Does Red Lobster Clam Chowder Have Bacon?

Red Lobster is renowned for their delicious creamy clam chowders. Offering both New England and Manhattan varieties, it’s the perfect start to any seafood feast. But does Red Lobster sneak bacon into their famous clam chowders? Let’s find out.

The Two Types of Clam Chowder at Red Lobster

Red Lobster has two signature clam chowder recipes on the menu

• New England Clam Chowder: Creamy, full-bodied chowder made with potatoes, onions, celery, and clams.

• Manhattan Clam Chowder: Tomato-based chowder made with tomatoes, clams, onions, garlic, oregano, basil and celery.

Both are available in cup or bowl sizes. They can also be enjoyed as part of the Create Your Own Combination or Soup, Salad & Bread Bowl promotions.

Traditional Ingredients in Clam Chowder

Authentic clam chowder recipes call for simple ingredients like:

• Clams – Freshly shucked chopped clams provide signature flavor.

• Potatoes – Diced russet or red potatoes add heartiness.

• Onions – Sautéed onion gives aromatic flavor.

• Celery – Provides vegetal notes.

• Thyme – Earthy herb seasoning.

• Butter – Adds richness.

• Cream or tomato sauce – The broth base.

• Salt and pepper – For seasoning.

Nowhere in the classic recipe does bacon appear. So does Red Lobster break tradition by adding bacon to their clam chowder?

The Role of Bacon in Clam Chowder

Bacon is not a traditional clam chowder ingredient. However, some recipes call for bacon as an optional mix-in or garnish.

Small bacon bits can add:

• Smoky, savory flavor

• Crispy crunchy texture contrast

• Salty accent

So while untraditional, bacon can enhance clam chowder.

Red Lobster’s Clam Chowder Ingredients

According to Red Lobster, their clam chowder contains:

New England Clam Chowder

• Clams
• Potatoes
• Celery
• Onions
• Heavy cream
• Butter

Manhattan Clam Chowder

• Clams
• Tomatoes
• Onions
• Celery
• Garlic
• Oregano
• Basil

Notice bacon is absent from the ingredient list for both soups.

Red Lobster’s signature chowder recipes stick to the classic components. They don’t add arbitrary ingredients like bacon.

Checking the Nutrition Facts

Analyzing the nutrition facts provides more evidence that Red Lobster’s clam chowders are bacon-free:

• 0g trans fat: Bacon contains trans fat, so chowders with bacon would show non-zero amounts.

• Low cholesterol: Bacon adds considerable cholesterol, but the levels are low here.

• No nitrates: Bacon contains sodium nitrate. Red Lobster’s chowders don’t list nitrates or nitrites.

So both the listed ingredients and nutrition profiles corroborate that Red Lobster’s clam chowders contain no bacon.

Customer Reviews Don’t Mention Bacon

Scouring customer reviews reveals plenty of praise for Red Lobster’s creamy, indulgent, and flavorful clam chowders. But nowhere do reviews mention detecting hints of bacon.

Some examples:

• “Rich and creamy with big chunks of tasty clams. Absolute comfort food.”

• “The Manhattan chowder has amazing herb flavor with lots of clams. So satisfying on a cold day.”

• “You can’t go wrong with the classics. Red Lobster knows how to do clam chowder right.”

If bacon were secretly present, some reviews would likely call it out. But there’s no evidence of bacon mentions.

Why Red Lobster Doesn’t Add Bacon

So why doesn’t Red Lobster sneak bacon into their award-winning clam chowders? Some possible reasons:

• They stick to traditional recipes that customers know and love.

• Overcomplicating classic chowder risks diminishing its flavor.

• Vegetarians/vegans assume clam chowder is meat-free.

• Keeping recipes simple aids consistency across locations.

• Allowing add-ons like bacon maintains flexibility for customers.

Red Lobster clam chowder is beloved as it is. So they wisely opt not to fix what isn’t broken by adding extraneous ingredients like bacon.

Should You Add Bacon to Clam Chowder?

While Red Lobster sticks to tradition, you can add bacon to clam chowder at home:

• Cook chopped bacon till crispy, drain, and stir into the finished chowder.

• Use bacon fat to sauté vegetables for deeper flavor.

• Crumble cooked bacon on top for texture and crunch.

• Add bacon to your own creative seafood chowder recipe.

Just adjust broth levels to balance the saltiness and fat from bacon.

The Verdict on Bacon at Red Lobster

After reviewing the ingredients lists, nutrition facts, customer reviews and culinary reasons, the verdict is clear:

Red Lobster’s signature clam chowders contain no bacon. For time-tested traditional New England and Manhattan clam chowder recipes, Red Lobster wisely sticks to the basics.

While adding bacon could provide a smoky, salty enhancement, the classics remain crowd-pleasers as-is. Red Lobster lets their clam chowders speak for themselves – no bacon required.

So visit Red Lobster to enjoy creamy bowls of classic bacon-free clam chowder done right! But if you make clam chowder at home, feel free to experiment with bacon additions.