Around the World: Pizza Hut - The Many Forms of Cheesy Bites

Back in 2007, Pizza Hut tried to woo the American public with the limited-time Cheesy Bites Pizza which was similar to a Stuffed Crust Pizza but with individual cheese-filled rolls for the crust and featured a commercial with Jessica Simpson:

But the U.S. wasn't the only place that received the Cheesy Bites Pizza...

News: Carl's Jr. - New Hand-Breaded Chicken Tenders

Carl's Jr recently announced their new freshly prepared Hand-Breaded Chicken Tenders. These appear to be slightly different, but mostly the same as the Hand-Breaded Chicken Tenders that have been selling at sibling-chain Hardee's since about June.

My own local Carl's Jr has been carrying them for about a month. It is unclear if "freshly prepared" means made-to-order or just made in-house throughout the day and left to warm. Probably the former since it does take some time to cook breaded chicken.

The selling point on these chicken tenders is that they are hand-dipped in buttermilk and lightly breaded in-house daily rather than shipped frozen and pre-cooked to each restaurant before a final dunk in the deep fryer.

Retail pricing stands at $2.99 for a 3-piece order or $4.49 for a 5-piece order which compares quite well to other fast food chains as well as the fried chicken chains. They are also available as part of a combo or kid's meal. Sauces are available in honey mustard, buttermilk ranch, and barbecue.

Review: Chick-fil-A - Cookies & Cream Milkshake

Chick-fil-A's Cookies & Cream Milkshake features Chick-fil-A vanilla Icedream (soft-serve) handspun with bits of Oreo cookies, topped with whipped cream and a cherry. A large costs $3.45.

News: Pinkberry - New Seasonal Pumpkin Flavor

A bit late to the fall pumpkin party, Pinkberry today introduced its new seasonal Pumpkin flavored frozen yogurt which features real pumpkin puree, notfat milk, and nonfat frozen yogurt.

The new flavor is recommended with featured paired toppings of honey graham crackers, new Pinkberry Swirly Whip (whipped cream made fresh daily), and a dusting of cinnamon for that holiday pumpkin pie flavor.

Pinkberry's Pumpkin flavor will be available through the end of the year.

Frozen Friday: Hungry-Man - Boneless Fried Chicken

The Hungry-Man Boneless Fried Chicken frozen meal features a pound of fried chicken patties, mashed potatoes, sweet corn, and chocolate brownie for $3.69.

Review: The Coffee Bean - Cinnamon French Toast Ice Blended

The Coffee Bean's Cinnamon French Toast Ice Blended is a fall-themed limited-time drink that is sold as being "creamy and sweet with hints of maple and nut, this smooth cinnamon French toast beverage will remind you of Sunday morning breakfast as a kid." Pricing on the Ice Blended version (it's also available as a latte) is $4.30 for a 16-ounce regular and $5.20 for a 22-ounce large.

News: Papa John's - New "My Papa Points" Reward Program

Included in the revamp of their online ordering system (no doubt to catch up to Domino's and Pizza Hut's online ordering overhauls), Papa John's has instituted a rewards point system for online ordering and dubbed it "My Papa Points."

The basics of the program is for every $5 (including tax and delivery) you spend through online ordering you get a point. So, if you spend $10 you get two points. However, if you only spend $9, you only get one point because points are awarded in $5 increments only.

When (or if) you collect 25 points (basically spend $125), you can redeem your points for a free large, 3-topping pizza.

Domino's had a similar (but more extensive) program when they rolled out their revamped online ordering system, but has since discontinued it. The program is basically meant to incentivize customers to order online rather than over the phone.

The program is set to run until June 30, 2011.

News: Starbucks Launches Starbucks Digital Network

As an added perk for Starbucks' customers, Starbucks has launched the Starbucks Digital Network, a digital hub of assorted premium content for users of Starbuck's free Wifi created in partnership with Yahoo.


The service is accessible for free via Wifi-enabled computers, tablets, or smartphones and features free access to a bevy of selected video, textual, and audio content (i.e. selected books, videos, games, magazines, and music).

Highlights include: free access to the subscription editions of the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, and USA Today; exclusive iTune downloads; and free, unlimited access to Zagat restaurant reviews and ratings.

With all the added perks, the Starbucks Digital Network definitely encourages customers to come in and pull up a chair, whether any chairs will be available is the question, especially in high-traffic stores. I know that other popular coffee houses already have problems with too many people occupying seats to use free WiFi. My own local Starbucks stores are already pretty crowded, seating-wise.

Review: Taco Bell - Tostada

Taco Bell's Tostada is not listed on their online menu so it might not be available at all Taco Bell restaurants. It features a meatless concoction of a tostada shell (basically a flattened taco shell) spread with a layer of refried beans and then topped with red sauce, shredded cheese, and lettuce. It costs $1.29 for one.

Review: Burger King - Tendergrill Chicken Sandwich

Burger King's Tendergrill Chicken Sandwich is BK's version of the ubiquitous fast food grilled chicken sandwich. Unsurprisingly, it features a seasoned grilled chicken filet, with lettuce, tomatoes, and mayo. To change it up a little, Burger King recently changed the bun to a healthier, whole grain ciabatta. Pricing stands at $4.19.

News: Taco Bell - Free Orange 'N Creme Swirl Frutista Freeze

Apparently, Taco Bell really wants you to try their new Orange 'N Creme Swirl Frutista Freeze; they're giving them away for free via a printable coupon on their website here. The Orange 'N Creme Swirl Frutista Freeze is normally priced at $1.99.

The coupons expire on 11/25/2010 or until 500,000 coupons are redeemed, whichever comes first.

I've tried it, and it tastes like a blended orange Creamsicle for whatever that's worth. Also, it did not look like an orange and white swirl.

Review: Arby's Chocolate Turnover

Arby's Chocolate Turnover features a puff pasty turnover filled with a rich chocolate filling and decorated with a zig zag pattern of chocolate icing. It's a limited-time value menu item for $1.