Last year, gut-busting burrito chain Chipotle quietly became the first restaurant of its type to begin identifying which of its ingredients may contain genetically modified ingredients, while also publicly stating that its long-term goal is to eliminate GMO ingredients from its menu. This can be a costly move in a business with relatively thin margins, but it may be working in Chipotle’s favor. [More]
fast food
The Longest In-N-Out Drive-Thru Lines, As Seen From Space
By 1.30.14
We hear that In-N-Out is a very popular burger-slinging establishment. We’ll take its fans at their word, because we don’t believe in leaving the East Coast. What we do know is that the combination of tasty burgers and car culture leads to such long drive-thru lines that you can see them from space. [More]
Pizza Hut Makes 7-Cheese Flower-Shaped Pizza In Hong Kong
By 1.30.14
Pizza Hut keeps pushing the envelope (or is it pushing the large flat cardboard box?) when it comes to crusts, introducing a 3-cheese crust here in the United States, and inflicting sunflower-shaped bacon cheeseburger-pizza hybrids on overseas markets. Yet no matter how much we make fun of them, The Hut continues to innovate. Like the seven-cheese stuffed-crust pizza now available in Hong Kong. [More]
Yes, Burger King Is Now Testing A Chicken & Waffles Sandwich
By 1.30.14
We’ve officially reached waffle sandwich overload. First Taco Bell starts testing the Waffle Taco, then it decides to start adding other meats and fruits between the waffles, then Jack In the Box slaps a couple of waffles on a breakfast sandwich. Perhaps not content to miss out on the next pretzel bun-type fad, Burger King is testing a chicken and waffle sandwich of its own. [More]
Arby’s Restaurant Processes Six Months Worth Of Purchases In Single Night
By 1.29.14
You know how sometimes you’ll make a debit or credit card purchase and it doesn’t show up on your statement right away? Some businesses process their transactions in batches, so it’s just a matter of time until it pops up. But what about when there is a six-month delay on those transactions being processed? [More]
McDonald’s Admits That Its Menu Is Overcomplicated
By 1.24.14
In recent years, McDonald’s has been constantly tinkering with its menu, adding numerous limited time offers [LTOs] like the ill-advised and overly expensive Mighty Wings, and changing its Dollar Menu to the confusingly named “Dollar Menu & More.” In doing so, it’s angered franchisees, and alienated some customers who took their fast food money elsewhere. Yesterday, the company finally admitted that McD’s menu has gotten too McComplicated. [More]
Burger King Singapore Strikes Gold, If By “Gold” You Mean “Cheese”
By 1.23.14
A new promotion at Burger King in Singapore compares cheese to gold. Here at Consumerist, we agree, because we really like cheese. The Striking Gold burger comes in chicken and beef varieties and features nacho, Swiss, and American cheeses, all on one burger. It’s like a United Nations of not-terribly-exciting cheeses. [More]
Long John Silver’s Says Its Entire Menu Is Now Free Of Trans Fat
By 1.22.14
About six months after being publicly shamed for offering the “Worst Restaurant Meal In America,” loaded with more than two weeks’ worth of trans fat, the Long John Silver’s seafood chain has declared that it has eliminated all trans fat from its menu. [More]
After Two Decades, Burger King Has Enough Of Little Old Ladies Using Parking Lot For Free
By 1.21.14
While the dispute between an NYC McDonald’s and some loitering elderly customers comes to an end, there is another feud brewing a few hours to the northeast. [More]
Is This The Future Of Fast-Food Packaging Or A Disaster Waiting To Happen?
By 1.21.14
Okay, so it’s not exactly the shame-it-was-a-hoax hands-free Whopper holder, but we are intrigued by the potential (and the potential for disaster) of these prototype fast food containers that stack your entire meal into one calorific Voltron. [More]
This Ad Almost Makes Me Want To Try A Burger King Lamb Burger
By 1.14.14
Lamb burgers are nothing revolutionary (and are often quite tasty) but they aren’t exactly something most people would think about rushing out to a fast food mega-chain to get. So how do you get consumers to associate a premium product with a bargain burger chain? For Burger King New Zealand, the answer is to wealthy-up the joint with a couple of super-rich gun-toting old gents. [More]
Pizza Hut To Test Crazy Idea Of Selling Pizza By The Slice
By 1.14.14
Realizing that maybe there’s a limit to the appeal of cheese-injected crusts, Pizza Hut’s latest attempt at remaining relevant to consumers is something that many pizzerias have been doing since before most of us were born — selling pizza by the slice. [More]
“Healthy” Restaurant Meals Can Be Even Worse For You Than Hitting The Drive-Through
By 1.9.14
It’s no secret that dining out can be a poor choice for your health. A chain-restaurant entrée can be shockingly full not only of flavor but also of fats, calories, and sodium. [More]
Taiwan McDonald’s Ends Year With Workers Dressed Like Maids & Kitten-Eared Schoolgirls
By 1.2.14
While some of the employees at my local McDonald’s were visibly displeased that their boss made them wear funny party hats on New Year’s Eve, these workers are probably delighted that they don’t work in Taiwan, where the last days of 2013 saw kitten-eared schoolgirls and “maids” in pink uniforms manning the counters. [More]
McDonald’s Pulls McResource Website After Noticing It Suggests Employees Not Eat Fast Food
By 12.26.13
From telling minimum wage-earners they should relieve stress by taking at least two vacations a year to giving advice on how to file for welfare benefits, the McDonald’s McResource website and hotline for employees has been under fire in recent months for being out of touch with the workers it is supposed to help. Now comes the news that the site has been pulled down temporarily, but only after McD’s realized that it recommends people not eat fast food. [More]
Dunkin’ Donuts Exec Commits Food Heresy, Predicts “Sausage Will Be The New Bacon”
By 12.23.13
Now I enjoy sausage just as much, maybe even more, than the average meat-eater, but no matter what form it takes — breakfast sausage, bratwurst, chorizo, andouille, kielbasa, etc. — sausage just isn’t bacon, which can be laid atop, wrapped around, and crumbled into just about any dish with good results. But one Dunkin’ Donuts exec believes there is truly untapped potential in the sausage. [More]
Driving Backwards Through A Taco Bell Drive-Thru Might Give Police A Reason To Search Your Car
By 12.20.13
If you’ve got drugs in your car, you probably don’t want to do very much to draw the attention of the authorities. Just ask the Pennsylvania man who was arrested for marijuana possession after police watched him drive backwards while trying to order food from the Taco Bell drive-thru. [More]
Subway Makes Safe Bet That College Students Like Pizza
By 12.19.13
First we learned that Chipotle was investing in pizza, although not by serving them up in their restaurants alongside the burrito bowls. Now we’ve learned that Subway is taking their experimental instant personal pizza concept and turning it into an entire restaurant. The bad news: it’s only for college students for now. [More]
