Pizza Hut steals the Fast Food Week MAINS spotlight this week… And DESSERTS & SNACKS come on strong, in second place ‘at the post’ (yes, pun intended)… NOVELTIES and EVENTS abound. And exotic international offerings take a bow…
The rundown…
Pizza Hut brings back its Triple-Treat Box, KFC brings back Potato Wedges, Five Guys bring back Candy Cane Crunch shakes, Baskin-Robbins brings back Holiday Peppermint…
MAINS
Pizza Hut brings back Triple-Treat Box
And there’s more… According to Food & Wine, the T-T Box s pretty much as it’s always been: “a tiered bundle with two medium one-topping pizzas, five breadsticks, and a choice of dessert, all packed into bright, gift-ready holiday packaging.” But the Hut is also offering a first-time-first-come-first-served adult onesie. The jammy, “mirrors that design, covered in the same graphics fans will rec-ognize from the box. It is available in men’s and women’s sizes from small through 2XL for $90 and can be purchased alongside the bundle for a limited time, while supplies last, on Pizza Hut’s website.”
SIDES
A KFC legend is back…
KFC’s beloved Potato Wedges are back – by massive popular demand. potato Wedges have returned to the menu after hordes of fans petitioned the chicken giant to reconsider its decision to discon-tinue them. Seems KFC decided the wedges were too much trouble – taking longer to cook than regular KFC fries and throwing their system out of sync. Potato Wedges have been missing from the KFC menu since 2020…
BEVERAGES
SONIC goes cold…
… With cold coffee beverages. Premiere flavours include: Iced Coffee; Cold Foam Iced Coffee; – Iced Coffee Latte; and Coffee Chiller (Vanilla soft serve blended with coffee, garnished with whipped topping).
Each drink is available in 4 different flavours: Original, Caramel, Vanilla, and Oreo. They’re selectively availale for now, at participating locations in Denver, CO; Grand Junction, CO; Joplin, MO; Las Vegas, NV; New York, NY; and Monroe, LA.
Air Heads bring their flavours to sodas
The popular candy is now pushing fizzy drinks featuring it’s most popular flavours. The premiere roster includes: Blue Raspberry, Watermelon, Strawberry, and Orange. “We have developed these refreshing fruit sodas with a unique kick of creamy taffy that is as fun and flavor-filled as AIR HEADS,” said Raz Inserra, Director of Marketing at Fire Brands.
Five Guys reprises Candy Cane Crunch
It’s becoming a Holiday tradition. The Candy Cane Crunch at Five-Guys. The classic a Candy Cane Crunch Milkshake features a vanilla base with candy cane pieces, topped with whipped cream and sprinkled with more candy cane pieces. The official ‘glam’ photo shows a real candy cane as a straw-surrogate. But it’s not mentioned in the bumpf…
DESSERTS & SNACKS
Zero Sugar OREOs healthier?
We’ll see… They’re due to hit the shelves next month. The cookie and snack cake sector is one in which manufacturers have been unsuccessful in cutting back the sugar.
Until now. Nabisco has engineered a new Zero Sugar classic OREO sweetened with Malitol, polydextrose, sucralose, and acesulfame potassium. And they want you to know, there’s no (controversial) aspartame. In regular and Double-Stuf…
Baskin-Robbins brings back Peppermint
And not just one version – but three!’ You can get: a new Peppermint Fudge Cappy, a Chocolate Fudge Cappy, and a new Peppermint Avalanche Cake in a Box. This traditional Holiday offering is, of course, available for a limited time only…
Reese’s Puffs goes Dark
Reese’s Puffs – one of the most sugary cereals on American Shelves – is adding another flavour: Dark Chocolate. “We’ve seen how much people enjoy Reese’s Puffs outside in the morning routine, espe-cially late night, and dark chocolate continues to grow within the Reese’s portfolio,” said Megan Brooks, Business Unit Director at General Mills.
Kellogg’s lights up Hot Honey Crunchies
Impossible for a cereal company to ‘get swicy’? Nope. Kellogg’s has unveiled Hot Honey Crunchies. They’re cup-shaped corn flakes ‘infused’ with ‘swicy sweetness’.
“Sweet meets spicy is a flavor combo that’s on the rise, so why not go bold at breakfast too? Hot Honey Crunchies deliver a gentle kick of heat balanced with the golden honey flavor fans already adore,” said Freya Knight, marketing manager for Crunchy Nut.
NOVELTIES
Pizza Hut Brunei brews up sleeper hit
The Hut’s Brunai arm is making its limited-time Kopi-zza pie a permanent menu item. That’s a com-bination of the Brunei words for ‘Coffee’ and ‘Pizza’. The pie is described as, “a bold-flavored ‘za that combines its signature cheesy taste with the aromatic richness of coffee.” Brunei is a small country on the island of Borneo, surrounded by Malaysia.
Burger King does breakfast bowls
The burger behemoth is trying something new in the Philippines: Breakfast Bows Filipino-style. The initial menu includes: Creamy Parm Chunky Chicken Fillet with Egg; Smoky BBQ Chunky Chicken Fillet with Egg; Mushroom Gravy Chunky Chicken Fillet with Egg; and a Breakfast Sausage Bowl. ‘Egg on top’ is a big thing in Filipino cuisine…
Chipotle ‘on the move’
Chipotle has teamed up with Shay Mitchell’s viral brand, Béis, to release an 11-piece collection of ‘travel must-haves’. As in luggage and goes-with-you items…
There’s something for every ‘trip’ you might take over the Holidays – from for every-day Chipotle runs to international getaways. They’ve got everything from Chipotle key chain ‘charms’ to full-sized roll-around suitcases…
Panda Express serves up sweets
The Panda is offering an array of limited edition chocolate bars spotlighting four of their most-popular dishes. The large-sized bars come in Original Orange, Honey-Walnut, Fortune Cookie and Kung Pao. Get ’em from the Compartés online store (page coming soon). They’re $11.95 each, and $49.95 for a gift boxed set of all 4.
EVENTS
No more ticket ’67’ at In ‘N Out
In ‘N Out has quietly removed ticket ’67’ from it’s ‘take a number’ ordering system. Seems teenagers who weren’t buying anything were cramming he stores waiting for the vital ‘6-7’ to be called out. At which point they shouted ‘6-7’ waving their arms, verging – some say – on rioting.
San Francisco sues UPF makers
The City of San Francisco has filed suit againsta string of major junk food makers alleging they have created a GLOBAL HEALTH CRISIS. Companies named in the suit include Nestlè, Coca Cola, PepsiCo, Kraft Heinz Company, Post Holdings, Mondelez International, General Mills, Kellogg, Mars Inc., and ConAgra Brands.
“They took food and made it unrecognizable and harmful to the human body,” City Attorney David Chiu said in a news release. “These companies engineered a public health crisis, they profited handsomely, and now they need to take responsibility for the harm they have caused.”
And that’s the skinny…
…. On what’s going to be making some of us a little ‘jollier and jellier’ over the coming days and weeks. See you back here in 7 for another festive edition of Fast Food Week!
~ Maggie J.