News: Wendy's - New Lemonade and Wild Berry Lemonade

Wendy's is touting their new "all-natural" Lemonade and Wild Berry Lemonade this summer.

What does "all-natural" mean in this case? It means it's made of real lemon juice and cane sugar with no artificial colors and preservatives. It does not appear to be freshly-squeeze daily like Chick-fil-A though and beside sugar, "lemon juice & concentrate" is how it's listed in the ingredients.

Still, it's a step up from instant or plain old "from concentrate" lemonade.

News: Pillsbury - New Sweet Moments Bite-Sized Brownie Flavors

I don't think I've ever even seen these but Pillsbury has two new flavors of their Sweet Moments Bite Sized Brownies: Caramel Brownie Cheesecake and Raspberry Brownie Cheesecake.

The new flavors feature a combination of rich brownie layered with cheesecake with either a caramel or raspberry filling between them, encapsulated in a chocolaty shell and cocoa drizzle.

They're found in the refrigerated section at grocers nationwide next to Pillsbury refrigerated dough product; if you somehow mistake one for the other, you could end up with a mouthful of uncooked dough.

Retail pricing on these is $3.19 for a package of 12 bites.

News: El Pollo Loco - Brand Nuevo Grilled Chicken Burritos

In a bit of un-inspired nomenclature, El Pollo Loco has four Brand Nuevo Grilled Chicken Burritos. "Nuevo" means "new" in Spanish so basically El Pollo Loco has four new "brand new" Burritos.

The Brand Nuevo Grilled Chicken Burritos costs $5.00 and come in four varieties:

Review: Chick-fil-A - Multigrain Oatmeal

Chick-fil-A's new Multigrain Oatmeal comes in an 8-ounce bowl and features a mix of steel-cut oats, rolled oats, flax, buckwheat flour and whole wheat flour and three packets of toppings: cinnamon brown sugar, roasted mixed nuts (almonds, pecans and walnuts) or a dried fruit blend (cranberries, blueberries, golden raisins and cherries) that you can use as you wish for $2.79.

News: Baskin-Robbins - Picnic Punch - August 2011 Flavor of the Month

Baskin-Robbins' featured flavor for the month of August 2011 is the summer-themed Picnic Punch sherbet.

The new flavor features watermelon and green apple sherbet swirled together.

Picnic Punch sherbet is available nationwide during the month of August by the scoop (in a cup or cone), in a sundae or in hand-packed pints, quarts and half-gallons.

As always, samples are available gratis in those mini pink sample spoons.

News: Jack in the Box - New Jumbo Breakfast Platter

Jack in the Box now has their own breakfast platter to throw into the fast food breakfast fray with the new, limited-time Jumbo Breakfast Platter.

Similar to competing options at McDonald's (Deluxe Breakfast) and Burger King (BK Ultimate Breakfast Platter), the Jumbo Breakfast Platter features mini pancakes, scrambled eggs, hash brown sticks and a choice of bacon or sausage for a budget-friendly price of $2.99 (may vary).

News: Wendy's - New Monterey Ranch Crispy Chicken Sandwich and Crispy Chicken Caesar Wrap

Wendy's has introduced two new items to their Everyday Value Menu with the Monterey Ranch Crispy Chicken Sandwich and the Crispy Chicken Caesar Wrap.

Both items are available for 99 cents each and are built around Wendy's value crispy chicken patty.

News: Del Taco - New Chipotle Value Bean & Cheese Burrito for 59 Cents

On the cheaper side of cheap, Del Taco is offering the new, limited time Chipotle Value Bean & Cheese Burrito for 59 cents.

The burrito features slow-cooked beans, freshly-grated cheddar cheese, and a creamy chipotle sauce wrapped up in a flour tortilla.

News: Del Taco - New Nacho Crunch Burrito

Del Taco has a new Nacho Crunch Burrito out featuring seasoned ground beef, slow-cooked beans, warm nacho cheese sauce, crunchy tortilla chips, and sour cream wrapped up in a flour tortilla.

The Nacho Crunch Burrito is available individually for $1.29 or as part of a 5 Item Meal for $5 which is similar to Taco Bell's $5 Buck Box and includes the burrito, two regular tacos, small fries, and a small drink.

You can also score one for free with any purchase via printable coupon by "liking" Del Taco on Facebook.

News: Subway - Buffalo Chicken is the August $5 Featured Footlong

It's August which means Subway is once again showcasing another sub for their monthly $5 Featured Footlong. This month Buffalo Chicken is the offered for the promo price of $5 for a footlong sub all month long.

Buffalo Chicken features sliced, grilled (at some point) chicken strips, spicy buffalo sauce, and ranch sauce plus your choice of veggies, cheese and bread.

It returned permanently to the Subway menu last summer.

News: KFC - ColonelSanders.com to Collect Memories of KFC Founder

In a mix of marketing and nostalgic memories, KFC is soliciting your stories, photos, videos, etc. about KFC Founder, Colonel Harlan Sanders, in a website dedicated to the KFC icon and founder at www.ColonelSanders.com.

More like a virtual museum than a commercial website, the site seeks to preserve the legacy of KFC's founder through an archive of personal stories, video, photos, and quotes.

I have to say, looking through the website, the guy lived quite an interesting life with a story that sounds more like folklore than history.

Review: Oscar Mayer - Lunchables Chicken Dunks

Oscar Mayer's Lunchables Chicken Dunks is a kid-themed on-the-go lunch option featuring 5 pre-cooked chicken nuggets, ketchup, a pouch of 100% fruit juice, and an Airheads Blue Raspberry taffy candy.

They're normally about $2.49 for a 3.8-ounce box (plus 6 fluid ounces for the juice) but can be found as low as $1.00 on sale.

Review: Poore Brothers - Salt & Cracked Pepper Kettle Cooked Potato Chips

Poore Brothers Salt & Cracked Pepper Kettle Cooked Potato Chips are of a brand I've never heard of but they were on sale at 99 cent for a 5-ounce bag (normally $1.99).

Frozen Friday: Haagen-Daz - Snack Size Coffee Almond Crunch Bars

Haagen-Daz recently started offering their premium ice cream bars in portion-controlled snack sizes so you could get your ice cream fix without over indulging in calories if you so chose.

Haagen-Daz Snack Size Coffee Armond Crunch Bars feature coffee ice cream dipped in milk chocolate, toffee, and almonds.

They come six 1.85-ounce bars to a box for a regular price of $5.79 or about $3.00 to $4.00 on sale.

Review: Burger King - Bacon Cheddar Ranch Tendercrisp

Available for a limited-time, Burger King's Bacon Cheddar Ranch Tendercrisp ups the flavor (and the salt) on BK's Tendercrisp Chicken Sandwich with the addition of bacon, onions, cheddar cheese, and a cheddar ranch sauce.

The price on the "BCR" Tendercrisp at my local Burger King was $4.59.

News: Hershey's - New Air Delight Chocolate

Hershey's is out with a new chocolate bar, Hershey's Air Delight Chocolate. Its special feature is that it's an aerated milk chocolate bar; something that is popular abroad in some countries but isn't so commonplace here in the States.

So what is aerated chocolate? It's basically chocolate with lots of tiny air bubbles blown in before it sets resulting in the same taste but a different texture due to the honeycomb-like structure within the chocolate.

Hershey's Air Delight Chocolate is available in 1.44-ounce bars as well as in 9.4-ounce bags of Hershey's Kisses.

News: Papa John's - New Double Layered Premium Pepperoni Pizza for $10

Papa John's latest limited-time pizza is the new Double Layered Premium Pepperoni Pizza which features traditional pizza sauce, topped with sliced pepperoni, then covered with mozzarella cheese, and finished with a layer of premium deli-style pepperoni and Italian herb seasonings.

A large Double Layered Premium Pepperoni Pizza is available for a limited-time for $10.

In addition to the promotion, Papa John's is currently offering, for a limited-time, any large pizza (up to 7 toppings), including specialties, for $11.

News: Subway - Bread Now with Vitamin D and Calcium

In an effort to improve the health content of their bread and their healthy options in general, Subway is now fortifying its bread with calcium and Vitamin D.

To be specific, each 6-inch serving of bread now provides 30% of the daily recommended value of calcium and 20% of the daily recommended value of Vitamin D which is equivalent to what's contained in a glass of milk.

Review: Taco Bell - Sausage and Egg Burrito

Another item off of Taco Bell's limited breakfast test, the Sausage and Egg Burrito is almost exactly that: it has bits of sausage, scrambled eggs, and melted, shredded cheese.

The price of the burrito is an easy-on-the-wallet 99 cents.

News: McDonald's - New, Healthier Happy Meals

As part of an ongoing initiative to offer improved nutritional choices, McDonald's will start rolling out a new Happy Meal this September with the goal of having them available in all McDonald's Restaurants in early 2012.

The new Happy Meal will offer, by default, a half serving of apples and a smaller serving of French Fries (1.1 ounces) along with the typical choice of a Hamburger, Cheeseburger, of 4-piece order of Chicken McNuggets and any beverage (including the healthier choices of new fat-free chocolate milk and 1% low fat milk). For those forgoing fries altogether, two bags of apples slices are available.