Valentine’s Day is upon us and that means a lot of chocolate and red velvet (and pink velvet, which is new) and heart-shaped things. Among chains offering such items are Baskin-Robbins, Bruster’s Real Ice cream, Dunkin’, Flying Biscuit Café, Friendly’s, Hardee’s, Jimmy John’s, Krispy Kreme, MOD Pizza, Nekter Juice Bar, Paris Baguette, Tous les Jours, and Vitality Bowls.
In an unusual calendar twist, Valentine’s Day falls on Ash Wednesday this year, and therefor is preceded by Fat Tuesday, or Mardi Gras, so Cinnaholic and La Madeleine have menu items marking that occasion as well as.
IHOP has launched the first in an indefinite Pancake of the Month series, and is starting off with seasonally appropriate chocolate pancakes.
Cousins Subs is skipping right past those holidays and has launched St. Patrick’s Day-oriented specials.
Possibly in anticipation of Lent (or maybe not), Qdoba has brought back its Citrus Lime Shrimp.
Meanwhile Starbucks is making its Oleato drinks, with olive oil added, available nationwide, and Sonic Drive-In is jumping on the “dirty drinks” bandwagon.
KFC has new potato bowl, Donatos Pizza has new cheese breads, Cicis Pizza has Nashville hot-flavored items, California Pizza Kitchen has Korean barbecue on a pie, and Firebirds Wood Fired Grill has a bunch of monthly specials.
Capriotti’s is adding a wagyu beef sandwich to its menu permanently, Baja Fresh has new quesadillas, Noodles & Company has its first meat-stuffed tortelloni, and Velvet Taco’s Weekly Taco Feature is doing a variation on birria tacos using chicken and pho broth.
Contact Bret Thorn at [email protected]