News: Chick-fil-A - Peach Milkshake Returns for a Limited-Time

Hand-spun Peach Milkshakes are back at Chick-fil-A this summer for a limited-time. Featuring peaches blended into Chick-fil-A's Icedream soft serve, Peach Milkshakes are made to order and topped with whipped cream and a cherry.

Of course, with the arrival of the Peach Milkshake, the Banana Pudding Milkshake makes its yearly good bye.

News: Arby's - New Turkey Asiago Sandwich

Arby's new Turkey Asiago is a limited-time sandwich offering oven-roasted turkey, tomatoes, Asiago cheese, green leaf lettuce, thinly sliced red onions, and savory au jus spread (a mix of mayo and au jus powder) on honey wheat bread or in a whole wheat wrap.

Asiago seems to be a fancier (or at least less common) substitute for Swiss at some fast food restaurants nowadays.

Review: Ruffles Ultimate - Kickin' Jalapeno Ranch Chips

Ruffles Ultimate Kickin' Jalapeno Ranch potato chips are part of the Ruffles Ultimate line with "hardercore ridges for hardcore dips."

An 8-ounce bag retails for $4.29, but it's not uncommon to find them on sale for $2 to $3.

Dessert Pizzas from Around the World

Besides the run-of-the-mill savory pizzas that you're used to, in Brazil, they also like dessert pizzas. Since Brazil has both Domino's and Pizza Hut, it's not surprising that each chain offers a dessert pie or two to complete your meal...

At Domino's Brazil, they offer a Banana Pizza and a Chocolate Pizza.

News: Kettle Brand - Limited Batch 30th Birthday Collection

Kettle Brand Chips returns four of their retired flavors for a limited time to celebrate 30 years of making kettle-cooked potato chips. Dubbed the "Limited Batch Birthday Collection," the flavors include: Red Chili, Jalapeno Jack, Salsa with Mesquite, and Cheddar Beer.

Red Chili first appeared in 1982 and offers the flavor of Sriracha sauce combined with a vinegar tang and Cayenne pepper for extra heat.

Review: M&M's - Mint Dark Chocolate

M&M's Mint Dark Chocolate features the same M&M's you know and love, but overgrown and filled with dark chocolate instead of the standard milk chocolate.

A normal 1.5-ounce bag is almost $1 these days (I remember when they used to be 50 cents a bag...).

Frozen Friday: Healthy Choice - Lemon Herb Chicken

Healthy Choice's Lemon Herb Chicken frozen entrée features chicken tenderloins with whole grain pasta, cherry tomatoes, and green beans in a herb lemon-Chardonnay sauce. It clocks in at 8.7 ounces and a very low 200 calories.

Like other Healthy Choice Steaming Entrées, it costs $2.99 in my area or around $2.00 on sale.

News: Subway Testing Santa Fe Steak Melts

Subway is testing new Santa Fe Steak Melts for a limited time out in Arizona and Virginia (and probably other markets as well).

The Santa Fe Steak Melts include the Santa Fe Steak & Bacon Melt and the Santa Fe Steak, Bacon, and Egg Melt (breakfast only).

News: Cheesecake Factory - 1/2 Price Cheesecake Slices on July 30

So July 30th is National Cheesecake Day (they have a national day for everything don't they?) and The Cheesecake Factory is celebrating by offering any slice of cheesecake for 1/2 off (dine-in only) on July 30.

Since the Oreo cookie celebrated its 100th birthday this year, the Cheesecake Factory will also be debuting the Oreo Dream Extreme Cheesecake on July 30.

News: McAlister's Deli - Free Tea Day on July 26

McAlister's Deli is once again celebrating Free Tea Day this year and giving out free 32-ounce cups of their signature Famous Sweet Tea on Thursday, July 26. Those are some mighty big cups of tea they're giving out for free (no locations in California though). No purchase is necessary.

McAlister's Famous Sweet Tea is made with a rainforest-certified black tea blend, filtered water, and pure cane sugar.

Review: KFC - Original Recipe Bites

KFC's Original Recipe Bites finally brings a chicken nugget to the KFC menu. KFC Bites are pieces of breast meat chicken breaded with the Colonel's Original Recipe.

KFC currently has them at a promotional price of $3.99 for a 6-piece, side, and drink. My local KFC restaurant had a 6-piece going for $3.49 so I opted to pay 50 cents extra for the combo (good call right?).

News: Panda Express Returns Peppercorn Shrimp

Panda Express returns Peppercorn Shrimp to the menu and promotes Surf and Turf Plates this summer.

Introduced for a limited time earlier this year, 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.

The Surf and Turf Plates are not really a new addition to the menu per se (as far as I can tell, it's just Panda's two-entree plate), it seems to be more of a promotion that highlights various beef and shrimp combinations (Beijing Beef, Honey Walnut Shrimp, Broccoli Beef, Crispy Shrimp, Peppercorn Shrimp, or Shanghai Angus Steak) from the Panda Express menu.

News: Starbucks - Free Starbucks Refreshers This Friday!

Starbucks is out with new handcrafted Refreshers in their cafes. To encourage you to try them, they're offering a free Tall (12-ounce) handcrafted Refresher of your choice from 12pm - 3 pm tomorrow, Friday, July 13 at participating locations.

Refreshers are available in Very Berry Hibiscus and Cool Lime.

No purchase is necessary and it's limit one per person.

Review: Jack in the Box - Waffle Breakfast Sandwich

Jack in the Box's new, limited-time Waffle Breakfast Sandwich is a lightly-sweetened waffle sandwich filled with a fried egg, a slice of American cheese, and a new country-grilled sausage patty.

I got it for dinner at my local Jack in the Box for $2.79 (because they serve breakfast all day!).

News: Wendy's - New Son of Baconator

Wendy's new Son of Baconator is a slightly smaller version of the Baconator, a beefy burger for the meat and cheese set.

Where the Baconator features two quarter-pound beef patties, six strips of thick, applewood-smoked bacon, two slices of American cheese, ketchup, and mayo on a buttered and toasted bun, its Son tones it down a bit with two 2.25-ounce beef patties (junior hamburger patties), and four strips of bacon.

Neat! Fast Food Workers Tell You What Not to Eat

One Reddit user, 4ScienceandReason, asked the Reddit community at large: "Fast food workers of Reddit, what is the one menu option at your employment that you would recommend people never eat? (Because of cooking safety, cleanliness, unhealthy, etc)"

The response he/she got was overwhelming and yielded quite a few gems of knowledge, some general guidelines, and some interesting stories (please note that workers at the same chains still had different experiences at different locations and these are anecdotal accounts):

News: Starbucks - New Handcrafted and Via Starbucks Refreshers

Starbucks has gone and expanded their line of Starbucks Refreshers to handcrafted versions mixed-to-order in stores and VIA versions to make at home. The drinks offer a natural energy drink alternative to coffee or tea and are made with green coffee beans.

Handcrafted Starbucks Refreshers are available in Very Berry Hibiscus and Cool Lime.

News: Krispy Kreme - 75th Birthday Donuts and 75-Cent Donut Deal

Krispy Kreme is celebrating its 75th birthday this Friday, but starts the celebration early with the release of three varieties of the new Birthday Donut and a special donut deal.

Available through August 19, the Birthday Donut is an Original Glazed donut topped with chocolate, strawberry, or white icing, rainbow sprinkles, and a rosette of Kreme icing (the same stuff used in the Kreme-filled Donuts). I wonder if the icing falls through the donut hole with the heat we're having this summer.

News: El Pollo Loco - New Pork Carnitas

Having featured chicken carnitas in the past, El Pollo Loco is now working the pork and currently serving up new, limited-time Pork Carnitas in three different forms: tacos, wet burritos, and quesadillas.

Carnitas is typically braised or slow-roasted seasoned pork.

Review: Taco Bell - Cantina Bowl

Taco Bell's Cantina Bowl marks an expansion of Taco Bell's menu (with the Cantina Bell menu) and conspicuously resembles the Burrito Bowl at Chipotle. Like Chipotle, you can have it customized however you want it, but it's not assembled in front of you in Subway fashion.

By default, it comes with all-new ingredients including citrus-herb marinated chicken, black beans, guacamole made from Hass avocados, pico de gallo, roasted corn & pepper salsa, romaine lettuce, and a creamy cilantro dressing, and a bed of cilantro rice. It's also available in a veggie configuration or with steak.

News: Jack in the Box - All-American Jack Combo Returns

Jack in the Box's All-American Jack is back this summer for a limited time. First introduced during last year's Super Bowl, the All-American Jack features two beef patties, three melting cheese (two American and one Swiss-style) slices, tomato, shredded lettuce, pickles, mayo-onion sauce, ketchup, and mustard.

It's offered in a combo with smalls fries and a 20-ounce drink for $4.99. I tried the All-American Jack last year and you can read that review here.

To promote the return of the All-American Jack, Jack in the Box hired country singer Brad Paisley for a 30-second TV spot because what's more American than Brad Paisley? Watch below:

News: IHOP - Trio of Summer Pancakes

IHOP has a trio of limited-time summer pancakes to try this summer. Available until September 2 at participating IHOP locations, there's Red Velvet Pancakes, Sweet Strawberry Pancakes, and Whole Wheat Pancakes with Banana.

Red Velvet Pancakes feature chocolaty red velvet pancakes drizzled with cream cheese icing, dusted with powdered sugar, and dolloped with whipped topping. I tried it a while back when they were testing it; you can check out that review here.

News: KFC - New KFC Bites

The Colonel fries up new KFC Bites starting this month. Essentially new chicken nuggets at Kentucky Fried Chicken, KFC Bites are chicken breast pieces breaded in the Colonel's Original Recipe and fill the gap between Popcorn Chicken and Chicken Strips.

News: Sonic - Two New Hot Dogs for the Summer

Sonic is serving two new hot dogs for National Hot Dog month this July for a limited time: the Wholly Guacomole Dog and the Chili Cheese Fritos Coney.

The Wholly Guacamole Dog features a grilled premium beef hot dog topped with Wholly Guacamole-brand guacamole, pepper jack cheese, tomatoes, jalapenos, onions and a zesty cheese sauce in a warm, poppy seed bun.

Neat! Coca-Cola in a Coke-Bottle-Shaped Bag

You might not know this, but in some countries, people drink Coca-Cola out of a plastic bag. That's not to say they don't sell bottled coke (not sure why bottles over cans, but I would guess the bottles can be reused like milk bottles back in the day), but rather than put down a deposit on the bottle, people have the bottle poured into a small plastic baggie and drink it with a straw.

Local Review: Dog Haus - Sliders

The Dog Haus is a local chain in my neck of the woods with three locations. They're known for their well-topped and sometimes overloaded hot dogs served on King's Hawaiian rolls, but also serve burgers made with Angus beef.

The burgers are on the large side, but there are also Sliders which are nice and simple.

Around the World: McDonald's Australia - Flavors of the Olympic Games

With the Summer Olympics just around the corner, McDonald's Australia and nearby McDonald's New Zealand celebrate with similar limited-time "Flavours of the Games" menus in honor of the Olympics. The featured items provide an interesting if eyebrow-raising look at what McDonald's has come up with to represent past Olympic games.

Here are the items:

Review: Emerald Breakfast on the Go - Berry Nut Blend

Emerald's Breakfast on the Go Berry Nut Blend is a fairly new addition to the Emerald line up and is basically a small pouch of trail mix for when you don't have time to sit down for a proper breakfast. The Berry Nut Blend comes with roasted peanuts, granola clusters, dried cranberries, yogurt-covered raisins, glazed walnuts, and dried blueberries.

A box comes with five 1.5-ounce bags and retails for $3.59 at my local Albertsons.

News: Frito Lay - Two New Tostitos Artisan Recipe Flavors

Frito Lay has gone and expanded their line of Tostitos Artisan Recipe chips with two new flavors: Baked Three Cheese Queso, and Toasted Southwestern Spices.

It should be pointed out that "queso" literally translates to "cheese" in Spanish, and therefore "three cheese queso" is "three cheese cheese." Perhaps they should have just called it "Cheese Cheese Queso" and be done with it.

The Tostitos Artisan Recipe line features tortilla chips made with a 9-grain blend that straddles the line between a Tostitos and a Sun Chip. The chips are layered with ingredients for a more nuanced flavor that borrows from various ethnic cuisines, but without the more pronounced (i.e. beat-you-over-the-head) flavor of Doritos.

News: Frito Lay - New Reduced Fat Kettle-Cooked Lay's Potato Chips

The folks at Frito Lay have come up with two new flavors of Kettle-Cooked Lay's Potato Chips that contain  less fat than the regular ones. Available in Applewood Smoked BBQ and Sun-Dried Tomato and Parmesan, the new kettle-cooked chips boast 40% less fat than regular potato chips.

Applewood Smoked BBQ is described as "barbecue seasonings accented with a smoky twist," while Sun-Dried Tomato and Parmesan features "slightly tangy, sun-dried tomatoes paired with creamy Parmesan cheese."

Frozen Friday: Lean Cuisine - Swedish Meatballs

Lean Cuisine Swedish Meatballs is a simple frozen meal of Swedish meatballs with pasta noodles and a savory gravy.

A 9.125-ounce box retails for $3.69 at my local Albertson. I picked it up for $2.

News: 7-Eleven - Free Slurpees on July 11th

7-Eleven is once again celebrating 7-Eleven Day, this upcoming Wednesday, July 11, by giving away free 7.11-ounce cups of their trademark Slurpee drinks to customers between the hours of 11am and 7pm (no purchase necessary).

So if you've been thinking about trying 7-Eleven's new sugar-free or limited-time Slurpee flavors, here's your chance. The offer is valid at participating locations in the U.S. and Canada.

News: Dunkin' Donuts - New Oreo Donuts and Coolattas

Dunkin' Donuts is going with Oreo cookies for their latest batch of new stuff. There's two varieties of Oreo Donuts and two flavors of Oreo Coolatta.

On the donut side, there's the Oreo Donut and the Oreo Crumble Donut. Strangely, there are both topped with Oreo crumbles so I don't know how they decided on the names. Coin flip maybe?

The Oreo Donut comprises of a yeast donut filled with vanilla buttercreme, frosted with white icing, and topped with Oreo cookie crumbles.

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

Baskin-Robbins Flavor of the Month this July is Oreo 'N Chocolate, a chocolaty take on the standard cookies 'n cream with chocolate ice cream, Oreo cookie pieces, and a fudge ribbon thrown in for extra chocolate flavor.

As usual, the Flavor of the Month is available in a cup or cone as well as a milkshake or sundae.

Review: El Pollo Loco - Chicken Tostada Salad

El Pollo Loco Chicken Tostada Salad comes in a large fried tortilla "bowl." The salad itself consists of a bed of Romaine lettuce blend (mostly iceberg lettuce), cheese, chunks of white meat flame-grilled chicken, pico de gallo, cilantro, and sour cream with a creamy cilantro dressing on the side.

The salad goes for $5.29.

News: Dairy Queen - July 2012 Blizzard of the Month

Dairy Queen's Blizzard of the Month for this July is the Chocolate Candy Shop Blizzard, so named because it sports a mix of assorted chocolates (filled with hazelnut creme, fudge, and caramel) blended with dark cocoa fudge and vanilla soft serve.

As per usual, the Blizzard Cake of the Month is also Chocolate Candy Shop for your special occasions/party needs.

News: Jack in the Box - New Waffle Breakfast Sandwich

Jack in the Box is out with a new Waffle Breakfast Sandwich, but only for a limited time.

The breakfast sandwich features a fried egg, a slice of American cheese, and a new (and hopefully improved) country-grilled sausage on two lightly-sweetened waffles.

I imagine it offers a similar experience to McDonald's McGriddle except Jack in the Box serves breakfast all day.

News: Taco Bell - Cantina Bell Menu Launches with Buy One, Get One Offer

Taco Bell's Cantina Bell menu launches today (more details on that here) and to help incentivize you to try a new Cantina Bowl or Burrito, they're offering a buy one Cantina Bowl or Burrito, get one free coupon  via the Taco Bell Facebook page.

Review: Nestle - Caramel Pretzel Ice Cream Bar

The Nestle Caramel Pretzel Ice Cream Bar is a relatively new addition to their line up of chocolate-covered ice cream bars (technically chocolaty-covered frozen dairy dessert bars) that replaces the standard vanilla ice cream with a caramel-flavored ice cream and adds pretzel bits to the chocolaty coating.

A box of six retails for $4.79 at my local supermarket, but it's not uncommon to find them on sale for $2 to $3.

Review: Jack in the Box - Jr. Jack

Jack in the Box's Jr. Jack is the junior-sized version to the Jumbo Jack. Suspiciously, the middle-child, Jack, is missing. As a smaller-sized Jumbo Jack, the Jr. Jack contains the same stuff -- beef patty (but smaller), lettuce, tomato, pickles, chopped onions, mayo-onion sauce, and ketchup on a regular bun instead of a sesame seed one.

I picked on up for $1.19 at my local Jack in the Box off the value menu.

News: White Castle - BBQ Sliders Back for a Limited Time

White Castle brings back their Pulled Pork BBQ Sliders for a limited time this summer. In addition, they're serving up two new BBQ Sliders: BBQ Bacon Chicken and Original BBQ.

The new BBQ Chicken Slider consists of all-white meat chicken breast topped with Bulls-Eye Original BBQ Sauce and a slice of hickory-smoked bacon on a standard White Castle bun.

Review: Pizza Hut - Garlic Bread Pizza

Pizza Hut's Garlic Bread Pizza is only pizza in the loosest possible sense of the word. It features nine round slices of garlic bread topped with cheese and your choice of toppings for $8.99.

I picked up one with pepperoni on top and it came with a side of warm marinara sauce for dipping.

News: Subway - July 2012 Featured $5 Footlong

Subway's Featured $5 Footlong for this July is the Buffalo Chicken. This one features buffalo glazed chicken breast strips with ranch dressing and the customary choice of bread, cheese, and veggies. You can check out my review of the Buffalo Chicken sub here.

News: Carl's Jr. - New Sweet Potato Fries

Carl's Jr. is the latest fast food chain to add Sweet Potato Fries to their menu.

Basically, they're cut the same way as Carl's Jr. Natural Cut Fries, but are made with sweet potatoes instead of Russets.

They came up with a pretty funny commercial to promote the new fries. You can check it out below:

News: Starbucks - Free Brewed Coffee on July 4th

In celebration of the Fourth of July and to spread the word on their Indivisible initiative, Starbucks will be giving a free 12-ounce "tall" hot brewed coffees to anyone who comes into their stores that day.

The offer is good all day on July 4 and only at U.S. stores.

News: The Coffee Bean - $2 Ice-Blended Drinks on July 4

The Coffee Bean aims to help you cool off this upcoming Fourth of July by offering their Ice-Blended drinks for $2 all day.

Specifically, The Coffee Bean will offer any guest any 12-ounce Ice-Blended drink of their choice for $2 on July 4th and will donate $1 to Operation Homefront for each drink purchased.

News: Boston Market - Half-Off Family Meals July 4th!

Boston Market has a sweet deal coming up this year for the Fourth of July (this Wednesday). They're offering any of their Family Meals for half off with a coupon that is printable from the Boston Market website here.

The coupon is good on July 4, 2012 only and is limited to one coupon per person, per visit.

Review: Denny's - Southern Slam

Denny's new Southern Slam is something they're offering as part of a Tour of America promotional menu. The meal includes two eggs, two strips of bacon or two sausage links,
a side of grits, and a open-faced biscuit with sausage gravy except they ran out of biscuits and I was left with an English muffin instead.

The price is not too bad at $5.99.

Around the World: The Biggest McMenu, Part Nine

Here we are! Part nine of the Biggest McMenu, highlighting all the various "Mc-" menu items from McDonald's restaurants all around the globe. It's also the last part since I'm all out of "Mc-" items.

In Malaysia, you can go to McDonald's and get a local dish, the Bubur Ayam McD, a rice porridge with chicken, green onions, sliced ginger, fried shallots, and diced chilies. It's only about $1.44 a bowl.

Neat! King's Hawaiian Hot Dog Buns

King's Hawaiian makes hot dog buns now! I was pretty excited to see this since I love their rolls and there's a local hot dog chains around here use the actually King's Rolls for hot dog and hamburger buns.

What makes them especially nice is that the sides are exposed and give a nice grilling surface.