New York
CNN
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2022 was the year many of America’s biggest food companies got back to basics. It left some fan favorites in the garbage heap of history.
McDonald’s pissed us off when they announced the end of McRib. The Choco Taco was sent to the confectionery graveyard and the sandwich we didn’t know existed had already been disposed of. It’s you, not us. )
Restaurants and food manufacturers are constantly assessing what sells and what doesn’t, so it wouldn’t surprise us if these items are gone. But that doesn’t make their loss any easier for fans.
Here’s what the culinary creations of 2022 have left us.
Burger King’s fried chicken sandwich, called Ch’King, lasted only a year. Launched in May 2021, the chain’s hand-breaded crispy chicken sandwiches have been quietly removed from menus nationwide just 15 months later. Reason: Too difficult for employees to assemble. This was a big problem in a business where speed is critical.
Ch’King “was a great product that was either difficult or challenging for the team to implement,” Tom Curtis, president of Burger King North America, told CNN in September. The chain has replaced it with the Royal Crispy Chicken Sandwich, which offers “great flavor and consistency.”
Fans were outraged online after Chili’s removed the original recipe for chicken clippers from its fall menu. Unique tempura-battered tenders have been a staple of the chain’s menu since the 1980s.
But don’t worry. Chili’s continues to offer crispy chicken crispers similar to the original, but with a crunchier, juicier bite. “The menu changes are part of our simplification and growth efforts to make it less complicated for our employees,” Chili’s said in a statement to CNN.
The popular ice cream in taco-shaped cones was discontinued in July after nearly 40 years.
Klondike said the company was “experiencing an unprecedented surge in demand across its portfolio” and “had to make very tough decisions to ensure that the entire portfolio was available nationwide. ‘ explained.
However, all hope for a resurrection is not lost. “We’ve been listening to our fans and hope to bring this favorite treat back to our ice cream trucks in the years to come,” Klondike said weeks after the surprising announcement.
Honest Tea’s parent company, Coca-Cola, has announced that it will be removing iced tea from its product lineup after nearly 25 years on the shelf.
Coca-Cola (KO) acquired a 40% stake in Honest in 2008 and the brand was fully acquired by Coke in 2011. The company also sells Gold Peak and Peace teas and plans to focus on these brands as it bids Honest goodbye.
A company executive said in a statement in May that the move “will free up investment resources and the capacity of our supply chain to better meet consumer needs.”
A few weeks after the Coke announcement, the Honest Tea founders launched another bottled iced tea drink called Eat the Change.
We hope you enjoy McRib while it lasts. “This may be our last chance to taste this,” McDonald’s teased in a statement when it was restocked in October. confirmed.
McDonald’s (MCD) first added McRib to its menu in the Kansas City area in 1981., When tHis chain removed it from its menu four years later. In recent years, however, it has gained a cult following among McDonald’s (MCD) supporters. It was previously sold regionally before expanding to all U.S. restaurants in 2020.
Let’s be clear: Vanilla Frosty isn’t gone forever.
We are now selling peppermint frosty instead of the strawberry flavor that was sold in the summer. Wendy’s didn’t give an exact date when vanilla will be back, but hinted that the Frosty flavor could be added to the menu in 2023.
–CNN’s Danielle Wiener-Bronner contributed to this report.