From the perspective of restaurant operators, 2022 will likely be remembered as a year of inflation, unpredictable price spikes, and maddening supply-chain issues, but that didn’t keep chains from innovating, as witnessed by the unending supply of new items for the weekly Menu Tracker column.
There was a surge in plant-based substitutes for meat and dairy (so many that you can see them in a separate gallery), but apart from that there were more and more burgers and chicken sandwiches, salads with influences from all over the globe, celebrity tie-ins, cross-promotions with movie releases, upgrades of existing items, innovative side dishes, new breakfast and dessert items, limited-time offers featuring seasonal produce, large-scale menu revamps, invention of new virtual brands, and a whole lot of bowls.
Read on to see a few dozen of the hundreds of new items that were rolled out over the course of the year.
Contact Bret Thorn at [email protected]
