Review: Wetzel's Pretzels - Original Pretzel

In the shopping malls in my area, Wetzel's Pretzels and Auntie Anne's tend to vie for the same territory. Both offer similar inventories but Wetzel's tends to cost a little less.

When I picked up this Original Pretzel (buttered without added pretzel salt), they were running a two for $4 special, but I ended up just getting one for $2.49.

Around the World: Pizza Hut Singapore's Latest is Basically a Calzone Crust Pizza

Pizza Hut Singapore has a bit of a rep for coming up with some strange pizzas, so it's no surprise when their latest, the new Fully Loaded Pizza, essentially has a crust made up of mini-calzones filled with cream cheese, minced chicken, and spinach.

Around the World: Wendy's Malaysia - New Pizzario Burger

Wendy's Malaysia's new Pizzario Burger attempts to mix pizza with burger by adding a tomato-based "Italian sauce" (i.e. pizza sauce) to a fairly standard cheeseburger.

Oddly enough, they went with American cheese rather than a more Italian provolone or mozzarella. The rest of the burger is pretty run-of-the-mill, if minimalistic: an Australian beef patty, chicken crisp (a halal stand-in for bacon), and toasted bun.

Review: Muller - FrutUp Yogurt with Fruit Mousse

Muller is a German brand of yogurt recently launched here in the US via a joint venture between Muller and PepsiCo through their Quaker brand. Muller FrutUps feature something I haven't seen before: a layer of fruit mousse on top of a equal layer of lowfat yogurt.

They were introduced last year but I've only ever seen them at Von's in my area. I picked up a Strawberry-flavored one and Lemon-flavored cup for 88 cents each on sale.

Around the World: McDonald's Norway Celebrates 30 Years with Anniversary Burger

McDonald's is celebrating 30 years in Norway by offering two menu items featuring Norwegian favorites: a special Anniversary Burger made with Jarlsberg cheese and a McFlurry made with Friea brand Norwegian milk chocolate.

Around the World: KFC Germany - New Indian Twister

While it has some traction abroad, curry isn't something that's been embraced by fast food chains in the US. Case in point: KFC has been offering the new Indian Twister all summer long over in Germany.

The new Indian Twister turns up the heat with a spicy curry sauce and jalapenos along with the standard two crispy chicken fillets, tomatoes, and lettuce.

Frozen Friday: Totino's - Jalapeno Popper Rolls

Totino's Jalapeno Popper Rolls are a new take on their popular Pizza Rolls. Rather than being filled with mozzarella, pepperoni, and sauce, the Jalapeno Popper Rolls are filled with just mozzarella and jalapenos.

A 17.4-ounce bag was $2.99 on sale.

Neat! Haagen-Daz - App Gives Concert While Ice Cream Softens

You know how sometimes when you grab your ice cream out of the fridge it can be rock hard if your freezer is too cold? Well, thanks to Haagen-Daz, there's an app for that! Sorta.

Haagen-Daz now offers a free "Concerto Timer" app for the iOS (i.e for iPhones and iPads), which plays a 2-minutes long virtual violin concerto when you run the app and point your camera at a carton of Haagen-Daz (or any other ice cream apparently). 

News: Ben & Jerry's - Two New Target-Exclusive Flavors

Ben & Jerry's now offers two new Target-exclusive flavors to replace Brownie Chew-Gooder and Berry Voluntary. Rather than a volunteer-theme, the new flavors sport a musical theme. They are Peanut Butter Jam Session and Rockin' Blondies.

Peanut Butter Jam Session features peanut butter ice cream with a crunchy peanut butter swirl and a raspberry swirl.

Review: Carl's Jr. / Hardee's - Fresh Baked Burger Bun

Carl's Jr. and Hardee's are in the middle of a test offering fresh-baked burger buns similar to the way they offer "Made-from-Scratch" biscuits. The fresh-baked buns are available at a few select locations and come standard with their Six-Dollar Burgers (or Thickburgers at Hardee's).

I happened upon a test location and picked up a Guacamole Bacon Six Dollar Burger for roughly $6 after tax ($5.59 before tax).

Around the World: KFC New Zealand Offers New Mexican Range

The latest promotion in New Zealand for KFC is the new, limited-time Mexican Range of sandwiches: The Mexican, Mexican Zinger, and Mexican Snack.

While the names make them sound like a person, a joke, and, perhaps, a churro, the sandwiches feature ingredients like Mexican bean salad (something I've never seen at a Mexican restaurant) and tortilla chips.

News: Wendy's Brings Back 99-cent Monterey Ranch Crispy Chicken Sandwich

As summer nears its end, Wendy's makes a value play by bringing back their Monterey Ranch Crispy Chicken Sandwich at 99 cents a pop for a limited time (I'm not sure they ever stopped serving it at my local Wendy's though).

The value chicken sandwich variants adds a slice of Monterey Jack cheese and ranch instead of mayo to the standard lettuce and breaded chicken patty.

Review: Taco Bell - Very Berry Waffle Taco Test

Taco Bell's Very Berry Waffle Taco is a test item currently being sold at a select few Taco Bell locations in Orange County. It features a waffle taco shell bent into a close approximation of a crunchy taco shell and folded around whipped cream, strawberries, and blueberries.

I paid 79 cents for one.

Around the World: McDonald's Italy's Sausage Baguette is Only Offered in Lazio Region

In what seems to an experiment in hyper-localizing a menu item, McDonald's Italy is offering a Sausage baguette sandwich only in the Lazio region of Italy.

News: McDonald's - New BLT Quarter Pounder

For a limited-time, McDonald's is offering the new BLT Quarter Pounder. If it looks more than a little familar to you, it's more or less a Deluxe Quarter Pounder with bacon added to it, which means it comes with a quarter pound beef patty, thick-cut Applewood smoked bacon, American cheese, tomato, leaf lettuce, red onion, crinkle-cut pickles, mayo, mustard, and a toasted bakery-style bun.

Review: Jack in the Box - BBQ Really Big Chicken Sandwich

Jack in the Box's limited-time BBQ Really Big Chicken Sandwich features two breaded chicken patties, two slices of cheese, bacon, barbecue sauce, and grilled onions on a toasted bun.

It's being sold for $3.99 in a combo with small fries and a 20-ounce drink.

News: Carl's Jr. / Hardee's - New Buffalo Blue Cheese Burger

To coincide with the beginning of football season, Carl's Jr. and Hardee's are offering the new, limited-time Buffalo Blue Cheese Burger as an homage to the popular tailgate combination of buffalo wings and blue cheese.

News: General Mills Brings Back Fruit Brute and Yummy Mummy

While they used to be available year round, Count Chocula and his Monster Cereal friends, Franken Berry and Boo Berry, have since been relegated to seasonal Halloween duties and it's that time of the year again. This year, the General Mills Halloween trio are joined by two monster flavors that haven't been seen in over 20 years: Fruit Brute and Yummy Mummy.

Review: Taco Bell - Fiery Doritos Locos Taco

Taco Bell's new Fiery Doritos Locos Taco doesn't officially drop until this Thursday, but it's actually available starting today if you just ask.

The third Doritos Locos Taco flavor features a spicy chili-lime flavored red shell along with the standard seasoned ground beef, lettuce, and shredded cheddar (plus diced tomatoes and sour cream if you go for the Supreme).

I picked up the Fiery Doritos Locos Taco Supreme for $1.69.

News: 7-Eleven - Free Snapple Lemon Daze on August 20

Users of 7-Eleven's mobile app can score themselves a free 16-ounce bottle of Snapple Lemon Daze on Tuesday, August 20 in celebration of National Lemonade Day.

A mobile coupon for the free bottle will be available in the app on August 20. To redeem it, simply show it to the cashier upon check out at participating 7-Eleven locations.

The app is available for both iOS (Apple) and Android mobile devices.