"dennys" news and stories

Just in time to welcome a new crop of cash-strapped undergrads looking for the perfect place to nosh during an all-nighter, Denny's is making some changes to its popular $2 $4 $6 $8 Value Menu. But the chain's top execs are only telling half the story.

Whether your view is from the counter or a booth, things haven't been going so well at America's most ubiquitous diner lately. It seems the recession has made even the Grand Slam a splurge for any number of Americans, and Denny's reported a 41 percent drop in net income for the second quarter this year.

But ever since Denny's unveiled its value menu in April, it's been luring more visitors every month, as the company's interim CEO told investors last week. And according to a fundamental law of corporate America, if you've got something that seems to be working, tinker with it.

In an effort to "optimize" its 16-item value menu, Denny's is introducing four new options and dropping four others. But which ones? According to Nation's Restaurant News, Denny's VP of marketing isn't saying.

We all know what to expect from a visit to Denny's: a stack of pretty good pancakes, maybe even a Grand Slam breakfast if the mood strikes. Japan has a Denny's too, but instead of sausage links and hash browns, they're serving up a bizarre hybrid menu that offers up everything from ramen noodles to French classics.

It's not totally out of left field -- after all, Japan has a penchant for giving even the most mundane food a twist. But making the leap from fried eggs to a "special truffle menu," well, that's quite a departure. According to Eater, "the newest item on offer is Beef Rossini style with liver pie, a dish of New Zealand Beef topped with foie gras and sliced truffles, served with a red wine demi-glace reduction."

Though you've likely never heard of it, it's a French standard. At 1380 yen, or $15, it's fairly affordable, yet...do you really want to eat demi-glace in a booth at Denny's?

Denny's is hoping the second time is the charm as it attempts to re-create the success of last year's Grand Slam breakfast giveaway promotion that it advertised during the Super Bowl.

The casual-dining chain will run an ad during Super Bowl XLIV between the Indianapolis Colts and the New Orleans Saints, announcing that customers can come to participating restaurants on Feb. 9, from 6 a.m. to 2 p.m. for free Grand Slam breakfasts, Nation's Restaurant News reported.

Boston Market. Photo: me and the sysop, Flickr.

No kidding -- national restaurant chains are increasingly hungry for family business.

Boston Market will now let more than one child eat for free with an adult. In the "Two Kids Eat Free" promotion, customers get two free Kids' Meals with a $6 minimum adult purchase.

The Boston Market Kids' Meal, which usually costs around $4, comes with a choice of entree (mac n' cheese, chicken drumstick, rotisserie turkey or meatloaf), a small side, cornbread and a kid's size soft drink or milk.

Denny's Breakfast. Photo: jumanggy/flickr

Denny's menu features items that "are dangerously high in sodium," according to the class action lawsuit filed by a New Jersey man with the support of the Center for Science in the Public Interest, a nutrition and food safety nonprofit group.

Nick DeBenedetto, of Tinton Falls, N.J., a 48-year-old on medication for high-blood pressure, filed the suit Thursday in the New Jersey Superior Court in Middlesex County.

"Denny's menu deceptively presents various items as single meals to be consumed by one individual without disclosing that they contain substantially more sodium (in some cases two or three times more) than the maximum recommended amount for all meals consumed by an individual during a given day," his complaint states.

Denny's Corporation, based out of Spartanburg, S.C., told the Los Angeles Times the suit is "frivolous and without merit."