This week on Nation's Restaurant News the top story was Menu Tracker: New items from McDonald’s, Chick-fil-A, Popeyes, and Wendy’s. Plus, Plus micro-tests at Taco Bell and Pizza Hut and innovation at Auntie Anne’s, Baskin-Robbins and more.
In other news, Chick-fil-A is testing a new maple pepper bacon sandwich in the Indianapolis and Lexington, Kentucky, markets for a limited time. The sandwich is made with a lemon herb marinated boneless chicken breast and topped with pepper jack cheese, lettuce and bacon tossed in a brown sugar and pepper blend. It is served on a buttered and toasted maple-flavored brioche bun.
"Throughout my childhood, I always loved maple syrup, so I was thrilled to incorporate it into our newest chicken entrée, the Maple Pepper Bacon Sandwich. The sweetness of the maple syrup complements the smoky flavors of the grilled chicken and the hint of spice from the pepper jack cheese and pickles," Christy Cook, Chick-fil-A chef, said in a statement
Also, the menu pipeline at Pizza Hut continues to churn out new innovations with the introduction of the Pickle Pizza. Pizza Hut claims it is the first national quick-service chain to offer pickles as a pizza topping, although Papa Johns introduced a cheeseburger pizza with pickles in 2014 that they brought back as an LTO in 2020. The sour and spicy creation from Pizza Hut is only available for a limited time at one location in New York City.
The Pickle Pizza is sauced with buttermilk ranch dressing, topped with cheese, breaded chicken breast, sliced white onions, spicy dill pickles and Nashville Hot seasoning, and then finished off with an extra drizzle of buttermilk ranch dressing.
See what else was trending on NRN.com this week.
