News: Baskin-Robbins - August 2012 Flavor of the Month

Baskin-Robbins' Flavor of the Month for August 2012 is the Olympic-appropriate Gold Medal Ribbon. The flavor arrives with the 2012 Summer Olympics in full swing.

The featured, limited-time ice cream flavor is simple enough with a combination of vanilla and chocolate ice cream swirled with a golden ribbon of caramel.

Gold Medal Ribbon is available by the scoop (cup or cone), in a milkshake, or as part of a custom ice cream cake. It can also be taken home in fresh-packed pints and quarts.

Dairy Queen Welcomes August 2012 Blizzard of the Month

This August, Dairy Queen is going with M&M's and brownies for their Blizzard of the Month. The M&M's Brownie Blizzard features Plain M&M's candy pieces, brownie pieces and chocolaty topping blended in vanilla soft serve.

Also this month, Dairy Queen is offering a fast food special that they're calling the "Cheeseburger Lovers" deal where you can get two DQ Cheeseburgers for $3 or two Double DQ Cheeseburgers for $4 at participating locations across the US.

Review: Quiznos - Basil Pesto Chicken Grilled Flatbread

Quiznos' Basil Pesto Chicken Grilled Flatbread is a fairly recent addition to the menu and features all-natural Chicken, all-natural Mozzarella, tomatoes, a seasonal lettuce blend, and basil pesto on a toasted, grilled flatbread.

They cost $3.29 each or two for $5.99. I got a small-sized one free courtesy of Quiznos though. It's a little bit bigger than a Taco Bell Chalupa which is a pretty good size.

News: Starbucks Returns Treat Receipt Promo

Starbucks regulars can rejoice: Starbucks has brought back the Treat Receipt promotion through September 3, 2012.

For those who stop by Starbucks for their morning Joe, you can bring back your morning receipt after 2pm and get any handcrafted cold grande beverage for $2.

Pizza Hut Canada's Delayed Gratification Promotion

Pizza Hut Canada has launched what, to some, might seem a cruel promotion in which they give you an envelope with a guaranteed prize, but to redeem the prize, you can't open the envelope.

Instead, you have to bring back the envelope in September (September 4th to October 31st specifically) where it is then unsealed by the Pizza Hut manager and you can then find out what you won. They're calling it the "'Don't Open Me' challenge."

Review: Papa John's - Pepperoni Pizza

Papa John's Pepperoni Pizza is a fairly run-of-the-mill hand-tossed pizza with pizza sauce, cheese, and pepperoni. Peppercinis and a cup of Papa John's special garlic sauce come free of charge.

They have a long-running special where you can pick up a large for $7.99 carryout only.

Popchips Releases New Popped Tortilla Chips

Popchips expands their line of popped chips to include tortilla chips. The new popped tortilla chips promise half the fat of regular tortilla chips, fewer calories, and no artificial colors, flavors, or preservatives.

Popchips tortilla chips are available in four flavors: Nacho Cheese, Ranch, Salsa, and Chili Limon. They're available at select retailers.

News: Yoplait - New Simplait Yogurt

For customers demanding an ingredient list that is quick to read and contains ingredients they can actually identify, Yoplait is out with new Simplait yogurt, a portmanteau of "Yoplait" and "simple."

Simplait yogurt is all-natural and made with only six ingredients: cultured pasteurized grade A milk, fruit, sugar, corn starch, natural flavor, and a vegetable or fruit juice or extract or pectin. It's available in four flavors: Strawberry, Vanilla, Peach, and Blackberry and at a suggested retail of 90 cents per 6-ounce cup.

For comparison, I've include the list of ingredients and nutritional information for Original Yoplait Strawberry yogurt and Simplait Strawberry yogurt below.

News: Subway - August 2012 Featured $5 Footlong

This August, Subway's Featured $5 Footlong is the Black Forest Ham, Egg & Cheese with Spinach.

By default, the sandwich comes with Black Forest ham, egg, your choice of cheese, spinach, and your choice of veggies, on toasted flatbread (you can probably ask for other breads as well). While normally a breakfast sub, it's available all day for the length of the promotion.

Review: McDonald's Sausage McMuffin with Egg

McDonald's Sausage McMuffin with Egg is the other McMuffin to McDonald's Egg McMuffin (which has ham instead of sausage; why isn't it the Ham McMuffin then...?). Inside the the English muffin, you'll find a sausage patty, a slice of American cheese, and a fried egg.

Southern California McDonald's is currently doing a promotion where you can score two of Sausage McMuffins with Egg for $3.79. I would point out that the Sausage McMuffin without egg is only $1.

News: First New Hot Dog on a Stick Drive-Thru

Hot Dog on a Stick, famed purveyor of freshly battered and fried corn dogs (and cheese sticks!), is stepping outside of its mall locations and trying out drive-thru service out in West Jordan, Utah.

If you've never been to a Hot Dog on a Stick, they're known for a simple menu of fresh-dipped-and-fried corn dogs and fresh-squeezed lemonade (they also do cheese on a stick, funnel sticks, and fries). Basically, it's like county fair food, but all-year-round.

News: Peet's Coffee - Free Medium Iced or Blended Drink Tomorrow!

Peet's Coffee is running a neat promotion tomorrow, Wednesday, August 1, to celebrate the beginning of August with free medium iced or blended beverages (with coupon).

The offer is good Wednesday, August 1, from 12pm to close only and no purchase is necessary. You will, however, need a coupon which you can print out or show from your mobile phone. You can print the coupon here.

Review: Wendy's Frosty - Chocolate vs. Vanilla

Ah, Chocolate or Vanilla... the age-old battle between number 1 and 2 in the world of ice cream popularity. And yet, Wendy's Frosty has originally always been chocolate. It wasn't until recently that Wendy's added a tap for the Vanilla frosty to expand their frozen dessert offerings (you can't really use chocolate as a base to build other flavors... well, unless those flavors also include chocolate...).

With that in mind, I thought I'd compare Wendy's Chocolate (Original) Frosty versus Wendy's Vanilla Frosty.

News: Starbucks - New Vegetarian Bistro Box

Starbucks has a new vegetarian-friendly Bistro Box out: the Goat Cheese & Garden Veggies Bistro Box which features a vegetable medley, goat cheese, tzatziki dip, and cranberry almond crackers.

The vegetable medley includes cucumber, tomatoes, carrots, green beans, and bell peppers.

Depending on how strict a vegetarian you are, you may want to avoid the tzatziki dip as it contains gelatin. The goat cheese, on the other hand, is made with vegetal rennet.

Top Five McDonald's Menu Failures... in Videos!

McDonald's has come out with a lot of menu items over the years; some good, some not so good. Today, we'll look at the top five menu items from McDonald's that, for whatever reasons, just didn't catch on... with video footage! Thank you YouTube!

In no particular order (queue the '80s music!):

My Starbucks is Not This Swanky: Vigo Street Starbucks in London

In terms of look and feel Starbucks stores are generally pretty nice and cozy, which makes sense since more than coffee (which is often fairly average), Starbucks sells service and the idea of affordable luxury. I've read that in a survey of customers in China, a majority preferred the taste of competitors, but still went to Starbucks for the service.

There are some Starbucks locations that are more than just "pretty nice and cozy" though. That make you step back and think "This is Starbucks?!" Take this Starbucks location on Vigo Street in the West End of London:

Review: Hamakua Plantations - Spam Flavored Macadamia Nuts

For one reason or another Spam is all the rage in Hawaii. It should come as little surprise then that Spam Flavored Macadamia Nuts are available and produced by the folks at Hamakua Plantations.

You can actually buy these online for $3.85 for a 4.5-ounce can. My friend brought this back for me from Hawaii.

Review: Magnum Mint Ice Cream Bars

Magnum Mint Ice Cream Bars are a new flavor of the premium ice cream brand and features mint ice cream dipped in Belgian milk chocolate and specks of caramelized sugar crunch.

Similar to rival Häagen-Dazs bars, they come three bars to a box for $4.99. These were on sale for $2.99 though. The bars are 3.38 fl oz each which is just slightly more than a Häagen-Dazs.

Neat! Starbucks Asia - Red Bean & Green Tea and Hojicha Frappuccinos

Starbucks stores in quite a few countries across Asia are running an interesting, limited-time promotion this summer. They've got two new Frappuccinos on tap: the Hojicha + Tea Jelly Frappuccino and the Red Bean + Green Tea Frappuccino.

Hojicha is a gently roasted (the drink is a light brown) Japanese green tea so The Hojicha + Tea Jelly Frappuccino is a bit like the Green Tea latte they have here in the States, but it's paired with Earl Grey Tea Jelly. The flavor is described as a mix of the "toasty and creaminess of Hojicha" with the "refreshing, floral, and aromatic" of Earl Grey.

Frozen Friday: Red Baron - Classic Crust Special Deluxe Pizza

Red Baron's Classic Crust Special Deluxe Pizza is their tried-and-true frozen pizza crust topped with two cheese, sausage, mushrooms, pepperoni, black olives, green and red peppers, and onions.

I scored a 22.95-ounce pizza on sale for $2.99; they're normally $6.99.