California Whopper Being Introduced Nationwide

According to various reports, the California Whopper has been available in some of the Burger King Whopper Bar locations across the country and in Scandinavia since 2009. However, according to a press release by Burger King, it seems the chain has now decided to allow the California Whopper to be sold throughout the country. Available for a limited time...

the California-fresh sandwich packs a tidal wave of flavor with creamy guacamole, melted Swiss cheese and crispy bacon, joined together with the WHOPPER^® sandwich’s quality ingredients, including fresh lettuce, tomatoes, onions and a quarter-pound of fire-grilled beef. This West Coast-inspired sandwich can be enjoyed in the form of a WHOPPER^® or WHOPPER JR.^® sandwich for a suggested retail price of $4.49 and $2.19, respectively.

Advertising will begin tomorrow and at the time of this writing, nutritional details were only available for the California Whopper and not the California Whopper Jr. The California Whopper comes in at 820 calories, 56 grams of fat and 38 grams of protein.

Additional Restaurants Coming to Scottsdale this Fall

Back in July, the AZFoodDude reported on some new restaurants moving into Scottsdale. Now, over the past couple weeks, there has been news of even more openings...

Twin Peaks - Claiming to have "Eats, Drinks, and Scenic Views," Twin Peaks is moving into the location where Earl's was for 14 years at 15784 N. Pima Rd. Scottsdale, AZ 85260. Slated to open later in the fall, this will be the first time the Twin Peaks Girls (the scenic views) will be serving up their American comfort food in Arizona. The Dallas-based restaurant has locations in five other states.

Inca's Peruvian Cuisine - AZCentral reports the restaurant serving up South American cuisine will be opening up their second restaurant at 7325 E. Frank Lloyd Wright Blvd. Scottsdale, AZ 85254 this fall, with the original being in Tucson at 6878 E. Sunrise Dr. Tucson, AZ 85750. With such a diverse menu, comprising elements of pre-Inca, Inca, Spanish, Basque, African, Cantonese, Japanese, Italian, French and British cooking, Inca's Peruvian Cuisine is hoping to make its Peruvian cuisine a hit in Scottsdale.

Distrito - Looking to open in October, Distrito will be located in the newly named, Drinkwater Hotel (most recently called Hotel Theodore) at 4000 N. Drinkwater Blvd. Scottsdale, AZ 85251. Jose Garces, a winner on Iron Chef America last year, is being brought in by the owners of the hotel to get the ball rolling on the upcoming restaurant. There is already a Distrito in Philadelphia and the menu will be generally the same except, "Unique to Scottsdale...will be Mexican barbecue (barbacoa), slow-cooked meats roasted in a patio smoke pit. Garces is promising adobo-rubbed beef brisket; pork spare ribs with chipotle-cider mustard barbecue sauce; and Yucatán-style rotisserie chicken with an orange guajillo chile glaze."

Two New Papa Murphy's Locations in Mesa

 

This past Monday, Papa Murphy's opened up one of their take-and-bake pizza shops at 1229 S. Power Rd. Mesa, AZ 85206. Meanwhile, this upcoming Monday, August 22, another location will be opening at 1955 W. Baseline Rd. Mesa, AZ 85202.

With about 30 locations in Arizona already, Papa Murphy's has a large menu which includes a choice of creating your own custom pizza. Wondering what this place is all about? Think of it as a Subway type place, only for pizza, with the caveat that you take it home and bake it yourself.

Subway Introduces New Oven Crisp Chicken Sandwich

New at Subway, the Oven Crisp Chicken Sandwich is a new baked, not fried, sandwich that is part of the Fresh Fit menu. The 6 inch version comes in at 420 calories, 6.7 grams of fat and 23 grams of protein.

According to Subway, the sandwich typically comes on 9-grain wheat bread with lettuce, tomato, green peppers, red onions and cucumbers with honey mustard sauce.

Dunkin' Donuts Opening at ASU on Friday

The East Valley Tribune reports that Dunkin' Donuts is set to open their first ever campus location at Arizona State University this Friday, August 19.  Specifically located at 681 E. Apache Blvd. Tempe, AZ 85281, the shop will be open from 4am to 9pm Monday through Saturday and 5am to 9pm on Sunday.

White Castle Beats Some Big Name Burger Chains

A Consumer Reports magazine survey, just out this month, found that more folks preferred White Castle in terms of taste and value over some of the biggest names in the industry, including McDonald's, Burger King and Wendy's.

Overall scores in the Consumer Reports survey were based on food quality, value, staff and speed of service. White Castle scored a 78, putting it in the "very well satisfied" category. The Consumers Report survey ratings are based on responses from 36,733 magazine subscribers. The ratings come from over 98,000 dining experiences during April 2009 to June 2010. The survey appeared in the August 2011 edition of Consumer Reports magazine.

My question is, would it really kill White Castle, which began in 1921 in Wichita, Kansas, to open up some locations out west? We've all heard, "Where's the beef?" However, the AZFoodDude would say to White Castle, "What's the beef?" I've been hearing about their restaurants in the Midwest and back east for as long as I can remember and after 90 years, they have barely moved west of the Mississippi.