βurgerβusiness

McDonald’s Corp. releases Q1 2013 sales results on Friday and the numbers aren’t expected to be pretty. Or positive. A 1.5% decrease in global comp sales for February after a 1.9% decline in January have fairly well sealed the deal on the quarter. There also are signals that consumer confidence and spending are still fragile [...]

For decades a burger and fries have been the fast-food paradigm but data compiled for BurgerBusiness.com by researcher Mintel show that that’s no longer valid. Chicken sandwiches have surpassed beef burgers in number on QSR menus. The shift actually took place in 2010 when beef prices spiked. But rather than being a short-term reaction, the [...]

While Burger King manically adds new items by the dozen, McDonald’s and Wendy’s next week will introduce new mid-price chicken sandwiches with little risk because the tortilla and flatbread platforms have been tried and proven successful elsewhere for years. McDonald’s McWrap is another idea it borrows from its European operations (where beef and shrimp varieties [...]

Last August, McDonald’s introduced the Chicken Box in Germany, offering a customizable, mix-and-match pack of Chicken McNuggets, Chicken McBites and Chicken Sticks. This site has since predicted that boxed multi-person meals with burgers would finally come to the U.S. in 2013, and we didn’t have to wait long to see it. Just in time for [...]

McDonald’s is testing lower pricing for its Mighty Wings bone-in chicken wings and not just consumer interest in its test of the item in Chicago. The wings test that began last July in Atlanta moved to Chicago this week with a tweak in pricing. According to a GrubGrade report last summer, in Atlanta the wings [...]

Sonic Drive-In says it is shifting its media-buying strategy to give its brand—now operating in 43 states—a more national profile. And while “non-TV” media spending will be slashed to 7% of its budget, compared with 17% in 2012, the Oklahoma City-based chain says that represents primarily a minimizing of outdoor advertising not digital spending (although, [...]

Burger King’s latest attempt to get chicken chunks right is at the heart of the Winter Menu it announced on Jan. 2. The all-new (now with “premium white meat”) Chicken Nuggets have a “crispy tempura-style batter” for extra crunch. Arriving with them are new dipping sauces that cover the six basic QSR tastes: Honey Mustard; [...]

Sonic Drive-In fills a competitive gap in its menu with the introduction of a new line of Premium Chicken sandwiches. The feature sandwiches are Crispy or Grilled Asiago Caesar Chicken sandwiches that feature white-meat chicken, tomato, lettuce, a signature Caesar dressing and sliced Asiago cheese on warm, whole-grain ciabatta buns. Less-dressed-up Crispy Chicken and Grilled [...]

It’s all about market share, says McDonald’s CEO Don Thompson, and the chain plans to improve share by emphasizing the “entry level” Dollar Menu, Daily Double and Bacon McDouble burgers while encouraging trade-up to premium-price items such as its new pair of CBO (Cheddar Bacon Onion) Angus and chicken sandwiches. Thompson promised that the CBO [...]

Burger King formally  announced its Italian-flavors Fall Menu on Labor Day, doing so quietly since the news already had appeared here last week. But while the Summer Menu’s Carolina and Texas Whoppers now are gone, there must have been leftover barbecue sauce, which the chain has kindly sent to Europe, where a BBQ party is [...]

Continuing its strategy of rebuilding its menu with waves of new items rather than with one LTO at a time, Burger King is readying Phase II of its new menu. Where the Phase I Summer Menu, introduced in June, was about beef, pork and BBQ flavors, the next wave—which should go national by or shortly [...]

When McDonald’s introduced Chicken McNuggets in 1983, a serving was five or six. That worked for a long time, but now as QSRs race to offer more or better chicken snacks, a serving is not enough. McDonald’s France came up with the Chicken Box, with six McNuggets , three chicken wings and three chicken strips. [...]

[Updated with McDonald's Corp. comment] With quick-service restaurant competition heavily dependent on the buzz and interest generated by new products, both McDonald’s and Burger King are auditioning new limited-time menu stars. Getting a tryout at McDonald’s is a three-item line of McWraps, while Burger King is looking at a new value-priced item, the $1 BK [...]

The “mini” trend seemed to have played itself out last year when BK Burger Minis came and went at Burger King, but the increasing popularity of snack items—especially chicken snack foods such as Chicken McBites—is making small big time again. Apparently not satisfied with the success of the McBites, McDonald’s is again testing the popularity [...]

KFC is fighting back against burger chains’ continuing encroachment into its chicken territory. This week the chicken-category leader introduces KFC Original Recipe Bites, an answer to McDonald’s addition of Chicken McBites in January (and the Spicy Chicken McBites currently being promoted) and a shot across the bow of burger chains, warning that it intends to [...]