Review: Arby's - Jamocha Cream Pie

Arby's Jamocha Cream Pie is a riff on their popular Jamocha Shake that switches it up by giving it to you in cream pie form.

Each slice of pie comes with a layer of Jamocha-flavored cream (or creme) layered below some whipped topping and a drizzle of chocolate syrup for $1.49.

News: Wendy's - Premium Cod Fillet Sandwich Returns for a Limited Time

Wendy's returns their Premium Cod Fillet Sandwich for a limited-time once again for Lenten season.

The sandwich takes a hand-cut North Pacific cod fillet, batters it with a light Panko breading, and finishes with tartar sauce and lettuce on a buttered and toasted bun.

You can expect to see these around at least until April.

News: Auntie Anne's - Free Pretzel Day, March 3, 2012

Auntie Anne's is giving customers a free soft pretzel each if they visit on Saturday, March 3, between the hours of 10 am to 3 pm.

No purchase is necessary and you can choose between an Original (with pretzel salt) or a Cinnamon Sugar pretzel.

Pretzels can also be ordered with no salt and/or no butter if you're looking for a lower calorie or less sodium option.

News: Papa John's - New Five Sausage Pizza for $10

Papa John's latest menu addition is the limited-time, new Five Sausage Pizza. A large is available for the promotional price of $10 (normally it's $14.00 for specialty pizzas at Papa John's although they're also running their $11 for any pizza promo).

The Five Sausage Pizza features Papa John's new topping, Chorizo sausage, as well as pork sausage, mild Italian sausage, spicy Italian sausage, and smoked sausage. It's pretty much topped with every sausage topping available at Papa John's.

Feature: Krispy Kreme Coffee Tasting and Pairings

On the morning of second and last day of Krispy Kreme's Blogger Summit, they invited us to try their new Signature Coffee Blends (introduced last year) along with suggested donut pairings.

I'd never done a coffee tasting or "cupping" before, so I was pretty intrigued. There are three varieties of Krispy Kreme coffee blends: the House Blend, the Dark Roast, and the House Decaf.

Feature: 5 Fun Facts About Taco Bell's Doritos Locos Taco

For those of you who don't know, I was invited out to Taco Bell Headquarters (known as "RSC" for "Restaurant Support Center") earlier this week to hear about the new Doritos Locos Taco, get a tour, and check out the Taco Bell Test kitchen.

Along with details on the launch of the taco, I put together a list of 5 fun facts regarding the Doritos Locos Taco gleaned from the event:

1. Originally, the idea was to just sprinkle some Doritos seasoning on a Taco Bell taco. Fortunately, the initial tested observed that it was like they took a taco and sprinkled some Doritos seasoning on it and were less than enthused.

Frozen Friday: Lean Cuisine - Spaghetti and Meatballs

Lean Cuisine Spaghetti and Meatballs are a frozen meal of spaghetti noodles, a good number of meatballs, and a hearty tomato sauce.

A 9.5-ounce box retails for about $3.99 or around $2 to $3 on sale.

News: Kraft - New belVita Breakfast Biscuit

Not sure about what's up with the odd capitalization, but Kraft/Nabisco is out with new belVita Breakfast Biscuits. Owing that people don't normally eat cookies for breakfast here in the States (at least not regularly!), they're calling it "the launch of a new breakfast category in the U.S."

The biscuits were made to "provide nutritious sustained energy to help fuel your body throughout the morning." The company touts that "sustained energy release results from a combination of carefully selected ingredients and a special baking process that helps preserve the integrity of the grain so that the carbohydrates are slowly released in the body." So they're a bit like timed-release biscuits.

Review: Jack in the Box - Bacon Shake

Jack in the Box's Bacon Shake is part of their Marry Bacon promotion along with the BLT Cheeseburger. All they need to complete the trifecta are bacon fries...

The shakes blends real vanilla ice cream, bacon-flavored syrup, whipped topping, and a maraschino cherry.

I picked up a 16-ounce "regular"-sized shake for $2.79 and wasn't quite sure what to expect...

News: Taco Bell - New Doritos Locos Taco Coming March 8th!

Taco Bell's Doritos Locos Taco is coming to Taco Bell restaurants all over the nation on March 8th in the biggest launch in the company's history.

The taco is basically Taco Bell's regular or Supreme Taco but with a specially-made Nacho Cheese Doritos shell.

The regular version (with seasoned ground beef, lettuce, and cheese) will carry a suggested price of $1.29 while the Supreme (which adds tomatoes and sour cream to the mix) will go for $1.69 when it arrives (prices may vary).

Additionally, the Doritos Loco Taco Supreme will be available in a $5 Buck Box along with a Crunchwrap Supreme, Crunchy Taco, and medium drink.

News: Panda Express - New Peppercorn Shrimp

Panda Express' latest menu addition, new, limited-time Peppercorn Shrimp, features marinated shrimp, asparagus, chopped yellow onions, and red bell peppers wok-tossed with a signature sauce made from Thai green peppercorns and Asian spices.

To encourage you to try the new dish, Panda Express is offering a free entree serving of Peppercorn Shrimp via a coupon good only on February 22 (uncoincidentally, the first day of Lent). To get and print the coupon, visit Panda Express on Facebook or their website.

Peppercorn Shrimp is available at Panda Express locations nationwide through April 10, 2012.

Nutritional Info - Panda Express Peppercorn Shrimp
Calories - 170 (from Fat - 45)
Fat - 5g (Saturated Fat - 1g)
Sodium - 800mg
Carbs - 18g (Sugar - 11g)
Protein - 12g

Review: Burger King - Bacon and Cheddar BK Topper

Burger King's limited time Bacon and Cheddar BK Topper with made with a 3.2 ounce flame-grilled beef patty, thick-cut, hardwood smoked bacon, a slice of cheddar cheese, mayonnaise, ketchup, and pickles on a sesame seed bun.

I picked one up for $1.99 at my local BK restaurant.

News: Burger King - Buy One, Get One Free Chicken Sandwiches

Besides their two for $3 breakfast sandwich promotion, Burger King has another limited-time promotion going this month: buy one Original Chicken Sandwich and get one free (of equal or lesser value).

Sandwiches include the Original Chicken Sandwich, Chicken Club Sandwich and the Italian Chicken Sandwich and the offer is good through March 5th at participating BK restaurants.

The Original Chicken Sandwich is Burger King's sub-style basic deep-fried chicken patty sandwich with lettuce and mayo. The Chicken Club Sandwich and Italian Chicken Sandwich are variations on the theme with the Chicken Club adding tomatoes and bacon to the mix while the Italian substitutes in marinara and mozzarella cheese.

The last time I had an Original Chicken Sandwich, they were going for $3.99 but also buy one, get one free.

News: Jack in the Box - New Bacon Shake

Along with the limited-time BLT Cheeseburger, Jack in the Box is urging you to show your bacon love with their new, limited-time Bacon Shake.

The Bacon Shake is made with real vanilla ice cream, bacon-flavored syrup, whipped topping, and a maraschino cherry. So yeah, no real bacon here.

A 16-ounce regular comes in at around $2.79 (varying with location) and 770 calories which, is around the same number of calories in Jack's strawberry or vanilla shakes (and is pretty much in line with milkshakes in general; again no real bacon).

News: Cinnabon - New Cinnabon Flavored Coffee

Not content with making cinnamon rolls, mall-based chain, Cinnabon is now adding their trademark Cinnabon flavor to their coffee and coffee Chillatta for a limited time.

Cinnabon Flavored Iced Coffee contains hints of brown sugar, vanilla, and Makara cinnamon while the Cinnabon Flavored Coffee Chillatta is a frozen, blended beverage that contains Makara cinnamon and vanilla flavors blended with a ribbon of caramel and topped with whipped cream.

The suggested retail price of Cinnabon Flavored Iced Coffee is $1.99 (16 oz.) and $2.29 (24 oz.), while the Cinnabon Flavored Coffee Chillatta sells for $3.99 (16 oz.) and $4.49 (24 oz.).

Both drinks are available through May 20.

News: Jack in the Box - $2.99 Fish Sandwich Combo Meal

For a limited-time, Jack in the Box has brought back their $2.99 Fish Sandwich Combo as well as their Fish & Chips.

Last seen around this time last year, the Fish Sandwich Combo features Jack's Fish Sandwich, a small order of fries, and small fountain drink.

The Fish Sandwich consists of two lightly battered fillets of Alaskan Pollock, lettuce, and tartar sauce on a warm sesame seed bun.

Fish & Chips comes with three fish fillets, a small order of fries, and a side of tartar sauce and malt vinegar for $4.59.

News: Dunkin' Donuts - New Bakery Sandwiches

Dunkin' Donut has two new sandwich choices in their Bakery Sandwich line up: the Ham & Cheese Bakery Sandwich and the Turkey, Cheddar & Bacon Bakery Sandwich.

The Ham & Cheese Bakery Sandwich features Black Forest ham, white cheddar cheese and Creamy Dijon sauce on a French roll, while the new Turkey, Cheddar & Bacon Bakery Sandwich features turkey, white cheddar cheese, bacon and Ancho Chipotle sauce on a French roll.

If the French roll isn't your thing, all of Dunkin' Donuts' bakery sandwiches are also available on a bagel, or croissant. Sandwiches are made to order and oven toasted.

Review: Meiji - Hello Panda Cookies

Meiji Hello Panda Cookies are bite-sized chocolate creme filled cookies, shaped vaguely like a round head with or without bear ears and decorated with a panda picture.

A 2.1-ounce box goes for about 79 cents at my local Asian supermarket.

Feature: Krispy Kreme Olden Days Donut Making Exhibit

In the lobby of Krispy Kreme's mix plant is a couple of knick knacks used to make donuts back in the olden days. Before they ever had a donut hopper to pop out rings of dough, they had this weird metal roller (shown above). It's a donut roller! I didn't pick it up but it looks pretty heavy, no?

Frozen Friday: Lean Cuisine - Fajita-Style Chicken Spring Rolls

Lean Cuisine's Fajita-Style Chicken Spring Rolls feature white meat chicken chipotle, corn, black beans, bell peppers, and onions wrapped in a spring roll wrapper.

An 8-ounce box contains two servings which makes them more of a snack than a meal. You're looking at a normal price of around $3.99 or between $2 and $3 on sale.