It has been a long year, and there are still six weeks to go, but many chains already seem to be pumped up for the holidays with pointedly themed specials from Carrabba’s, CC’s Coffee House, Graze Craze, Jack in the Box, Mellow Mushroom, Red Robin, Sweet Paris, and Tim Hortons, as well as Red Lobster, which also has a bunch of new items that are part of a systemwide revamp.
What about Thanksgiving, you ask? That’s a great question, and while many chains seem to have jumped right over it, there are specials from Golden Krust, as well as Paris Baguette.
There are also a whole lot of peppermint items, including some from, Chick-fil-A, Corner Bakery Café, Häagen-Dazs, The Human Bean, Main Event, PJ’s Coffee, Playa Bowls, Rita’s Italian Ice & Frozen Custard.
Oddly, pumpkin items are still being rolled out at chains such as Fiiz Drinks, Jeremiah’s Italian Ice, and Joe’s Coffee
White Castle is bringing back its seasonal Sloppy Joe sliders, Long John’s Silvers is bringing back its lobster bites, and P.F. Chang’s is celebrating the first snowfall the way it is apparently done in South Korea, with fried chicken.
Wendy’s has a new Frosty, among other things, and Applebee’s has a new chicken sandwich.
IHOP has new items celebrating the launch of the Xbox game Indiana Jones and the Great Circle and TooJay’s Deli has a cake celebrating the 65th anniversary of fashion brand Lilly Pulitzer.
So much to celebrate.
Panera has new dippable ciabatta items, and Outback is encouraging guests to dip steak in French onion soup.
Perkins has a bunch of seasonal items, Huddle House has chicken & waffles, Potbelly has new sauces and sandwiches, and Pincho has a new burger.
Lion’s Choice has a new sandwich, and Noodles & Company is testing three varieties of mac & cheese.
Taziki’s has tomato soup, and Jamba has new cranberry-pomegranate drinks.
Condado Tacos has carne asada, Gong Cha has red velvet items, and Velvet Taco’s Weekly Taco Feature is actually a Mongolian beef lettuce wrap.
Contact Bret Thorn at [email protected]
