It’s been a huge week for fast food poultry: Popeyes has new wings, Chick-fil-A has new pizza, and Taco Bell has an entirely new menu dedicated to its Cantina Chicken. And that’s just the start of what this week of fast food news has brought us. Read on to hear more about changes at Subway, McDonald’s brush with the government, and Starbucks ditching NFTs.
When people think of Chick-fil-A, they think of chicken sandwiches, not pizza. But at Little Blue Menu, the fast food chain’s “innovation kitchen” location, four new pizzas and calzone-inspired items are now available to order, some of which feature Chick-fil-A Nuggets on top. - Angela L. Pagán Read More
When Taco Bell dropped its entire menu plan for 2024 at a first-time launch event in Las Vegas, the chain created lots of buzz for the brand’s newest menu innovations. The first in this slew of planned drops has finally hit menus nationwide: the Cantina Chicken Menu. We put it to the test. - Angela L. Pagán Read More
Popeyes is ready to strike while the iron—or rather, the fryer—is still hot. The fried chicken chain has seen major success with chicken wings, its newest menu item, even going so far as to celebrate them with a big, splashy Super Bowl ad. Now, Popeyes is building on that momentum by expanding the lineup with a new limited-time flavor. - Angela L. Pagán Read More
In the world of bizarre fast food creations, you might think of Taco Bell ahead of any other chain—but Colonel Sanders has his Dr. Frankenstein moments, too. Last month’s release of the KFC “Chizza” brought up memories (both good and bad) of KFC mashups from years past. Join us as we reminisce about these unholy creations. - Leah Slater Read More
Subway has just reignited the Cola Wars by announcing that it will be switching over from carrying Coca-Cola products to PepsiCo products beginning in 2025. The sandwich giant just signed a 10-year deal with PepsiCo to be its beverage provider in the U.S. and has extended its contract with Frito-Lay, a subsidiary of PepsiCo, as its snack supplier into 2030. - Angela L. Pagán Read More
McDonald’s soft serve ice cream machines always seem to be broken. The government is seemingly well aware of that fact, because The Verge reports that the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and the Department of Justice (DOJ) have filed a comment with the U.S. Copyright Office requesting an expanded exception to the copyright law that would allow third parties to repair McDonald’s seemingly perpetually busted soft serve machines. - Dennis Lee Read More
For some time, it seemed the metaverse was the digital frontier that many consumer brands, not just fast food chains, needed to conquer to reach more customers. But the hype of this digital universe appears to have subsided—or at least for Starbucks it has. Restaurant Business reports that the coffee chain will be puling out of the metaverse at the end of this month. - Angela L. Pagán Read More
Regional fast food chains are bizarre and beautiful. These local favorites tend to remain local, either because there’s no interest in going national or the menu just doesn’t have broader appeal; some chains are so oddly specific that they just wouldn’t make sense anywhere else. One such restaurant is Baker’s Drive-Thru, a string of fast food restaurants based in the Inland Empire region of Southern California, founded by a man whose monumental contributions to fast food have been largely lost to time. - Danny Palumbo Read More