Keeping up with BK's test kitchen

Burger King’s test kitchen has been such a hive of activity that it’s hard to recollect all the new or newly revised products that have recently moved beyond the test phase. Carrols Restaurant Group, the chain’s largest franchisee, provided a recap to its investors yesterday. Here are the highlights:

--A new, thicker cut French fry that’s being quietly rolled out. Quality Restaurants, another large franchisee, switched to the new sides a few weeks earlier. Carrols adopted the thicker cut in late October.

--Better bacon. The coarser-cut strips are delivered raw to stores and cooked on the premises so they’re a fresher garnish or breakfast side.

--The Chef’s Choice, a one-third-plus (5.5-ounce) premium burger with a price to match: $4.99. Although Carrols officials didn’t say it, the sandwich appears to be Burger King’s answer to McDonald’s one-third-pound Angus line.

--BK Toppers, a line of garnished, 3.2-ounce burgers priced as a middle option, at $1.99. The array fills the gap between the new BK Minis, the sliders that were introduced earlier this year, and the Chef’s Choice and Whopper.

--Soft-serve ice cream, introduced this summer as a loss leader (buy a meal, get one free; Carrols said it provided 100 free cones a day during the warmer weather.)

--Smoothies, which appear to be still in the refinement stage.

Carrols said it’s encouraged by the performance of the products it’s recently adopted. “We are optimistic and hopeful that as we move forward, Burger King will begin to regain market share, expand its customer base and experience sustainable traction in its performance,” said president/COO Dan Accordino, who’ll be taking over the burger operation when longtime CEO Alan Vituli retires at the end of the year.

Accordino didn’t acknowledge the menu change that made headlines this week, the rollout of new kids meals that bring back the chain’s giveaway crown, once a BK signature. The meals are available with apple slices instead of French fries, a counter to the health-oriented option that McDonald’s is currently adopting.

Playing with an anti-restaurant message

Health advocates blast restaurant chains for using toys to influence kids’ thinking. But it looks as if the industry is being victimized by the same dynamic.

Snap on the TV during Saturday morning cartoons and you’ll likely see a commercial for what promises to be a popular toy this holiday season. It’s called Pop the Pig, and it features a sizeable plastic pig sitting on its haunches, mouth agape. It’s the centerpiece of a game where the players take turns feeding fast-food-style hamburgers into the pig until the belt around its balloon-like belly pops open.

The indirect message is clear: Keep wolfing down those burgers and you’ll burst like an overstuffed pig.

Menu-labeling information is apparently not included.

New York City, the new fast-food capital

Once upon a time, New York City set the fine-dining fashions for the rest of the country, if not much of the world. But someone swapped its toque for a baseball cap and replaced the starched linen napkins with paper disposables. Much of the city’s restaurant innovation these days is coming in fast food.

The city has been a hotbed of quick-service innovation, giving rise to such on-the-fringe concepts as Otarian, a health-oriented, all-natural start-up from an Australian billionaire. It may be the first grab-and-go operation in the country to provide the carbon footprint of each item offered.

A start-up in the same vein, 4Food, will begin serving all-natural doughnut-shaped burgers in September from a midtown location. The proprietor, who lists Bill Niman of natural-pork-supplier Niman Ranch as an investor, said the hole in the middle of the burger ring will be filled with mushroom, reducing a sandwich’s caloric content. Hence the signature’s name: The W(hole)burger.

Servers will use iPads to take orders, and customers can place their selections from their home computers and pick up the food. Patrons will be encouraged to invent new variations and tweet the names to friends. If those pals order the item, the inventor can amass points for rewards.

But those are only two in a torrent of new quick-service places sprouting in the Big Apple. As previously reported here, the city is the U.S. port of entry for a new pasta place, Nooi, as well as a European upstart with some American ties, called Hello Pasta!

But not all the innovation is coming in the form of new concepts. Burger King announced yesterday that it’ll try a new product called the NY Pizza Burger at its newest Manhattan outlet, a riff called the Whopper Bar. It’s apparently a bunch of Whoppers served together in the shape of a pizza, which is cut into slices for sharing.

This is pretty heady stuff for a city who’s earlier contributions to fast-food were largely limited to soup concepts, thanks to the Soup Nazi episode on “Seinfeld,” and the Cosi flatbread sandwich chain.

Of course we largely did relay to the world such quick-service staples as pizza, bagels, hot dogs and Chinese food. But how can those compare to a doughnut-shaped burger?

Wendy's bold salad bid

By 2002, most fast-food chains were offering a salad of some shape or form, and it was fine.

Then Wendy’s replaced its greens with an upscale line, and it was better. Much, much better. Before long, the burger chain’s sales were soaring, and every other brand, from McDonald’s down, was replacing its plate of wilted iceberg lettuce with fresher, higher-quality ingredients.

They’d eventually catch up and outperform Wendy’s, in part because they’d matched its bid for women and the health-oriented, in larger part because they added more menu items targeted at the quality-conscious. Price and consistency remained important, but fast-food shifted decidedly up-market. Witness the rise of fast-casual challengers like Chipotle and Five Guys.

Now Wendy’s is replacing its Garden Sensations line with an even more ambitious array of salads. They feature ingredients like crumbled bleu cheese, applewood-smoked bacon, fresh pico de gallo made on premise, and a mix of spring field greens. Included are some locally purchased ingredients, according to Rick Tramonto, the white-tablecloth chef who was retained by Wendy’s to help introduce the salads at a press function today in New York.

As executives explain, the new choices are intended to be as good as what you might order in a well-rated independent café. But, at $5.99, they’re priced at a relative bargain rate.

So the hanging question is, Will lightning strike twice? Will this be the entry that restores Wendy’s reputation as the high-quality entrant among the mainstream quick-service chains?

I tried two of the salads, the BLT Cobb and the Apple Pecan, at the press function, and they were good. Very good. A Wendy’s representative noted that the salads had been delivered by a nearby unit; the chain didn’t stack the deck by having Tramonto prepare the batch, though he did demonstrate how they were made.

As far as quality goes, Wendy’s has nailed it. The price is also a bargain, at least by New York standards. We abound in tossed-to-order salad places, where you pick the ingredients and they’re combined for you—at a cost of roughly $6 to $12.
A $5.99 price tag might be a bit steep for some areas, but of course there’s no reason every market has to charge that much, especially when the replaced salads sold for a dollar less.

But there are two important differences between Wendy’s game-changing 2002 introduction and its current salad update.
Back then, it seemed almost reckless in aiming so high with a fast-food product. Mandarin orange sections? On a salad that’s sold via a drive-thru? What’s next, grilled ribs on a burger menu?

Being best-in-class is tougher these days. Consider, for instance, the salmon-topped salad that Panera Bread offered as a limited-time offer. Even when more mundane toppings are used, Panera can boast about the special supply process it engineered to keep the lettuce fresher and crisper.

The competition is clearly steeper these days. Still, Wendy’s doesn’t have to tip its salad tongs to anyone. If it can consistently deliver at the level of quality that was evident today, it’s making a legitimate claim to being the sector’s standard.

But there is another factor that comes into play. The sales setting for fast-food is far more important today than it was back in 2002. As I noted in an earlier post, the grab-and-go brands now want you to sit for awhile, or at least feel as if you’re in a restaurant rather than some food factory. A slew of chains are trying to close the gap on full-service restaurants in terms of design as well as menu.

One of the few exceptions to that trend, at least at present, appears to be Wendy’s.

For the convenience-minded, that’s not an issue. But if food quality and the caliber of the setting are indeed becoming intertwined in the mind of the up-market fast-food customer, Wendy’s may have to hire an interior designer quickly.
The new salads could be the recruitment enticement—and the inspiration for a new generation of Wendy’s.

For sale: Restaurant barbells, right price

In the beginning, there was pricing. A restaurant set the charges for menu items on the basis of cost and what patrons were willing to spend.

Then hard times hit, and the chain portion of the industry resorted to what it cleverly called barbell pricing. For the everyday bargain hunter, the big brands offered head-turning deals like a dollar menu. At the other end of the barbell, they sported premium items with a price to match, hoping to snag a higher-margin purchase from sports who felt like splurging.

Now you can scratch “barbell” from the glossary. A single label has yet to emerge, but several bellwether chains are already switching to new and more complex pricing strategies. The approaches differ, but they share the common feature of more precise segmentation.

McDonald’s calls its variety “four-tier pricing.” It’s shifting to a model with four categories of products arrayed by price: Everyday value, or what was once the bargain end of the barbell; core items, with a mid-scale price to match; premium items; and the new fourth tier, or smaller servings of premium selections offered accordingly at a lower price.

The prime example in the United States is the new Mac Snack Wrap, essentially the guts of a Big Mac wrapped in a tortilla. Overseas, McDonald’s offers such four-tier items as the Petite Du Jour in France and the Little Taster sliders in the United Kingdom.

The products are intended to prompt a trade-up by customers who normally purchase off the lower-priced bargain menu. The Mac Snack Wrap, for instance, costs $1.39 in the states, compared with the Dollar Menu.

The items are also seen as a way of building add-on sales. Customers might buy a core item, then try a Mac wrap—in essence, a premium item at a high-value price.

Burger King is taking a different approach with what it’s calling four-corner pricing. Speaking recently to Wall Street, BK executives cited the strategy as a key component of its efforts to build profit margins, but declined to provide details. Their sketchy description suggested that analytics are being used at the store level to help units find the ideal price that their market will bear.

Chain officials said the new strategy was the “primary difference” between the financial performances of company-operated and franchised stores during the last quarter of 2009. The model has now been rolled out to all the licensees, the execs noted.

Starbucks is similarly adjusting prices on a market-by-market basis. The new “architecture,” in the words of execs, is now in place at 90% of the chain’s U.S. outlets.

In a recent conference call with analysts, they described the new approach as a pricing rationalization. Prices were raised or lowered to satisfy the price sensitivities of markets, based in part on demographics and customer reaction. In some instance, that meant dropping charges on selected items. In others, it involved “adjusting some of the more complex costly products,” said CFO Tory Alstead.

Translation: Rising prices on some items to preserve margins, provided consumers don’t balk.

Perhaps not coincidentally, two points of Starbucks recent 3% rise in comp sales were attributed to pricing gains.

The success enjoyed by McDonald’s, Burger King and Starbucks with their new pricing approaches is likely to prompt more pinpoint pricing, at least in fast-food.

Which means the market is about to be flooded with barbells—and possibly some dumbbells, too, if the followers don’t do it right.

Educating Peter

Here’s what I learned so far today about the business of restaurants:

Slash time?
While the rest of fast food was slashing prices like a crazed TV pitchman, Carl’s Jr. continued to tout the heft and quality of its specialties. It’s an admirable high-road strategy, but today’s financial update from the chain’s parent suggests it’s time to hone the blade and get a-cuttin’.

The regional burger chain posted comp-store declines of 8.7% for the quarter and 9 percent for the month ended Jan. 25. In contrast, Hardee’s, a more value-oriented sister brand, reported slips of 2.5 and 2.8%, respectively. Both are part of CKE Restaurants, which also owns the Red Burrito and Green Burrito concepts.

Recently, Carl’s has put more of a spotlight on the heft of its products, an apparent effort to suggest value without sacrificing check size. It remains to be seen if that approach will help in halting a slide in traffic.

But don’t expect the brand to switch directions and slash prices the way competitors have. “We will continue to focus on the excellent value-for-the money of our premium products,” CKE CEO Andy Puzder said in announcing the financial results.

Levy clan must have ketchup for blood
The Levy family, one of Chicago’s more renowned restaurant dynasties, is Pollo Campero’s franchisee for Illinois and Florida. The clan is also still hatching new concepts. For instance, its Levy Campero operation has partnered with the chicken chain’s franchisor to create a new health-oriented concept for Downtown Disney, the nighttime entertainment complex near Walt Disney World in Orlando.

The place will feature Campero’s Latin-style chicken, salads and wraps made with fresh ingredients.

Restaurateurs to get some on Valentine's Day
Lovers may be skimping on presents this Valentine’s Day, but the quest for amour won’t curb their dining out.

So report the incurable romantics at Crain’s New York Business. The typical gift giver will spend $63.34 cents on flowers, candy or whatever this Feb. 14, as compared with an average of $67.22 last year, according to National Retail Federation data cited by Crain’s in this week’s edition.

Yet restaurants will do better this year than they did on lover’s day of last year, according to other sources in the article. Because Feb. 14 falls on a Sunday this year, right in the middle of a three-day weekend, people will be dining out with less reserve, asserted IBIS World, a research firm.

My day on the restaurant savannah

I’m on safari this week for that most elusive of beasts, the free-spending consumer. Word reached camp of a gaggle converging at the midday feeding spots of my suburban hometown. So off I zoomed in my four-wheel-drive upholstered bushwhacker, eager to observe the habits of this prized and seemingly endangered prey.

The question was where. I picked up the trail in a section of the suburban wilds known to local tribesmen as a strip mall. The peculiar formation of neon and hardtop is a favored spot of the species’ juveniles, but this was the time of day when most hang out in schools rather than in small foraging packs. Indeed, the specimens milling outside what naturalists call a chain restaurant were decidedly long in the tooth. Perhaps they were the stragglers of a free-spending herd inside.

No such luck. There were all of six grey-heads at the trough, seemingly enjoying the shelter more than the food. Indeed, they weren’t even spending. Yet this was prime feeding time. Why such a sparse turnout?

The mystery deepened as I scouted the savannah for other traces of the dollar-wielding consumer. A local pizzeria was packed. Ditto for a hole-in-the-wall with the unlikely dual specialties of pizza and soup.

A bagel shop, a one-of-a-kind known throughout the region, didn’t even necessitate a stop-by. I knew it would be packed.

And I could’ve been trampled in a local upscale market. Perhaps it was the aroma of the food as the chefs spooned it from pan to platter behind a chest-high glass wall, handing out samples as they worked. Here, craning their necks as they bayed for a taste, were my wallet-emptying foragers. They huddled near the imported cheeses, and two females appeared ready to butt heads over a choice piece of foccacia on display. Some looked ready to purr over their ready-to-eat purchases.

A scientist would smile and say, What do you expect? It’s quality that draws the trophy customers, not value or marketing dollars.

Yet that only begins to tell the story. I had pulled a Dian Fosse and eaten with the subjects of my observations at the chain restaurant. It proved a harrowing experience. I had ordered two things. Before I could even finish saying Item I, the counter-person had cut me off, demanding—and I mean demanding—to know if I wanted cheese on it. Interrogators use a warmer tone.

Then, even though I had only ordered two things, and I was the only customer, he botched my request and input only one selection in the POS. He wasn’t happy when I pointed out that I wanted a soda with my burger. His day was clearly ruined, so tragically that he finally had to pick up a pencil and manually figure out my tab, sighing the whole time. At $3.24, I’d bet my home it was off considerably.

Then I had the Wild Kingdom experience of listening to the mathematician and his colleagues as they discussed my request in Spanish, at one point with a hearty guffaw. It had a vaguely menacing feel, like hearing strange sounds in a thick wood.

The food, in contrast, was good. Not on par with the gourmet shop, to be sure, but a notch or two above my expectations for a feeding spot of that price range. And definitely in the same range qualitywise as local pizza-by-the-slice.

No, the problema for restaurant chains go beyond a yearning to get better quality for the dollars we can crowbar out of our wallets during these bruising days. It seems as if too many members of that pack have forgotten they’re a service breed first and foremost, and what they really deliver is an experience, not stuff.

Sometimes a leopard has to change its spots if it doesn’t want to get skinned.

Trends from U.S. chain menus, words from N.Y.

Fast-food, that most American of social constructs, is turning downright jingoistic in its sourcing.

Cock an ear to Wendy’s new ad campaign and you’ll hear the chain boast of using only North American beef in its square burgers. Fuddruckers, the chain that was fast-casual before fast-casual was cool, is more pointed in its nationalism. Units in Texas and New Mexico have switched to a proprietary grind called Fudds Prime, made exclusively with “All-American” prime beef from “select U.S. ranches,” the announcement sniffs. Chew on that gristle, Canada and Australia.

The rah-rah mentions of homefront ingredients are part of a larger struggle by the chain business to accommodate the public’s insistence that it be told the source of what it’s eating. Ideally, that point of origin would be a local one. Indeed, the demand for locally grown produce was forecast by chef-participants in a National Restaurant Association survey to be the Number One consumer trend of 2009.

The menus of many independent restaurants show those respondents were dead-on. The shorter the distance from field to fork, the louder the establishment tends to crow about it in menu descriptors. Not that it’s obnoxious at all. Guests want that sort of horn blowing. Why not brag about the seasonal items you’re putting on the plate?

But it’s hard to serve up that kind of lingo when you’re a sprawling chain with a nationwide supply system. Their economics call for low-cost ingredients hyper-processed to the point of absolute consistency and cooking readiness. Just add heat, forget about seasonal freshness. It was a trend many figured they’d watch independent counterparts enjoy without challenge.

Wrong. It took awhile, but regional chains are clearly finding religion. And even the national ones are buying local ingredients in some spots—or at least spotlighting the instances where that’s been the practice. Outback Steakhouses in the Louisiana area have apparently always used shrimp harvested by the state’s Gulf shrimpers. It briefly changed its mind because imported shrimp was selling at a lower price, then opted in the eleventh hour to stay local. The news prompted Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal to hold a press conference where he lauded the casual chain as the video cameras hummed.

Last month, New England-based Papa Gino’s Pizzeria and its sandwich-serving sister, D’Angelo’s, added a bunch of products that feature Cheddar cheese produced in Vermont. The chains were aiming for what one executive called “a distinctive New England flavor,” which you don’t usually associate with pizzas or subs. Yet “Vermont Cheddar” is included in all but one of the new products’ names (the exception, a Bruschetta, incorporates just “Cheddar”).

This summer, the New England outposts of Panera Bread Co. featured a lobster sandwich, a local favorite usually described as a lobster roll. It was priced at $16.99.

Units of the Smashburger fast-casual chain feature reginal riffs on burgers and hot dogs (i.e., Colorado units feature the popular local topping of green chilis), and the Kona Grill casual chain told investors that it'll introduce a menu next month that includes a section for local favorites from any given store's host area.

Then there’s the poster-concept of the localization movement among chains, the Pacific Northwest’s 38-unit Burgerville group. Right now the brand is featuring sweet potato fries made from local sweet potatoes, which are currently in season. It’s also featured Washington State cherries, in a Cherry Chipotle Pulled Pork Sandwich, and is currently touting a hotdog garnished with a slaw made of local apples.

The novelty of finding local ingredients on chains’ menus should start to wear off as several large-scale players start shopping closer to their stores. Chipotle Mexican Grill, for instance, has pledged to purchase 35% of at least one produce item per restaurant from local farmers.

With roughly 900 branches, Chipotle may be the largest chain to pursue seasonal fare. But it’s certainly not the first, nor the model example. Critics have noted that its so-called local fare may be drawn from a 250-mile radius, which certainly stretches the definition.

Contrast that with Eat’n Park, the Pittsburgh-based family dining chain. The company has a director of sourcing and sustainability who goes out to find farmers who can supply the chain. When local items like radishes are used by any of the brand’s 75 stores, notice is often given to customers via the chain’s blog.

Those early adapters are being joined by the likes of Darden Restaurants, best known as the parent of Red Lobster and Olive Garden. Its youngest brand, Seasons 52, features seasonal ingredients blended into entrees with fewer than 475 calories.

P.F. Chang’s, a strong competitor to Darden, has invested in a start-up concept called True Food Kitchen. Like Seasons 52, it features seasonal fare, but goes a step further to use local and organic foodstuffs.

Where chains can’t tout the use of local ingredients, they’re doing the next best thing of highlighting the source. Seasons 52, for instance, is currently featuring Colorado Buffalo Chili, Canadian Black Mussels Marinara and a Gulf Shrimp Cocktail.

Is there any doubt that the source-naming trend, and the local variant in particular, is going to continue?

Indeed, there’s one form in particular that we’re likely to see. It’s not widely known by the public, but outlets of the giant burger chains buy their buns from a network of regional or local bakeries set up by the home office. Those suppliers aren’t exactly mom-and-pop shops. But they do offer an opportunity for the behemoths of the business to tout a little localization. I bet we see that start to happen, sooner versus later.

Opening eyes to a greener reality

A new survey reveals that 80% of the public doesn’t know of a fast-food chain that’s trying to be green. That’s astounding, given how often I’m writing about the ecological efforts of McDonald’s, Starbucks, Taco Bell, Burger King, Carl’s Jr. and Dunkin’ Donuts, to name just a few of the sector’s green activists.

The findings by M/A/R/C Research point to a public relations disaster for the segment. Consider that the data, based on an online poll of some 7,000 consumers, also reveal that 62% of the public would be drawn to a quick-service place that was eco-minded, and that 21% would increase their visits if fast-food restaurants were green.

There can really be only two explanations. The obvious one is that the chains are doing a lousy job of letting the public know how they’re striving to be more ecologically responsible. Maybe they’re afraid of being accused of not doing enough, or of being slammed for “greenwashing,” a serious crime among the eco-minded. That community is sensitive to over-hyped or false claims of helping the environment.

But the other possibility is more problematic for the industry. What if the public is refusing to see what the chains are doing? If that sounds crazy, consider this excerpt from a Letter to the Editor that recently ran in the Santa Barbara Independent:

We are shocked and dismayed that a McDonald's restaurant on State Street has been certified by the Green Business Program of Santa Barbara County.

What's next, giving an award to Monsanto for putting up a single solar panel?

While we are sure that the local owner of this McDonald's franchise was sincere in trying to reduce his or her carbon footprint (and save a few dollars) by putting in waterless urinals, an Energy Star ice machine, and an upgraded irrigation system, it is a bad joke to "certify" this as a green business. It makes a mockery of genuine efforts toward true sustainability.

In our opinion, this award is one of the most egregious cases of greenwashing we have ever seen. — Larry Saltzman and Linda Buzzell, founders, Santa Barbara Organic Garden Club

Like it or not, McDonald’s is taking substantive steps to be greener, from exploring alternative energy sources to testing ways an operation of its size could feasibly compost its food scraps.

And it’s just one of the fast-food concepts that are trying to act more responsibly. Undoubtedly, those steps are still small ones right now. They’re balanced against the impact on profits. And maybe there’s more that should be done. We can even concede that the impetus may be public pressure, from employees and eco-minded shareholders as much as patrons.

But there is a lot being done by the industry—right now, primarily by fast-food chains and independents. The trade has to focus on making the public see and appreciate that effort.

Cracker Barrel's return volley

After losing customers to fast-food places, chains like IHOP and Denny’s are fighting back with grab-and-go outlets of their own. IHOP, for instance, is testing a limited-service mutation called IHOP Cafe, where the menu is limited to wraps, sandwiches and a few other portable items. Denny’s calls its entrant Fresh Express, a section set up within existing stores as a takeout station. Bakers Square and Big Boy have similar experiments underway.

But Cracker Barrel, one of that sector’s powerhouses, is betting against them. Instead of creating a new set-up for patrons in a hurry, the country-store-themed chain is trying to compress a sit-down meal into a tighter timeframe. Tests of the Seat to Eat program have cut patrons’ wait times for a meal to less than 14 minutes, CEO Michael Woodhouse told investors yesterday. Starting next month, the initiative will be expanded to include all stores, though the process will stretch to 18 months in part because of the capital requirements.

Executives didn’t reveal the price of changing units’ kitchen configurations to accommodate Seat to Eat, but they noted that it would be part of a $30-million budget that also covers maintenance and the opening of seven stores. Other comments suggested the outlay could be in the $13-million range, with about half spent in 2010.

Woodhouse called it “an integrative tool to drive store traffic and increase productivity.”

Way better than Padma

I don't know why Hardee's is bothering with yet another racing-themed marketing push when it's already using the gold standard against which all other racing commercials will be forever judged. Indeed, I can't understand why this campaign (I think we're up to episode six) isn't getting more attention. Check it out:

No limo drive-thrus for this Presidency

Much has been written about the White House's planned organic garden, where children--presumably the President's as well as others--can learn about healthy eating. Sasha and Malia have already absorbed the concept that fast-food can be very bad for you--much to the frustration of Michelle Obama. Here's an excerpt from a story that was published yesterday on the New York Times' website:

Yet her efforts to teach her daughters about eating right have been successful enough that there are now certain fast-food places — she declined to identify them — where the girls themselves refuse to go.

“Some of them I want to go to, because it’s quick and easy,” Mrs. Obama said, “and you figure, ‘Well, we ate fine all week, guys, let’s go get this.’ They’re like, ‘No, Mommy, we won’t be eating there.’ And I feel like, ‘Darn, where are we going to go?’

The article also reveals that Mrs. Obama is a big fan of French fries. “I could live on French fries,” she said.

Fast-food's new stealth ad

There's nothing in a buzz-stoking new restaurant commercial that identifies the advertiser or what it's pushing. But it's obvious burgers aren't the product. An artist supposedly uses 10 of them (he says 14 in web postings) to recreate an art masterpiece in grease. Only when you go to the touted website, burgergreaseart.com, do you learn who's really plugging what. A hint: Siblings don't always play nice.

See the commercial for yourself:

Diet group vows to go gut-to-gut with fast food

An advocacy group called Corporate Accountability International sent letters today to the Big Four U.S. fast-food companies, basically telling them, “You’re mine, bitch.” As a simultaneous press announcement explained, the group is commencing a war to secure such concessions as having McDonald’s, Burger King, Wendy’s/Arby’s and Yum! Brands pick up the health-care expenses for diet-related illnesses.

The Boston-based organization has targeted those companies and their nine chains, but its mission extends to the whole fast-food sector. For instance, it wants to stop fast-food advertising and promotions aimed at minors. It’s also calling on the business to “not interfere” in efforts to ban or limit fast-food sales.

“The campaign aims to stem the global tide of diet-related disease, in which fast food giants are playing a central role,” states the press release.

The 32-year-old CAI claims it’s been successful in curbing past abuses by corporate giants (and foodservice industry vendors) like Nestle and General Electric. Tobacco and bottled water, a major product line of Nestle, seem like particular areas of pressure.

The text of the letters was not disclosed, so it’s unclear if the tone was cordial, demanding or out-and-out threatening. I’m putting my money on the latter. Check out the group’s special industry-related website to find out why.

More blurring of retail/restaurant line

The resilience of the fast-food market during these perilous times hasn’t gone unnoticed by BJ’s, the regional club store chain. Executives told investors the warehouse membership chain expects revenues to rise by 4 to 6% during 2009, driven by increased sales at in-store food courts. And that’s after a 4% rise in revenues during the last three months of ’08, which they attributed to only two factors: food courts and propane sales.

Understandably, the retailer cited food courts as a primary strategic focus for 2009, along with product demos, a signature of arch-rival Costco.

Costco, meanwhile, says its food court business is also going strong, though officials did not divulge figures during their conference call with investors. They did note, however, that sales of take-home items like pizza have soared "dramatically." Costco's signature deal is a quarter-pound hot dog and a 24-oz. soda, sold as a meal for $1.50.

BJ's execs attributed the improved performance of that chain’s food courts to an emphasis on quality and the addition of such brands as Uno’s, Ben & Jerry’s and Green Mountain Coffee. BJ’s currently has 180 stores in 15 states.

The officials noted that sales of prepared meals were strong during the fourth quarter of 2008, but did not break out figures.

Meanwhile, they said, stores’ frozen-food departments saw “very strong sales” of products affiliated with restaurant chains, including The Cheesecake Factory, the Fresh City fast-casual chain, Panera Bread Co., Legal Sea Foods and Boston Market. The retailer also now stocks products licensed by Todd English, the famed chef.

Another point likely of interest to restaurateurs: BJ’s sales of organic and natural foods soared 20%.

How McD's lost Phelps to Subway

Michael Phelps volunteered throughout his domination of Olympics coverage that he was a diehard McDonald's fan. Now he's signed on as a pitchman for the arch-rival Subway chain. How did the Golden Arches miss a chance to enlist the Man of Gold in its marketing efforts? A perception of health apparently appeals to more than the weekend-warrior set. See Advertising Age's full explanation.