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[June 1 Update: McGarryBowen wins Burger King's U.S. ad account. Read here.] The King is dead; long live the new Burger King. The No. 2 burger chain is changing its menu, its look, its marketing and its attitude, according to a 5/30 article by Elaine Walker in the Miami Herald. The creepy King character is [...]

Peter Backman is managing director of Horizons, one of Britain’s leading foodservice consultancies. I’ve always found his annual analysis of the National Restaurant Association Show to be particularly insightful, and it has proved very popular with BurgerBusiness readers. Rather than give a link, I’ve printed this year’s, titled “A Chastened U.S. Foodservice Market,” for Memorial [...]

While other chains try “bundled” meals of sandwich, fries and a drink for one person as a way to boost profits, McDonald’s in Australia has been refining a more ambitious idea for the past year: bundled meals for more than one person. Now it has expanded this boxed-meal program, creating two-person boxed lunches and breakfasts [...]

American burger chains are trying gender-based marketing tactics as they battle for market shares in Asia.  A Burger King in Singapore tomorrow (May 24) holds the chain’s first “Ladies Night,” featuring new BK Shots mini burgers. The pitch: “Petite and girl-friendly, it’s the burger that women have been wanting all along.” Between 6 p.m. and 9 p.m. tomorrow [...]

Jack in the Box says that it will roll out new menu boards, in conjunction with which it intends to trim a few menu items. The new boards will be less cluttered, providing better visual appeal and more space to spotlight signature items and LTOs. Sonic recently announced a similar plan to cull its menu.  [...]

httpvh://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tgYoX1IiJOI It’s a sign of McCafé’s importance to McDonald’s—in Europe at least—that the chain that made the Coca-Cola-glass giveaway a promotional staple is now giving out coffee cups. Beginning today, McDonald’s in France (where it is colloquially called McDo) once again offers customers one of six brightly colored coffee cup from well-known kitchenware marketer Revol with purchase of a [...]

Cinco de Mayo is over but Chevys Fresh Mex is keeping the party going and, surprisingly, celebrating National Burger Month by adding the first burger to its menu of traditional Mexican dishes, seafood and steaks.  Chevys’ El Mexi Burger is a seasoned hamburger patty with green chiles, avocado and jalapeño-Jack cheese in a grilled flour [...]

Reformulated Chicken Tenders have done well but arrived too late to salvage Burger King’s dismal first quarter sales performance. The company reported a net loss of $6.8 million for the period ended March 31, 2011, compared with a $41 million gain a year ago. Sales fell 8% and same-store sales in the U.S. and Canada [...]

Sonic plans to simplify its crowded food-and-drink lineup when it introduces new menu boards on May 26. But gaining breathing room comes at the cost of removing 18 slower-selling items. At the same time, however, the chain is adding new limited-time Loaded Burgers, drinks and a dessert.  KeyBanc Capital Markets’ restaurant analyst Brad Ludington reports [...]

Ted’s Montana Grill reasserts its status as an innovative burger chain with the addition of five thick new burgers, including two egg-topped builds and interesting toppings such as house-made tomato jam. As with its other burgers, the new items can be ordered with either Angus beef ($13) or bison patty ($16). Under President-COO Kristi Nyhof, the [...]

Wendy’s said it, like other restaurant chains, will need additional selective price increases this year (after taking a late-March hike) due to food costs that are rising beyond expectations. Beef costs should be up 20% this year rather than the 10%-15% rise previously forecast. Overall food prices could be up 5%-6% and not the 2%-3% [...]

May is National Burger Month, but if the celebrating seems half-hearted, blame chicken, which has been rudely stealing the promotional limelight. Thanks to wholesale prices that favor poultry over beef, it seems that every burger joint is adding chicken sandwiches, wraps, tenders and more. And that will continue: Red Robin Gourmet Burgers will promote a jalapeno-and-salsa-topped 5 Alarm [...]

The burger battle in Australia is the most interesting faceoff outside the U.S. One reason is that McDonald’s has some real competition in Hungry Jack’s, the name under which Burger King operates there. Also making the tug of war between them engrossing is the continuous one-upmanship in burgers and bravado as the chains try to [...]

Jake’s Wayback Burgers came within a fry’s length of unseating Blanc Burgers + Bottles as winner of this year’s Burger Brackets. Finishing second is never completely satisfying, but its hundred of votes show that the chain has amassed a cadre of loyalists who love its triple-patty Big Jake burger (at right), chicken, hot dogs, house-made [...]

Ten days ago, McDonald’s Corp. CEO Jim Skinner told analysts the chain was working on “the revamping of the chicken lineup in terms of the sandwiches.” Later in the earnings call he added that the U.S. team “is targeting additional opportunities for line extensions and limited time offerings in both beef and chicken as it [...]