.

For Jenna Leigh Miller, a content creator and Starbucks customer, she loves to upgrade her daily matcha beverage. Instead of going for the plain iced matcha latte, she orders the matcha lemonade — which is a menu item under iced teas and lemonades. From there, she adds her own twist. "I've been loving an iced matcha lemonade, but I add peach juice as well. It's like summer in a drink," she shares.

When looking in the app, there are many more things you can add besides peach to achieve the summery-vibe that Jenna goes for. You could also choose to add apple juice, raspberry flavored pearls, or Starbucks refresher bases like pineapple passionfruit, strawberry acai, or summer-berry. Whatever fruity concoction you decide to make, it'll taste uniquely delicious. Take this as your sign to get creative with your next Starbucks order.

From another TikTok recipe concoction, we are obsessed with these mini pickle-nugget sandwiches. It's an upgrade to eating just the plain chicken nuggets (which we admit, truly are amazing by themselves). What you'll want to do is order a side of pickles with your chicken nuggets. McDonald's will usually fill a small nugget container with pickles free of charge. You'll also want to order some Buffalo sauce to complete the recipe.

Once you've acquired the ingredients, it's time to make your mini pickle sandwiches. Simply sandwich each nugget with two pickles, dip it into the Buffalo sauce, and enjoy! If you want to add an extra flavor, you can also double dip into ranch as well. This will cool down the Buffalo sauce and add some more dimension to the concoction. The texture of the crispy chicken nuggets juxtaposed with the smooth, juicy pickles is a combination that you didn't know you needed.

We love this hack because it's easy to create and you don't need any extra utensils or containers. It's also a great option for people who are watching the calories that they're consuming. It can replace the McDonald's chicken sandwich, and instead of having the extra calories of bread, you can have tasty pickles to replace that. Pickles are very low in calories, especially compared to bread.

Dunkin' Donuts has a great set of menu options, and many people stick to ordering straight from those. However, Dunkin' gives you the opportunity to create some interesting meals by customizing what you want, ingredient by ingredient.

One TikTok user, @theglasssniper, has 2.4 million followers who love to watch him order interesting fast-food concoctions. We were specifically inspired by his Dunkin' Donuts order: A plain toasted bagel with both American cheese and cream cheese and a side of snacking bacon and hash browns. He then opens up the cheesy bagel and strategically places the pieces of bacon and hash brown bites all over the bagel, and closes it back up as a sandwich. Each bite is filled with cheesy, salty goodness.

You can upgrade this meal even further by ordering a flavored bagel, like white cheddar bagel twist, sesame, or everything. You can also opt for the garden veggie cream cheese instead of plain. Dunkin' also has strawberry cream cheese, but we're not quite sure that flavor profile would go well with this concoction. If you try it, let us know! We also thought it would taste great with either hot sauce or honey drizzled inside the sandwich. If you're in the mood for something extremely flavorful, this is definitely the meal to try.

Many of us have a weakness when it comes to our favorite fast food places. If you really struggle with those cravings, but are trying to eat healthier, that can be difficult. However, there are ways to upgrade your favorite meals at some fast food restaurants that can make it a bit lower-calorie and have less fat.

TikToker @smallersam_pcos has built her 1.2 million following off of doing just that. She's on a weight loss journey, but doesn't want to give up her love for fast food. She gets pretty creative with her meal upgrades, yet she seems to enjoy them just as much as she would the regular version of the meal.

Popeyes is known for its chicken, but did you know that you can order it to be blackened instead of breaded? This is a great way to still enjoy the flavorful goodness of Popeyes chicken without having the extra calories and fat from the breading on the chicken. This is what Sam does for her Popeyes order.

Sam also orders a side of mashed potatoes with gravy instead of french fries. This is another great health upgrade, as french fries are, well, fried. When comparing the nutrition facts of the mashed potatoes versus the french fries — the mashed potatoes have 10 less grams of fat than the french fries and also less than half the amount of calories.

Taco Bell's Crunchwrap Supreme is one of the most popular menu items that it offers. It's made with a large flour tortilla, and is usually filled with ground beef, nacho cheese sauce, lettuce, tomatoes, and reduced-fat sour cream. It looks like a mixture of a flatbread and a burrito, and comes in a large hexagon shape that is easy to hold and bite into.

Just like other fast food apps, you can customize your meals at Taco Bell just how you'd like. Callie Alexa, a professional dancer on the Broadway National Tour of "Annie," has to depend on fast food restaurants a lot for her daily meals, as she's constantly traveling. Alexa says she upgrades her Crunchwrap Supreme to be a bit more filling by substituting the ground beef for chicken, adding extra refried beans, and rice. "I find this to be a very satiating meal and tend to have it after long days or between two shows for a good amount of fuel," Alexa shares.

To make this upgrade your own, there are many other options you can choose from. You could switch out the ground beef like Alexa does, but if you don't want chicken, you could also do steak or beans instead. There are lots of other add ons as well, like jalapeños, cabbage, seasoned fries, and potatoes. However you want to amp up your Crunchwrap Supreme, there are many options that will completely change the flavor profile.

The infamous Wendy's baked potato came out in the early 1980s, and has been a menu favorite ever since. They now have five different baked potato varieties listed on their menu: plain, sour cream and chive, bacon cheese, chili and cheese, or just cheese. Not many drive-through fast food restaurants sell baked potatoes, so Wendy's definitely holds its own in that regard.

A popular TikToker under the name @foodwanderer shares many of her favorite fast food recipes online, and one she made with a baked potato at Wendy's caught some traction. Many other people made videos trying it, and it's quite the hit.

For the order, you'll ask for a bacon and cheese baked potato. Then, order your choice of nuggets (many people opt for the spicy nuggets). Next, mash up and mix the baked potato until it's more of a smoother consistency. Then, you can use your nugget as a vehicle to pick up the potato mixture. One TikToker, @korylovesfood, who tried the concoction urged her viewers, "Everybody needs to go out and try this right now," as she joyfully enjoyed the meal on camera.

Another idea for this mashed up baked potato would be to use it as a spread on a sandwich. Whether you like the chicken sandwiches or a classic beef burger from Wendy's, both flavor profiles would taste great with the bacon and cheese potato spread onto the bun.

Mixing soup and macaroni and cheese may sound like the strangest thing to do, but when it's from Panera Bread, trust us, it's delicious. One of the most popular menu items from Panera Bread is its mac and cheese. It is creamy, thick, and incredibly flavorful. Panera Bread also does soup exceptionally well. Both items are so popular that Panera Bread even sells versions of them in grocery stores.

Mix the two together, and you've got a delicious flavor explosion that you'll crave constantly. TikTok creator @sharidyonne is the original person to try this mixture, and there are thousands of videos of other people trying her creation. The look on people's faces when they have their first bite is priceless. You simply take a spoonful of the Panera Bread mac and cheese, dip it into the soup, and take a bite.

You can follow Dyonne's original creation and dip the mac and cheese into French onion soup, or you can try dipping it into tomato soup. You could even get both soups, and alternate which one you dip it in for each bite. We're not here to judge.

McDonald's dessert is another classic that simply can't be replaced. There's truly nothing like getting a McFlurry, a shake, a classic ice cream cone, or one of the baked goods when you're craving a treat.

My friends and I have been doing this for years, and it seems like the trend has made its way across TikTok as well. The secret recipe is: Order multiple vanilla ice cream cones, two or three apple pies, and ask for a cup with caramel sauce. You'll need to bring your own container for the next part, so don't forget to show up prepared.

Start by smashing the ice cream cones into the container. With a spoon or fork, break up the cones and mix it all together. Then, you'll want to add in the apple pies, smashing them up as well. Finally, you drizzle the caramel sauce all over the top of the mixture. Now, you've got a delicious caramel apple-pie ice cream dessert.

You can also do the same with the chocolate chip cookies, which are always incredibly gooey and sweet. It truly depends if you're more in a chocolate mood or an apple pie mood. Either way, you can't go wrong.