Arby’s Secret Menu 2026: 15 Hidden Items You Need to Try

You’ve been ordering the Classic Roast Beef for years. Maybe the Beef ‘n Cheddar if you’re feeling adventurous. But there’s an entire layer of Arby’s you’ve probably never touched,  one that regulars have quietly been ordering for over a decade.

Is Arby’s Secret Menu Real? (The Honest Answer)

Arby’s Restaurant Group has never published an official secret menu. What exists instead is a mix of customer-created combinations, recreations of discontinued items, and franchise-specific lists, most notably from DRM, Inc., which operates locations across Illinois, Iowa, Nebraska, and Wisconsin and actively trains staff on secret menu items including the Meat Mountain.

So the short version: yes, it’s real. No, it’s not corporate-sanctioned. And availability comes down almost entirely to your specific location, the day’s ingredient stock, and whether you’re hitting the kitchen during a lunch rush.

There are three categories of items that make up what people call the “Arby’s secret menu”:

• Customer-created combinations — builds that fans started ordering after sharing them on social media, using ingredients already available in the kitchen
• Discontinued recreations — beloved sandwiches like the Arby’s Melt and Ultimate BLT that were pulled from the official menu but can still be assembled on request
• Franchise-specific lists — DRM, Inc. locations in the Midwest maintain an internal secret menu with the Meat Mountain as the headline item, and staff at these restaurants are specifically trained to build it

At any other franchise location, recognition of secret menu names will vary. That’s why the best strategy is always to describe the build in plain terms rather than relying on the name alone.

How to Order Off Arby’s Secret Menu (Universal Rules)

Lead with a description of the ingredients rather than the item name. Order at the counter (not the drive-thru) for complex builds. Be patient, be friendly, and avoid the 12–1 PM and 6–7 PM rush windows, those are the worst times to ask for custom orders.

The 5 Rules That Work at Every Location

1. Order at the counter, not the drive-thru for complex builds — The drive-thru moves fast. Cashiers at the counter have more time to confirm your order and communicate with kitchen staff. For anything beyond a simple bacon add-on, go inside.
2. Lead with ingredients, not names — “Can I get a roast beef sandwich with cheddar sauce on a sesame bun?” will get you further than “Can I get an Arby’s Melt?” at an unfamiliar location. Most items are straightforward once you describe them.
3. Be patient and friendly — Secret menu items don’t appear on training materials. If the staff builds yours correctly, they’re doing you a genuine favor. Treating them well gets better results every time.
4. Skip peak rush hours — 12–1 PM and 6–7 PM are when kitchens bottleneck. Custom builds slow the line for everyone. Mid-morning or mid-afternoon visits give staff the breathing room to get your order right.
5. Tip at counter-service locations — Not universal, but if you’re asking for something that requires extra effort, acknowledging that effort goes a long way toward making your next visit easier.

The 15 Best Arby’s Secret Menu Items in 2026 (Ranked by Staff Recognition)

1. Meat Mountain — The Legend

The Meat Mountain is Arby’s most famous secret menu item, stacking seven to eight proteins plus two cheeses in a single sandwich. It costs roughly $13–$20 depending on location and comes in at approximately 1,030 calories with 87 grams of protein.

That was around 2014. Over a decade later, the sandwich still carries more search volume than almost every other off-menu fast food item in the country.

What’s in it:

• Roast beef (slow-roasted)
• Smoked brisket
• Corned beef
• Ham
• Roast turkey
• Bacon (3 half-strips)
• Chicken tenders (2)
• Angus steak (where available)
• Cheddar cheese (1 slice)
• Swiss cheese (1 slice)

Lent Edition (The “Denali”): During Lent, some locations add a crispy Alaskan Pollock fillet to the standard build, pushing calories closer to 1,200.

2. Arby’s Melt (Discontinued Classic)

A fan favorite pulled from the regular menu, the Arby’s Melt is now one of the easiest secret menu items to recreate, it’s genuinely just a Classic Roast Beef with cheddar cheese sauce on a sesame seed bun. Simple, satisfying, and worth ordering every time.

How to order: Ask for a Classic Roast Beef with cheddar cheese sauce added, on a sesame bun. If they don’t carry sesame buns, any soft roll works.

3. Jr. Deluxe

One of the most budget-friendly options on the entire secret menu. The Jr. Deluxe takes the standard Jr. Roast Beef and adds lettuce, tomato, and mayo, creating a complete mini-sandwich for well under $3 at most locations. At only ~260 calories, it’s also one of the lighter choices on this list.

How to order: Ask for a Jr. Roast Beef with lettuce, tomato, and mayo. Most cashiers can handle this without any confusion.

4. Bacon Beef ‘n Cheddar

No explanation needed, really. The regular Beef ‘n Cheddar is already a crowd favorite, adding bacon makes it noticeably better. Crispy, smoky, stacked on top of the cheddar sauce and Red Ranch base. This occasionally appears as a limited-time item on the official menu, but you can order it any time by simply asking for bacon added to a Beef ‘n Cheddar.

How to order: “Can I get a Beef ‘n Cheddar with bacon added?”

5. Turkey Reuben

The Turkey Reuben swaps corned beef for turkey, keeping the rest of the classic Reuben build intact, Swiss cheese, sauerkraut, Thousand Island dressing, and toasted marble rye. The lean turkey cuts the richness of the dressing without overpowering the tangy, deli-style flavor the sandwich is built around. A noticeably lighter option than most of the sandwiches on this list.

How to order: Ask for a Corned Beef Reuben with turkey instead of corned beef.

6. Ultimate BLT

The Ultimate BLT debuted in 2002 and was a staple on the official menu before being discontinued. The secret menu version reportedly comes with 8 strips of bacon — more than the original 5, stacked with lettuce, tomato, and mayo on your bread of choice. Simple, direct, and consistently one of the most requested builds among bacon-focused customers.

How to order: “Bacon, lettuce, tomato, and mayo on toasted bread”, you don’t even need to say the name.

7. Turkey Cheddar Ranch on Onion Roll

This one doesn’t show up on most competitor guides, which is exactly why it belongs here. Roast turkey with cheddar cheese sauce and Red Ranch sauce on a toasted onion roll. The onion roll adds a subtle sweetness that balances the cheddar’s richness, and the Red Ranch brings a tangy kick that lifts the whole sandwich. Lighter than beef-based options, bolder than a plain turkey sandwich.

How to order: “Roast turkey with cheddar sauce and Red Ranch on an onion roll.”

8. Ham and Swiss

A deli-style build that lives outside Arby’s usual roast beef lane. Ham with Swiss cheese on honey wheat bread, no melting, no hot press, just clean deli flavor. Add lettuce, tomato, mayo, and spicy brown honey mustard if you want the full build. It’s the kind of sandwich that surprises people who assume Arby’s only does one thing well.

How to order: “Ham and Swiss on honey wheat bread, not melted.” Optionally: lettuce, tomato, mayo, spicy brown mustard.

9. Bacon Mac and Cheese

Mac ‘n Cheese comes and goes on the Arby’s menu, when White Cheddar Mac ‘n Cheese is available (currently listed as a limited-time item at ~$4.99), adding crispy bacon bits transforms it into a loaded side worth ordering on its own. The smoky bacon plays against the creamy cheddar base in a way that makes this worth ordering every time mac and cheese is on the board.

How to order: Order the White Cheddar Mac ‘n Cheese and ask for bacon on top. If they won’t add it to the order, ask for a side of bacon and crumble it yourself.

10. Loaded Curly Fries

Curly Fries are already Arby’s signature side. This upgrade adds cheddar cheese sauce, bacon bits, and ranch dressing directly on top, turning a ~$2.99 side into a shareable, loaded snack for roughly $4 total. Pairs particularly well with sandwiches that don’t already include cheese sauce.

How to order: “Curly Fries with cheddar sauce, bacon, and ranch on top.”

11. Double or Triple Roast Beef

The simplest hack on this list, and one most people overlook. Any roast beef sandwich can be doubled or tripled, just by asking. The upcharge is typically a flat per-protein fee. On a Classic Roast Beef, doubling the meat takes you from 360 to roughly 510 calories and adds significant protein without fundamentally changing the sandwich.

How to order: “Can I get double [or triple] roast beef on this?”

12. Roast Beef Reuben

Standard Reuben uses corned beef. This version swaps it for roast beef, Arby’s signature protein, keeping Swiss cheese, sauerkraut, Thousand Island dressing, and toasted rye in place. The roast beef is lighter and slightly sweeter than corned beef, which changes the overall balance of the sandwich without losing the deli-style character.

How to order: Ask for a Corned Beef Reuben with roast beef substituted for the corned beef.

13. Onion Tangler Sandwich Add-On

Onion Tanglers (crispy fried onion strings) are a standard component of the Smokehouse Brisket Sandwich. Most customers don’t know you can request them as a stand-alone topping on any sandwich, at no extra charge. They add crunch and a mild sweetness that works especially well on roast beef or turkey builds.

How to order: “Can I get onion tanglers added on top?” They’re free at most locations.

14. Brisket Beef ‘n Cheddar

A smoked brisket variation of the classic Beef ‘n Cheddar format. Smokehouse Brisket is already on the official Arby’s menu ($8.49, 590 cal), but combining brisket with the cheddar sauce and Red Ranch base of a Beef ‘n Cheddar creates a bolder, smokier version of the sandwich that most customers have never tried. This one isn’t widely documented in competitor guides, which is exactly the gap it fills.

How to order: “Can I get a Beef ‘n Cheddar with brisket instead of roast beef?”

15. Bread/Bun Swap (Free Extras Hack)

Technically a hack rather than a named sandwich, but one of the most consistently useful tools on this list. At no extra charge, you can swap the bread on any sandwich for a sesame seed bun, onion roll, sub roll, marble rye, brioche, or honey wheat bread. Any Arby’s sauce except cheese sauce can also be added free at the condiment station, Arby’s Sauce, Horsey Sauce, and Red Ranch are all free upon request.

How to order: Simply specify the bread you want when placing any order. No upcharge, no special request required.

Arby’s Secret Menu Comparison Table: Price, Calories & How to Order

Prices and calories are estimates. Exact figures vary by location and ingredient availability.

What’s NOT Actually on Arby’s Secret Menu (Busted Myths)

Several items get listed as “secret menu” across the internet that are either fully on the regular menu or simply don’t exist in any meaningful sense at most locations. Here’s what to watch out for:

• The “Fancy Grilled Cheese” — This is just any sandwich with the meat removed. Arby’s will usually accommodate this, but it’s a modification, not a secret menu item. There’s no trained build for it at any location.
• The “Turkey Classic” — Some guides list this as a discontinued item still available by request. In practice, it’s simply a turkey substitution on a Classic Roast Beef. Order it as a swap, not by name.
• The “Chicago-Style Beef Dip” — A real and worthwhile customization (French Dip & Swiss + Italian seasoning + banana peppers + roasted peppers), but staff recognition is very low. Describe the build fully.
• The “Roast Beef N’ Swiss” — This is a straightforward customization (Swiss cheese on a roast beef sandwich), not a trained secret menu item. Order it by description, not name.
• The “Double Stacked Reuben” — The Corned Beef Reuben is only available seasonally at most locations. Asking for double meat on a seasonal item only works when the base sandwich is actually on the menu.