News: Burger King Offers New BBQ Rib Sandwich for $1

Following on the heels of the summertime Rib Sandwich, Burger King is offering a new, smaller, value-sized version dubbed the "BBQ Rib Sandwich."

The BBQ Rib Sandwich features a boneless rib patty, onions, pickles, and a sweet and spicy barbecue sauce on a sesame seed bun.

News: McDonald's Testing Jalapeno Kicker Sandwiches

McDonald's has been testing new Jalapeno Kicker Sandwiches since at least July out in Maryland.

According to Patch.com, The spicy sandwiches are available with either a Quarter Pounder beef patty or premium chicken filet (crispy or grilled) plus cream cheese sauce, jalapeno pepper jack cheese, crunchy jalapeno crisps, pickled jalapeno slices, tomato, and leaf lettuce on a toasted bakery-style bun.

News: Burger King - Big King is Back for Good

Burger King has resurrected the Big King, their answer to the Big Mac, as a permanent menu addition.

The Big King was previously available back in 1997 in select markets in the US but is actually offered currently in several markets abroad. The new version is much the same but adds a middle bun (like the previous iteration, the international version also lacks a middle bun).

Taste Test: Del Taco - New Epic Burritos

Del Taco is coming out with new Epic Burritos starting this Thursday, November 7, but I got to preview them early at Del Taco headquarters in Lake Forest, CA.

The new burritos are meant to compete with similar fast casual options i.e. Chipotle and will be a permanent part of the Del Taco menu. As such, the new burritos range from 14- to 18.5-ounces in weight making them among the largest burrito offered by the chain. The tortilla for the new burritos are also new and are meant to deliver more flavor including "buttery" notes and a "toasty" flavor when grilled.

The burrito will be offered at $4.99 each.

News: McDonald's - Dollar Menu Expands to Dollar Menu & More

McDonald's has expanded the price range of the Dollar Menu with new and current items that go beyond the $1 mark and are calling it the Dollar Menu & More.

 The somewhat crowded menu now includes the previous Dollar Menu as well as five new burgers and 20-piece Chicken McNuggets.

News: McDonald's McRib Makes Its Annual Return

The McRib is back at McDonald's. The popular limited-time item features a formed ground pork patty (shaped to vaguely resemble a mini rack of ribs) slathered in barbecue sauce and complemented by slivered onions and pickles on a long cornmeal-dusted roll.

It's selling for $3.19 in the Los Angeles area (may vary).

Review: Noosa Yogurt

Noosa is a brand of yogurt (they call it "yoghurt") made in Colorado from a Australian recipe (that hails from Noosa, Australia, hence the name). It comes in several varieties including the Strawberry Rhubarb and Blueberry flavors that I tried.

It's a bit pricier than most supermarket yogurt brands and comes in at $2.49 for a 8-ounce container (which I picked up two of during a "buy one, get one free" sale).

News: Red Robin - New Seasoned Steak Fries to Make at Home

New Red Robin Seasoned Steak Fries are now available in the frozen food aisle at grocers nationwide. 

A frozen version of the burger chain's signature Bottomless Steak Fries, the Seasoned Steak Fries come sprinkled with the same blend of Red Robins Seasoning Salt and can be found in 22-ounce packages carrying a suggested retail price of $3.19.

News: Subway Introduces Sriracha to the Menu with Two New Subs

For those of you who enjoy that spicy heat, Subway now offers a new creamy sriracha sauce that can be added to any sub.

They're introducing the sauce with two new subs that are part of a larger Fiery Footlong Collection menu.

Review: Kellogg's - Chocolate Peanut Butter Pop-Tarts

Kellogg's Chocolate Peanut Butter Pop-Tarts feature a chocolate-flavored pastry crust spread with a chocolate-flavored frosting and filled with a peanut butter filling.

A 10.5-ounce box of six Pop-Tarts was on sale for $2.

News: Subway - November 2013 Featured $5 Footlong

Subway is ditching the Featured $5 Footlong this November in favor of a $6 Footlong Special.

The $6 Footlong Special this month is the Sweet Onion Chicken Teriyaki, which replaces last month's Tuscan Melt.

News: Arby's Offers Bottled Horsey and Arby's Sauce

Arby's is getting into the sauce selling business (at least for a little while) with the sale of new limited-time-only bottled Horsey sauce and Arby's sauce at participating Arby's restaurants nationwide.

The chain was testing the bottled sauces earlier this year.

The bottles carry a suggested retail price of $2.49 per bottle and are also available in a gift pack with two bottles for $4.79. Both sauces come in 11.5-ounce bottles and are only available for a limited time while supplies last.

Frozen Friday: Ben & Jerry's - Boston Cream Pie Ice Cream

Ben & Jerry's Boston Cream Pie ice cream features Boston cream pie ice cream with yellow cake pieces, fudge flakes, and swirls of pastry cream.

A pint was $4.29.

News: Culver's - New Pepper Grinder Pub Burger

Culver's offers the new Pepper Grinder Pub Burger this fall. The burger is a follow-up on the chain's most popular limited-time-only burger ever, the Colby Jack Pub Burger.

The Pepper Grinder Pub Burger features two patties made of fresh, never frozen Midwest-raised beef, Swiss and Cheddar cheese, two slice of bacon, dill pickles, and four-pepper mayo on an artisan pub bun (sprinkled atop with onion, poppy seeds, and sesame seed).

News: Burger King - New Bratwurst Sandwich in Wisconsin and Illinois Only

Burger King has been offering a new Bratwurst Sandwich in Wisconsin and Illinois since September coinciding with the fall football season.

The sandwich is only available for a limited time and features a single grilled Johnsonville bratwurst sausage sliced length-wise and served on the same sesame sandwich bun with yellow(?!) mustard and raw onions.

Review: Jack in the Box - Stacked Grilled Cheese Burger

Jack in the Box's Stacked Grilled Cheese Burger is part of their new late night menu and features a sourdough grilled cheese sandwich as the top bun for a cheeseburger filled with a beef patty, lettuce, tomato, pickles, cheese, and mayo.

I picked one up for $4 (it's also available in a late night Munchie Meal that tacks on Halfsie fries, two tacos, and a 20-ounce drink for $6).

News: Wienerschnitzel - New Seasoned Curly Fries and Chili Cheese Seasoned Curly Fries

Wienerschnitzel is offering new Seasoned Curly Fries for a limited time at participating locations. They're also offering the option of topping the fries with chili and shredded cheese in the same fashion as their regular French fries.

News: Starbucks Opens Tea Bar Concept

Starbucks is looking to do for tea what they've done with coffee and have opened a new tea bar concept out in New York City.

Basically a Starbucks but for tea instead of coffee, the new Teavana Fine Teas + Tea Bar leverages the Teavana tea brand Starbucks acquired about a year ago.

Review: Jollibee - Spaghetti and Fried Chicken

Jolibee is a Filipino fast food chain with international reach including a few locations here in the US. It's menu is basically a Filipino take on American fast food (burgers, fried chicken, fries, and the like). One of their menu staples is spaghetti, which here in the US typically means spaghetti noodles with a tomato-based meat sauce. If you order spaghetti from a Jolibee restaurant, it generally looks the same but it's actually very different.

Jollibee's Spaghetti is described as coming with a "sweet style spaghetti sauce" with ham, sausage, and ground beef topped with cheese. The order I got also came with a fried chicken leg and mushroom gravy for $4.99.

News: El Pollo Loco - New Pollo Bowl Varieties

El Pollo Loco continues to pump out limited-time menu items at a quick clip with their latest offering, three new, limited-time varieties of their Pollo Bowl.

The new Pollo Bowls are available in Chicken Mexican Cobb, Chicken Mole, and Chicken Ranchero. The Ultimate Double Chicken Pollo Bowl is also being featured but is part of the regular menu.

The Chicken Mexican Cobb comes with fire grilled chicken, bacon, avocado, corn, red peppers, shredded Monterey Jack cheese, Spanish  rice, pinto beans, chopped cabbage, and pico de gallo.