Global 2012: Japan's Epic Fast Food War Inspired These Crazy Menu Items

Current "blue crescent" logo (July 1, 1999–present) (Photo credit: Wikipedia)There's a marketing war going on in Japan's fast food industry. Everyone's trying to one-up each other amid intense competition.

In 2010, McDonald's and KFC had an all-out advertising war to win chicken-lovers across the nation. Wendy's couldn't handle the heat in 2009 and was forced to pull out. It didn't re-enter the market until the very end of 2011. International fast food titans have to deal with each other, plus, they have to compete with the many local chains, some of which are quite powerful.

Japan has had a recent interest in more sophisticated items, and as the chains keep pushing the envelope, you end up getting some pretty bizarre things on the menus.

Wendy's Foie Gras Burger
This $16 burger consists of a classic Wendy's beef patty loaded up with all the regular fixings plus a healthy dose of fatty duck liver.

McDonald's Mega McMuffin
The Mega McMuffin consists of two breakfast sausage patties, cheese, egg, bacon, and ketchup all between a classic McDonald's English muffin.

Burger King's NY Pizza Burger
This massive Burger King beef patty is topped with pepperoni, mozzarella and marinara sauce, and stacked on a 9-1/2-inch sesame seed bun.

McDonald's Ebi Filet-O
The McDonald's Ebi Filet-O features a fried shrimp patty, thousand island dressing, and lettuce.

Burger King's Meat Monster Burger
The Meat Monster loads two beef patties, a chicken breast, two slices of cheese, three pieces of bacon, lettuce, tomato, and onion onto a classic sesame bun.

Domino's Sirloin Steak Pizza
This is a classic Domino's pie topped with grilled eggplant, truffle cheese sauce, and thick slabs of premium sirloin steak.

McDonald's Chocolate and Orange Pie
This deep fried McDonald's pie shell is stuffed with gooey orange infused chocolate.

Burger King's BK Ringo Burger
Burger King slips a slice of flame-grilled apple into their Whopper Jr. giving their classic burger an extra special sweet twist.

Burger King's Big Bacon Bargain
The Big Bacon Bargain loads up to 15 strips of bacon onto any regular Burger King item for a limited time and a nominal fee.

McDonald's Mega Tomago
The Mega Tomago is essentially a classic Double Big Mac but with an egg patty and bacon.

Wendy's Lobster Surf And Turf Burger
A regular beef patty topped with lobster, lettuce, tomato, and onion make up this new, "premium" Wendy's creation.  Lobster Surf and Turf burgers are sold for about $16.

McDonald's Bacon, Egg, And Lettuce Wrap
This standard McDonald's breakfast wrap consists of bacon, egg, and... lettuce?

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/japan-s-epic-fast-food-war-inspired-these-crazy-menu-items.html

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Global 2012: Burger King Employee Stands on Lettuce

CHICAGO - AUGUST 24: A sign hangs outside a Burger King restaurant on August 24, 2010 in Chicago, Illinois. Burger King Holdings Inc., the No. 2 U.S. burger chain, reported its fourth-quarter net income fell nearly 17 percent following weak sales and increased costs for ingredients and packaging. (Image credit: Getty Images via @daylife)
Ever feel like nothing is secret any more because of the Internet? You may be right. It took 4Chan users only 15 minutes to track down and bust the Cleveland-area Burger King employee who stood on top of two containers of shredded lettuce and then posted a picture of the gross act. 4Chan is a bulletin board-type website where members post images and comments.

"This is the lettuce you eat at Burger King," wrote the unnamed employee on the evening of July 16. Guess he thought that was funny. Other users weren't laughing: according to Hypervocal.com, Anonymous, the notorious vigilante hacking group, used GPS data embedded in the photo to locate the fast food restaurant's address and reportedly contacted the franchise and FoxNews8. "Whoever this is is getting fired," a morning shift manager named Andrea, told the Cleveland Scene.

Bryson W. Thornton, Director of Burger King's Global Communications, wrote in a statement to Yahoo! Shine:

"Burger King Corp. has recently been made aware of a photo that shows a BURGER KING® restaurant employee violating the company's stringent food handling procedures. Food safety is a top priority at all BURGER KING® restaurants and the company maintains a zero-tolerance policy against any violations such as the one in question. The restaurant where this photo was taken is independently-owned and operated by a BURGER KING® franchisee. The franchisee has taken swift action to investigate this matter and terminated the three employees involved in the incident."

http://shine.yahoo.com/shine-food/burger-king-employee-stands-lettuce-busted-internet-163700384.html

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Global 2011: Ronald McDonald Fades as Chain Touts Lattes

Image via Wikipedia
As McDonald's Corp. (NYSE: MCD - News) morphs into a more upscale chain, there's one person you won't see munching salads, sipping a cappuccino and surfing the Web: Ronald McDonald, age 48.

While Ronald still plays an ambassador role, he isn't tied to the menu, says spokeswoman Danya Proud. Even as mascots like Burger King's King shill on TV and the Web, Ronald has ceded the limelight to budding singers and dancers who sell mochas and frappes -- not Happy Meals.

"We haven't been seeing a lot of Ronald McDonald," said Tim Calkins, a marketing professor at Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois. "They're beginning to appeal to much more sophisticated individuals."

Amid intensifying concern over surging obesity rates, the chain has distanced itself from its fast-food origins, adding cafe-friendly items such as fruit smoothies and dolling up restaurants with free WiFi and padded seats. While the shift helped to revive sales growth last year -- McDonald's has credited McCafe coffee for revenue growth in six of the past seven quarters -- the new adults-only ambiance leaves little room for Ronald.

"He kind of represents the old McDonald's, with the high- fat content foods that are kind of falling out of favor," said Bob Dorfman, the executive creative director at Baker Street Advertising in San Francisco. "It's clear that McDonald's is advertising coffee, they're not advertising burgers."

http://finance.yahoo.com/family-home/article/112237/ronald-mcdonald-fades-as-chain-changes?mod=family-kids_parents

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