Wendy's International Inc.

Fast Food Workers Are Walking off the Job in 50 Cities Today, Including New York

Strike actions and rallies will dot the city today as fast food workers' frustrations will too-low wages and lack of collective bargaining rights come to a head. Fast food employees in 50 cities, including New York, will take to the streets for increases in pay and the right to organize unions witho ... More >>

Nick Lachey, Wendy's, and Hashtags: How to Sell a Cheeseburger in 2013

I am sent dozens of PR pitches a day. I am not some cutting-edge tastemaker; I get these because of my publicly listed email address and lax spam filter. I received one last week that was formatted like the others--boldfaced celebrity name, idiot-proof "WHAT/WHY/WHERE/WHEN" matrix, ironic public rel ... More >>

Wendy's Shareholder Meeting Protested by Fast-Food Employees and Farmworkers

While shareholders gathering inside the Sofitel for their annual meeting yesterday, multiple protests mobbed the sidewalks outside on West 44th Street. Outside the hotel lobby, a crowd of Fast-food workers organized by the Fast Food Forward campaign packed the sidewalk, chanting their central deman ... More >>

Watch The Wendy's Drive-Thru Rap That Went Viral

Aspiring rapper Mr. B, a.k.a. Belmont University freshman Blake Mankin, became the king of fast-food viral videos when this Wendy's drive-thru-inspired rap was featured on the Today Show's "What's Trending Today" segment. Mr. B heads to Wendy's with some pals to order burgers -- "I want everything ... More >>

Boycott at Brooklyn Wendy's Apparently Causes Owner to Rehire Worker Fired For Striking

Management at a Downtown Brooklyn Wendy's probably thought it was sending a stern message to its staff after one of its employees was fired this morning for participating in yesterday's city-wide walkout. Well, just hours after laying down the law, it appears that the owner stepped in and hired th ... More >>

Fast-Food Workers Walk Out Across NYC, Demand Higher Wages

Newly formed strike-organizer Fast Food Forward is coordinating a protest with hundreds of the city's fast-food workers today, beginning with the 280 Madison Avenue McDonald's at 6:30 this morning, where employees walked out demanding better wages. More strikes are expected today at noon in Penn S ... More >>

McDonald's Rolls Out Lamb Burgers . . . In Australia

OK. This is getting ridiculous. First came Pizza Hut's cheeseburger-stuffed pizza in the Middle East, mashed-potato vending machines by 7-Eleven in Singapore, fine dining at Pizza Huts in China, and more recently, lobster and caviar burgers in Japan by Wendy's. What is it this time? A "Serious Lam ... More >>

Goats

Caviar And Lobster Burgers At Wendy's... In Japan

[See More Absurdity: Hot Dog Chips | Rats for Dinner] We've reported on fine dining at chain restaurants before...but nothing as gourmet as this: Wendy's new caviar and lobster burgers. Of course, like most of these deals, it's not available in the United States. This one is in Japan for a limited ... More >>

Mysterious 'One-Night Stand' Signs Linked to Real Man! We Talk to Him!

Last week, the Voice brought you news that a New York man, reportedly in search of a one-night stand, was posting these arrangement-seeking signs around the city. We wanted to know whether his proposed dutch-dating/casual sex setup (meaning: "McDonald's, Wendy's, Popeyes, Subway," etc., for "female ... More >>

Checking Up on Wendy's 'Foie Gras Rossini' Burger

Curious about Wendy's Foie Gras Rossini burger? Sure you are. C.B. Cebulski, the food-loving talent scout for Marvel Comics, recently gave it a go in Tokyo. And it was so rich, he couldn't manage more than two bites.

Battle of the Black Label Burger

Pat LaFrieda, the meat purveyor of choice for top gourmet burger places like The Spotted Pig and Minetta Tavern, has challenged Wendy's over its use of the name "Black Label Burger" to describe one of its premium patties.

Passover Horseradish, Tostilocos

Burger Wars: Wendy's replaced Burger King as the second largest burger chain in the country; Five Guys is the fastest growing national chain with a 32.8% increase in sales last year. [Atlantic Business, Drovers Cattle Network] The Pickle Guys on the Lower East Side are making horseradish for Passov ... More >>

Wendy's To Sell $16 Foie Gras Burgers in Japan

​Apparently, a smear of fatty duck liver now makes for an "old fashioned" hamburger. Two years after saying "sayonara" to Japan, Wendy's has decided to return to the island nation, and will try to crack the marketplace by selling $16 foie gras burgers, according to Bloomberg. The flagship ... More >>

Michelin Releases Its Best-Value NYC Restos; When a Bad Review Only Makes You Stronger

New research reveals that major river basins in Africa, Asia, and Latin America have enough water to meet food needs for the entire century. [Bloomberg] In the wake of a rising death toll attributed to tainted cantaloupes, Costco's head of food safety spoke out against the cantaloupe industry. [NY ... More >>

The New Dave's Hot 'N Juicy Hamburger at Wendy's: A Very Moist Review

​The new Dave's Hot 'N Juicy is compact, and looks unremarkable from the outside. When Wendy's, in response to falling market share, set out to revamp their burger program, they went about it scientifically, according to a recent USA Today story. If the press accounts can be believed, the Du ... More >>

Restos Return from Summer Vacation; Wendy's Redesigns Its Signature Burger

​A Staten Island couple stole some $2.5 million meant for healthy meals for preschoolers by skimming money over five years from accounts at the nonprofit Red Apple Child Development Center. [NY Times] A roundup of cooking classes in the city includes pasta making at The Brooklyn Kitchen, beer ... More >>

While Americans 'Indulge' With Fast-Food Desserts, Iranians Indulge With $250 Bowls of Ice Cream

​Regardless of what so-called experts say about the impact of posting nutritional information at fast-food and chain restaurants, it seems that most customers aren't patronizing Checkers or McDonald's with the idea that their body is a temple. And so an increasing number of quick-service resta ... More >>

The Soda Jerk Returns; Restos Cater to the Calorie-Conscious

​Just as cocktails came back, it makes sense that the soda fountain (where so many bartenders went to work during Prohibition) is also making a comeback across America. [NY Times] As high-fructose corn syrup is increasingly demonized, chefs around the country are creating their own sodas, ket ... More >>

Posts of the Week

As we submit to the welcoming embrace of the holiday weekend, let's cast a brief glimpse back at the week preceding it ... The Union Square Café's Carmen Quagliata talks cookbooks, culinary influences, and his favorite and most hated foods. Our 10 Best Classic American Dishes and Where to F ... More >>

Wall Streeters Like to Spend the Summer Eating Themselves Sick

The new face of competitive eating. It may surprise you.​It seems that professional eaters aren't the only ones with a passing interest in cramming huge quantities of food matter down their throats. Wall Street types, never ones to shy away from the spotlight (or competition), like to spend th ... More >>

Review of Wendy's Berry Almond Chicken Salad: Decent, But With Two Big Objections

​What the salad looks like before applying dressing. The food at Wendy's is generally agreed to be the best among the national burger chains. While the hamburgers are much better at such regionals as In-N-Out and Five Guys, Wendy's offers a few maverick items that are actually worth eating. ... More >>

New York City Loses Yet Another Food Plant; Scientists Create 'Super Wheat'

​Maramount Corp., a Sunset Park food production plant responsible for school lunches and homeless shelter meals around the city, is moving to Pennsylvania, leaving more than 140 workers unemployed. [NY Daily News] McDonald's and Wendy's are among fast-food chains that have added new summer sa ... More >>

Sofrito's Gets Sued; Rabbis Gear Up for Passover

​A state senator has proposed a new bill that would offer tax breaks to New York restaurants that buy locally grown produce, as well as milk, cheese, and maple products. [LoHud] Republicans' budget approved last week proposes to overhaul the $65 billion food stamp program, making aid continge ... More >>

Study Finds Foods Labeled 'Organic' Seem Tastier; Parents Parade Their Foodie Tots

​A recent study suggests that consumers thinks foods labeled 'organic' are tastier, higher in fiber, and lower in fat and calories. [LA Times] Wendy's is hoping its natural sea salt fries will take a bite out of McDonald's market share. It reported that in a blind taste test, 56 percent respo ... More >>

ARatedOnly.com Launches for All Your A-Rated White Castle Needs

​ARatedOnly.com has announced its new website and smartphone app, each featuring a comprehensive guide to all the Department of Health A-rated restaurants in the city. All your favorites are there: the Wendy's on Flatbush Avenue, Burrito Loco in Greenwich Village, as well as other spots like T ... More >>

Do Resto P.R. People Have to Like the Food?; Chazz Palminteri Opens a New York Eatery in Baltimore

​Bruce Buschel continues his rant about restaurant P.R., asking the age-old restaurateur question: does the publicist have to like the food? [NY Times] A California farm has recalled 64,000 pounds of ready-to-eat chicken and pork meals because the broccoli in the packages may be tainted with ... More >>

Fatty Foods Can Make You Depressed; Veselka Kiosk at First & First Could Close

​A new study shows that people who eat more trans fats from cheese, milk, or processed foods may have a 48 percent increased risk of depression. [Bloomberg] McDonald's Hamburger University, on the outskirts of Shanghai in China, can be harder to get into than Harvard. [Bloomberg] The Veselka ... More >>

Chefs Don't All Have Big Kitchens; Foodspotting Raises $3M

​Think you could be a better cook if only you had a kitchen like a five-star chef? Maybe not. Mehangir Mehta of the newly opened Mehtaphor, Anita Lo of Annisa, and husband-and-wife team Jo-Ann Makovitzky and Marco Moreira of Tocqueville and 15 East are among chefs with tiny apartment kitchens. ... More >>

Elevation Burger Escalates Onto West 14th Street

​The Elevation Burger is big and lush, but might remind you of Five Guys. So cheap to make, so easy to sell, hamburgers form a culinary motif of our economically downtrodden age. Stand-alone shops, bistros, and chains dispensing them have increased tenfold over the last five years in the city ... More >>

10 Fast Food Items That Don't Totally Suck

​Originating in the world's first hamburger chain, the slider (or "slyder" as they've tried to brand it) at White Castle has a strange and strangely addictive flavor resulting from the steaming of cheap ground beef and onions. Yes, fast food is a great caloric wasteland (we almost wrote "wais ... More >>

The Week in Food Blogs: The Lineup at Koreatown's Food Gallery 32; Winter's Best Cocktails

This week in food blogs... Eater rounded up 10 famous New York restaurant names found outside the city. Grub Street chatted with Bon Appetit's new editor-in-chief, Adam Rapoport, who thinks he says "tasty" too much. Midtown Lunch got excited about the lineup at the forthcoming Koreatown Food Gall ... More >>

Tomorrow: 10 Fast Food Offerings That Don't Suck

​Sure, Wendy's chili is totally acceptable, and maybe even good, but is that enough to catapult it into the top 10? Picture this: You're in a car on the outskirts of Intercourse, Pennsylvania, clutching your well-thumbed antique copy of Road Food by Jane and Michael Stern. Where it says there ... More >>

Giada Denies John Mayer Hookup; People Still Pissed at Cash-Only Restos

​Even Peter Meehan has experienced foodie righteousness gone mad: "What I'm worried about is that as the food thing gets trendier and trendier, at some point the know-it-alls will scare off the casually interested. Maybe even their fellow foot soldiers. Is that sustainable?" [T Magazine] The ... More >>

Wendy's Tries to Class Up Its Fries as Writers Bemoan Foodie Pretension

​The latest illustration of trickle-down foodie fervor comes courtesy of Wendy's, which just debuted a new line of fries. The fries, dubbed "natural cut," differ from the fast-food chain's other species of fry in that they're made from Russett potatoes and get to keep their skins. They're also ... More >>

Five Guys Beats In-N-Out for Best Burger in 2010 Zagat Fast-Food Survey

Five Guys in first place.​Zagat's annual Fast-Food Survey results are out, and guess which chain is now making the country's best burger, according to 6,518 respondents? In an upset, Five Guys unseated last year's winner, In-N-Out Burger. In the mega-chains category, Wendy's beat out McDonald' ... More >>

Flushing Residents Ask Asian Market to Be Their New Key Food; Competitive Eater Kobayashi Freed

​Condé Nast is turning some of its best-known magazine names into restaurants in Asia, the Middle East, and Latin America. Can a Vanity Fair Café here on U.S. soil be far behind? [Wall Street Journal] The recent closure of a Key Food in Flushing has led residents to ask a new Asian market i ... More >>

The Candwich (That's Canned Sandwich) Scandal; China Taints Milk Again

​Real estate investors in Utah were ripped off by a money manager who took their cash to back the Candwich, a canned sandwich. [NY Times] A new study reveals that the more restaurants there are within a five-minute walk of a woman's home, the more likely she is to be fat. [Wall Street Journal ... More >>

The Frankenburger: A McDonald's-Burger King-Wendy's Experiment

​Beware the Frankenburger! It's the slightly scary product of a careful--and often disgusting--experiment to make the tastiest fast-food hamburger possible. If you took the best elements from a Big Mac, a Whopper, and Wendy's Half-Pound Double with cheese, what would you get? You'd get the Fra ... More >>

IKEA--Real Meal Deals, Including Babyback Ribs!

​The iconic Swedish meatball platter at IKEA--now only $2.49 on Tuesday evenings, side salad extra. If pressed to name their favorite fast food restaurants in the city, most folks would point to Wendy's or Maoz or Chipotle Grill, but almost no one would recognize the IKEA Cafe in Red Hook, Br ... More >>

Posts of the Week

It's (Good) Friday afternoon, which means it's time to look back on the best posts of the past week: In honor of Passover and Easter, Our 10 Best Fin Fish Dishes. Battle of the Dishes pitted chocolate Easter bunnies from Russell Stover and Jacques Torres against one another. Cocktail culture is t ... More >>

Wendy's Bacon & Blue Burger Is Not Nearly as Bad as You Might Imagine

​Take a look under the hood: good thick bacon, the mildest blue cheese imaginable, barely distinguishable from cottage cheese, and some other smeary substance of indeterminate composition. Emboldened by my adventure tasting the new Pacific shrimp taco at Taco Bell, I went in search of another ... More >>

Kombucha Makes a Comeback; Mets Get More Fancy Foods

​Mets fans are getting even more reasons to hang out in the Citi Field food court this season. Crab cake sandwiches from Catch of the Day, Disco fries from Box Frites, and strawberry shakes from Shake Shack are among new menu items. And a McFadden's Pub will open at street level. [NY Times] B ... More >>

Tweeting Chefs Are Tricky; More Salami Recalled

​Rhode Island-based Daniele International is expanding its recall of salami products due to possible salmonella contamination. Another 115,000 pounds of salami is being recalled following 1 million pounds recalled last month. [AP] Burger King plans to enter the coffee wars by selling Starbuck ... More >>

Krispy Kreme In Doughnut Sludge Scandal; Wendy's Pulls Out of Japan

​Chex cereal sees about half its annual sales occur in the final three months of the year, when party throwers buy multiple boxes -- Corn, Rice, and Wheat -- to make Chex Mix. The brand is now pushing new microwaveable recipes. [NY Times] Krispy Kreme was sued by Fairfax County earlier this y ... More >>

Food Network to Go Global; Daniel Joins Michelin Three-Star Club

​A group of food corps is launching the Healthy Weight Commitment Foundation, a national, multi-year campaign to help reduce obesity -- especially childhood obesity -- by 2015. [PR Newsire] A study reveals that customers at fast-food chains, such as McDonald's, Wendy's, Burger King, and KFC, ... More >>

Feds Say Hams Were for Homeless; New York Fast Food Fries Lower in Fat

A Drudge Report story about the government spending millions of stimulus dollars on pork products has earned itself an angry rebuttal from Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack, who said that some 760,000 pounds of ham were for soup kitchens and homeless shelters. [NY Daily News] French fries at New Yo ... More >>

Why Madonna Has Ruined My Life

Provincializm by William Bowers: Spandex From Spain