It’s a blockbuster edition of Fast Food Week! We’ve got lots of everything (except EVENTS)! All the major players are weighing in with Hallowe’en and Year-End Holidays specials and seasonals – including a tsunami of new beverages!
The Burger King Game Day Menu… First of several?
The rundown…
Looking for something a little of the beaten track? Check out King’s Hawaiian Maple and Brown Sugar Rolls, and Kraft Mac & Cheese Cheesy Instant Ramen!
MAINS
Burger King kicks off Game Day Menu
BK is offering a new Game Day Pretzel Burger. It’s described as a “A flame-grilled quarter-pound beef patty, melted American cheese, bacon, crispy-fried onions, and Nacho Cheese Sauce, served on a warm Superpretzel Soft Pretzel Bun.” And it’s accompanied by new Game Day Chicken Fries (see SIDES, below)… A ‘Game Day’ menu with only 2 items? I’ll bet there will be more coming, week by week, as the season progresses…
KFC launches Go Bucket
It’s a mini Bucket that fits in a standard car cup holder. Hence the ‘Go’ theme. You get: a choice of four nuggets, two wings, or one tender; paired with individual-size fries or wedges. Official price is just $3.49! May differ depending on where you live…
Buffalo Wild Wings features Fright Feast
BWW’s 2026 Fright Feast menu is themed around a new Black Garlic Glaze. Get it on Vampire Hunter Wings, Black Garlic Glazed Cheese Curds, and a kitschy Vampirita cocktail. Now through November 9, at participating US locations.
Papa Murphy brings back his Jack-O-Pizza
The annual tradition is here! Papa Murphy’s Jack-O-Pizza returns with its pumpkin-shaped crust…
… “topped with classic red sauce, whole-milk mozzarella, cheddar, a pepperoni ‘face’, and black olive ‘eyes.'” Now trough Hallowe’en night…
Shake Shack has October deals
The Shack has a series of October ‘with purchase’ deals designed to get you to order any way by from a human at the counter. The menu includes free burgers and sandwiches with a minimum purchase from the regular menu. Available when ordering through an in-restaurant kiosk, the Shake Shack website, or the Shake Shack app.
SIDES
Little Debbie’s Christmas Tree Creamer is back!
The annual release is coming early for the Holidays in bright new packaging you can’t miss on the shelf. The popular beverage addition débuted last year to rave reviews. If you want yours to last through New Year’s, stock up now: the 2026 edition is only available while supplies last!
Burger King offers Game Day Fries
They’re one of two items on the new BK Game Day Menu… And they’re designed to complement the new Game Day Pretzel Burger.
Game Day Chicken Fries are basically regular chicken fries doused in Nacho Cheese Sauce. A ‘Game Day’ menu with only 2 items? I’ll bet there will be more come, week by week, as the season pro-gresses…
BEVERAGES
Starbuck’s reveals ‘blasphemous’ Holiday Menu
Really? That’s what come fans are saying. The late-year rundown includes includes eight new items alongside returning favorites. And one shocking omission. One of the most beloved items from last year’s menu – Chestnut Praline Latte – has been displaced by two new additions. “No chestnut praline latte? …This is blasphemous,” wrote one fan on @snackwire’s Instagram post…
Coca Cola goes out on a Lime limb
The ico0n9ioc cola has been announcing new products and new flavours at a record rate lately. Now, it’s two new fruit blends:
… Cherry Lime and Strawberry Float. Sound like odd flavours to pemiére in Fall? They are. They’ll be on shelves next spring and summer. And by then, there will probably be more new flavours to keep them company.
7-UP celebrates two classics with new flavour
It’s 7-UP Miami Vice – in a blended Strawberry Daiquiri & Piña Colada experience. It will be available in regular and zero sugar when it finally arrives next year. And it will only be around for a limited time. Mark your calendars for late Spring…
Dr Pepper adds Ice Cream Float
It’s a flavoured soda which would obviously be great as the base for a classic ice cream float. And it’s a permanent addition to the Dr. Pepper family. It’s due to hit shelves and cookers near you this coming February, in regular an zero sugar versions.
Canada Dry ships trad holiday faves
Canada Dry has become famous over the years, for two beloved Holiday-time sparking bevs: Cranberry and Blackberry Ginger Ale.
And they’re back for 2026! According to one reviewer, “The blackberry flavor offers a mouthwatering taste of the sweet, dark berry, while the cranberry flavor delivers a punch of cranberry’s signature bittersweet tartness.”
SNACKS
SALTY
Kraft invades Ramen territory
Kraft is launching a brave new Kraft Dinner (‘Mac & Cheese’ in the US) based not on macaroni, but Ramen! It’s a full-blown instant, cup-ramen, constituting an all-out attack on the once-exclusive inst-ant ramen sector. Kraft Mac & Cheese Cheesy Ramen débuts in three flavours: Spicy, Chicken, and Pork. I’m betting this new product will make a big dent in the traditional Ramen market!
General Mills blends Trad + Rad
It’s Game Day Chex Mix Brown Sugar Barbecue, which combines: “the brand’s classic crunchy mix of CHEX cereals, rye chips, breadsticks, and pretzels…
… dusted with a crave-worthy brown sugar-barbecue seasoning.” It’s a classic collab featuring a retro snack form with a flavour-forward treatment!
SWEET
Krispy Kreme goes Looney for Hallowe’en
Looney Tunes, that is. The crossover includes 4 different sinkers each featuring a different LT char-acter: Bugs Bunny, Tweety and Sylvester, Taz, and Lola Bunny.
The Collection is available both at KK stores and in selected supermarkets… While supplies last, at participating locations across the US.
Twix bakes shortbread for the Holidays
Twix has a new version for the Holidays: Frosted Cookie features a thick shortbread cookie base with a thick Vanilla Cream Frosting – enrobed in a real chocolate coating. I can’t think of any confectionary combo that says ‘Christmas’ more delightfully than shortbread, vanilla and chocolate!
King’s Hawaiian Maple and Brown Sugar treats
The new KH Fall offering pays tribute to the season in a form far removed from Hawaii. Get the brand’s famous dinner rolls with maple-brown sugar crumbles baked in! There’s also a new, limited time coordinating candy bar – a collab with gourmet chocolatier Compartés. Get it at the Compartés or KH website, while supplies last.
Thomas’ goes healthy with protein
The new Thomas’ Protein English Muffins and Protein Seeded Bagel Thins will undoubtedly be a hit with healthy snacking fans. The muffins pack 8 grams of total protein per serving. The bagels deliver 10 grams.
The Thins are touted as a, “versatile base for everything from breakfast sandwiches to simple spreads and toppings.”
Taco Bell goes ‘dessert’ with an Empanada
It’s a dessert Empanada – maybe the first to show up in the Fast Food Sphere. The Milk Bar Birthday Cake Empanada is described as, “a crispy, fried empanada shell filled with creamy cake batter-flavored filling and finished with a drizzle of pink icing and rainbow sprinkles.” It’s the first pro0duct from the Bell’s new partnership with Milk Bar…
NOVELTIES
M&Ms brings back Marvel Packs
Get ’em all. But don’t eat them if you intend to cash in on them as collectibles in years to come… This edition is themed to promote the premiere of of Avengers: Doomsday, which hits theaters Dec. 18. They’re available in four varieties: Milk Chocolate, Minis, Peanut, and Peanut Butter. Each bag features one of the Spokescandies in costume as a popular Avengers character.
And that’s the ‘skinny’…
… On what’s going to be making some of us a little more indoorsyer in the coming days and weeks. See you back here in 7 for our next Fireside Snacking edition of Fast Food Week!
~ Maggie J.