Restaurant chains put sandwiches in the spotlight

Bowls have gotten a lot of attention on the menu innovation front, but sandwiches are staging a comeback. New carriers, creative builds, and signature sauces are giving sandwiches top billing lately. Even Jamba, a bowl- and smoothie-focused concept, recently introduced a new sandwich line. Plus, innovative sauces keep flowing out of the pipeline and beverages continue to make menu news, with fall flavors slowly trickling into the lineup. Here’s an inside look at recent food and drink rollouts on restaurant menus.

A new bread — the sourdough baguette — is changing up the sandwich selection at Pret à****Manger. In its first appearance in the Prosciutto & Parmesan Sourdough Baguette, it encloses Niman Ranch prosciutto, aged Parmesan, roasted cherry tomatoes, arugula, pesto, and mayo. The Chicken Caesar Baguette returns to the menu on a traditional baguette, filled with grilled chicken, aged Parmesan, Caesar dressing, mayo, and fried onions. Pret also is offering a Caesar Side Salad and Cobb Side Salad, the latter with herb yogurt dressing.

Hash brown patties serve as the carrier for Bojangles’ Carolina Crunch breakfast sandwich. Between the extra-large fried hash-brown Bo-Tato Rounds are bacon, egg, and American cheese. Bojangles also rolled out a Cajun Bacon Ranch Biscuit featuring a chicken breast marinated in a proprietary seasoning blend, bacon, American cheese, and ranch dressing on a buttermilk biscuit.

The Cajun-ranch flavor profile is also showing up at Jet’s Pizza. The pizza chain’s new Jet’s Cajun Ranch, a blend of ranch dressing with Cajun seasoning, is available in a dipping cup starting at $1, or a 12-ounce bottle for $5.49.

Tender Greens introduces wraps in two variations.

Wraps, which fall into the broader sandwich category, are getting attention, too. Tender Greens has two new versions. The Mediterranean Wrap with Steak is filled with grilled steak, sumac red onion, pickled cucumber, tzatziki, harissa, spinach, herb mix, lemon, and olive oil, while the Mediterranean Wrap with Falafel subs crispy falafel for the steak.

Korean flavors are defining sandwiches and burgers at Wayback Burgers. The K-BBQ Crispy Chicken Sandwich layers a breaded fried chicken breast with kimchi mayonnaise, crispy onions, and Korean barbecue sauce on a toasted brioche bun. The burger features the same ingredient combo but swaps in two beef patties for the chicken. Kickin’ Korean Tots round out the flavor collection with potato tots tossed in Korean barbecue gochujang-style seasoning. Three shakes also made their debut: Pumpkin Churro, Caramel Crème Brûlée, and Chocolate Brownie.

Burgers count as sandwiches, and Culver’s latest release is the Fried Pickle Pub Burger. It starts with a grilled fresh beef patty that’s layered with cheddar cheese, crispy fried pickles, and tangy Brewpub Sauce on a pretzel bun. The fried pickles can also be ordered as a side. For guests in the mood for frozen custard, Culver’s has two new Flavors of the Day: Peanut Butter Fudge Brownie, available now, and Oreo Reese’s Cheesecake, starting Sept. 2.

Sauce innovation is happening outside of sandwiches and burgers as well. Zaxby’s collaborated with Alabama native and reality TV icon Rob Rausch on a very limited-time Alabama White BBQ sauce. The creamy, peppery sauce is a blend of mayonnaise, vinegar, horseradish, lemon juice, and spices. Guests can opt for the sauce with any sandwich, tenders, or wings order at no extra charge.

The Hot Honey Mustard Dip at Wingstop

Wingstop debuted its Flavor Rodeo for sauce fans, which includes two returning favorites and two new limited-time additions. Carolina Gold and Jamaican Jerk both are back, the former a sweet, tangy, gold-colored sauce inspired by Carolina barbecue and the latter flavored with bold Caribbean spices and herbs. New on the menu is Hot Honey Mustard Dip, a honey mustard base kicked up with a shot of heat, and to wash it down, Sprite Strawberry Rodeo, a blend of lemon-lime notes with strawberry sweetness for a bright, citrus finish.

There are other refreshing drinks on hand to quench summer thirsts and cool the heat. 7 Brew is at the ready with Cherry Limeade 7 Brew Energy, Bubble Gum Lemonade, and Tiki Tango 7 Fizz Soda, the last a sparkling beverage with passion fruit and pineapple flavors. Coffee fans can opt for a Banana Bread Cold Brew or Sweet & Salty Macchiato with salted caramel and white chocolate flavors.

HTeaO's Pineapple Chipotle Refresher is a collaboration with Tajín.

At HTeaO, the Pineapple Chipotle Refresher offers a mix of pineapple, lemonade, chipotle pepper, and Tajín Clasico seasoning. The beverage chain developed the drink in partnership with Tajín; it also includes HTeaO’s signature CleanBoost Energy. And Dutch Bros joins the late-summer beverage rollout with Island Potion Rebel, a mango and pineapple energy drink with a pomegranate float. Another selection, Mexican Mocha, provides energy from straight caffeine with its blend of espresso, dark chocolate, and cinnamon in chocolate milk; it’s topped with cold foam and cinnamon sprinkles.

Full-service diner concept Norms is tapping into the boba trend with its limited-time Fizzy Boba drinks. They’re made with Starry soda, lemonade, and popping boba and come in three flavors: Cotton Candy, Watermelon, and Spicy Mango, each priced at $4.59

The new Fizzy Boba drink at Norms.

Not falling into the beverage, sandwich, or sauce categories but noteworthy menu news on its own is P.F. Chang’s “Boats & Bottles” LTO, running through Sept.

15. The promotion pairs the chain’s Sushi Boat (starting at $49.99) with Wine Wednesday, when guests can score half-off all bottles of wine every Wednesday.

Designed for sharing, the Sushi Boat arrives at the table surrounded by a cloud of smoke and features edamame, a California Roll, Shrimp Tempura Roll, and two chef-selected specialty rolls. Wine pairings range from crisp whites and bold reds to summery rosés and celebratory Champagne, all at 50% off.

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Pat plans and executes menu, food and drink stories for Restaurant Business and hosts the weekly Menu Talk podcast. She provides in-depth coverage of chefs, trends and menu innovation.