Gad! Can it really be Saturday, again? So soon? Apparently it can, so here comes the crème de la crème of the past week’s Fast Food sector news and views… Quizno’s, Taco Bell and Popeye’s all floated new menu items. Burger King floated an anti-bullying campaign and got more than they bargained for…
Patrons who were served ‘bullied’ BK Burgers during an anti-bullying campaign stunt
had no compunctions about bullying the staff right back.
Burger King’s new anti-bullying Campaign gets push-back
Burger King ‘bullied’ – squashed – customer Burgers to see how folks would react. It was designed as an exercise to get people thinking about bullying by considering their own reactions to the burger-surrogates being neaten on. But the scheme back-fired. A lot of diners were outraged to be served smashed burgers. And they made their position known – loudly and sometimes physically – to BK staff. BK also had some child actors act out bullying scenarios in their dining room, and most of the diners there at the time did nothing to interfere. I could have told you that would have been the diners’ reaction. Mothers and dads these days won’t intervene where other people’s kids are involved, unless their own kid is also involved. They rightly fear being sued by the kids’ parents or charged with child abuse if they break up a fight. No kidding. It’s happened.
But the overall message from the outcome of the bullying stunt was that people care more about their burger being ‘bullied’ than they so about children being bullied. How sad is that? And, at the same time, folks shouldn’t leave it to a Burger Joint to teach their kids about bullying. Is this another phenomenon visited upon Western Society by the Millennials? Those wastrels who feel everything should be handed to them and that others should do everything for them? Probably. And how sad is that?
Virgin Mobile is donating meals for the hungry
Virgin’s new ‘One hashtag = one meal’ program lets you contribute to feeding the less-fortunate by doing something you do anyway: posting pictures of your food online. Just use the hashtag #DonateMyPlate on your upcoming food photos for both Instagram or Twitter, Virgin Mobile will donate “the money equivalent of one meal” to the Feeding America network. I know I’ve railed against posting pictures of plates online more than once before, I’ll allow that, if you really have to do that, use the magic hashtag and feed someone who needs a good, square meal.
McD’s Barristas mad about having to make fancy Coffees
McDonald’s McCafé franchisees are hurting as a result of the coming of espresso-based drinks to their menus. Only two of 24 outlets surveyed reported any increase in revenues thanks to the introduction of the new drinks. And several said overall revenues had dripped. It takes time and some skill to make Espresso and Espresso-based drinks like Lattés. Athat’s bound to slow your counter service down. Also, making the picky beverages is apparently affecting employee morale. They’re apparently getting complaints about slow service and the amount of work that goes into each Espresso drink. Maybe McCafé isn’t the best place to order an Espresso or Latté just now. Especially if your server is already out of sorts…
Taco Bell testing Dessert Quesadillas
The Bell is ringing for Kit Kat Quesadillas, at least at selected U.S. outlets. Its called the Chocadilla and is simply a Flour Tortilla stuffed with Kit Kat bars. In deals like this, The vendor – Taco Bell – gets bulk bins full of imperfect or broken candy bars direct from the chocolate factory and just shovels them into the shell. But that takes nothing away from the treat Kit Kat lovers will find in the Chocadilla!
Popeye’s offers big box deal
Popeye’s has launched a new ’10 Pieces for $10′ deal. It’s a limited time offering, good only until October 29. What more could you say? A mixed box of Popeye’s pieces and tenders! So, Popeye’s lovers, go now and go often!
Try Quizno’s new Gyros for free!
For just one day – Wednesday October 25 – you can try Quizno’s new Gyros for free. Try the new grilled Beef and Lamb in Wraps, Salads or Sandwiches. We went into greater detail about these yummy-sounding offerings in this space two weeks ago. If you can’t make it to Quizno’s then, Gyros will be around, at the regular price, until January of next year.
And there you have it!
Another week’s top Fast Food News headlines. And one looking forward to next Wednesday!
~ Maggie J.