Posted on 06/11/2006 12:55:28 PM PDT by billorites
Wendy's International Inc. (NYSE:WEN - news), the No. 3 U.S. hamburger chain, on Friday said it would remove the term "Biggie" from its french fries and drinks, switching to the well known terms small, medium and large.
However, the new designations may confuse some diners who are used to such sizing at other restaurants.
At rival McDonald's Corp. (NYSE:MCD - news), the largest burger chain, a 32 ounce soft drink is designated a large. At Wendy's, a 32 ounce drink will now be called medium, instead of Biggie.
Wendy's is also adding a 42-ounce soft drink -- the equivalent of 3-1/2 cans of soda -- as its large. The large drink will come in a more durable, portable plastic cup that fits in a car cup holder for diners on-the-go.
"We felt like the Biggie designation is not what most customers were used to. Most people were used to small, medium and large," a spokesman said.
Wendy's had used the term Biggie since the early 1990s.
Previously, Wendy's sold a 16 ounce soft drink as a small, a 20 ounce soft drink as medium and a 32 ounce soft drink as Biggie. Now, a 20 ounce drink is a small, a 32 ounce drink is a medium and the new 42 ounce drink is a large. The company will still sell a 16 ounce drink on its 99 cent value menu.
At McDonald's, a 16 ounce drink is called a small, a 21 ounce drink is a medium and a 32 ounce drink is a large.
McDonald's famously removed the "Super Size" option from its combo meals after the 2004 release of the film "Super Size Me" -- a documentary in which filmmaker Morgan Spurlock ate nothing but McDonald's fare for a month and tracked his increasingly poor health.
Kids' sized drinks at both chains are 12 ounces.
Under Wendy's new program, the sizes of its combo meals will be small, medium and large. A medium combo will cost 49 cents more than a small, and a large combo will cost 89 cents more than a small.
Customers can still substitute a bottle of Dasani water for a soft drink, and items such as a side salad, chili or yogurt and granola for french fries, regardless of the combo size.
Wendy's has four different sizes of french fries, ranging from the 3.2 ounce kids' size to a 6.7 ounce large size. At McDonald's, a small fries is 2.6 ounces, medium is 4 ounces and large is 6 ounces.
The new sizing terminology, which Wendy's is promoting in stores, comes just a day after the chain said it would virtually eliminate artery-clogging trans fats in its fries and breaded chicken items.
Wendy's restaurants in the United States and Canada will switch to a new blend of corn and soy oil for french fries and breaded chicken items starting in August. The move will reduce trans fats in fries to just zero to 0.5 grams, depending on serving sizes, while all of the breaded chicken will have zero grams of trans fats.
I always order "the BIG SALAD"!
Elaine: Uh, could I have a medium Diet Coke?
Clerk: Do you want the Medium size or the middle size?
Elaine: What's the difference?
Clerk: Well, we have three sizes. Medium, Large, and Jumbo.
Elaine: [momentarily perplexed] What happened to the small?
Clerk: There is no small. Small is Medium.
Elaine: What's... medium?
Clerk: Medium is Large, and large is Jumbo.
Elaine: Oh-kay. Gimme the large.
Clerk: That's medium.
Elaine: Right. Yeah. [fearing the answer] Could I have a small popcorn?
Clerk: There is no small. [flash of perky inspiration] Child-size is small.
Elaine: What's `medium'?
Clerk: Adult.
Elaine: Do adults ever order the child-size?
Clerk: [chuckling] Not usually.
Elaine: [laughs appreciably] Okay, gimme the `adult'.
Clerk: Do you want butter?
Elaine: Is it *real* butter?
Clerk: [perkily] It's butter-*flavored*!
Elaine: [exasperated] What is it made of?
Clerk: [perkily] It's yellow!
"You know. It's big, with lots of stuff in it."
"And does anyone wonder why obesity/being overweight/type II diabetes is an epidemic in our society?"
Nope. MMMMMMMMMMmmmmmmmm. Bacon cheeseburger, chili and fries and pass the Glyburide.
She doesn't even have to use her hands and exert herself to get a sip.
Keeps both hands free for the Whopper and onion rings that way
Eliminating terms like "Biggie" does not prevent people from pigging out on crap food.
If anything, it's the responsibility of the person eating the large quantities of fat-laden food to *maybe* have a little tiny bit of self-control.
Try grilling a steak, or a pork chop...how about tuna...maybe a little perch or walleye?
Try eating a frickin' salad instead of stuffing a greasy triple burger in your fat face.
This kind of stupid sh!t drives me nuts.
Well, only if you order it without ice. But even with ice, that's a big ol' tub o' Coke.
I know the debate between "fat kills" and "carbs kill" is ongoing, and I'm not gonna take sides here, except to note that particularly in fast food places, the fat and the carbs seem to work together. Another big slurp of that sugary soft drink helps you choke down the last greasy bite of that triple bacon cheeseburger. Mmmmmm.
None of this is to suggest that I advocate government mandated portion controls or junk food taxes. We all make our own choices.
She could put a mini-conveyor on top of her "shelves" for that too. She could just open her mouth when she wants a bite. One conveyor to the right of the drink for the Triple Whopper, and one to the left for the pail of fries!
Just as a study in the free market and the consumer "business" it's very interesting to study the fast food industry.
I know it doesn't SOUND interesting, but I found it very much so ;)
One point is clear: Their bread and butter is disposable income in the hands of young adults.
Sorry...forget all of the fish I mentioned...mercury will kill ya, you know.
Could they give any bigger portions. People in america aren't getting fat enough, and this store is gonna encourage even larger consumption of Sugar stocking sodas!
I'm overweight, and diabetic, I quit drinking sodas, and quit ordering "large" anything in stores, it's just not good for you!
Great for soda companies, bad for your health!
Consuming sugar in and by itself does not cause diabetes.
The correlation of sugar consumption with diabetes is almost always associated with those who are already morbidly obese, those who do no exercise and have other destructive diets, or who already have other health conditions such as alcoholism.
Is that you, Dr. Michael Jacobsen? Of The Center for Science in the Public Interest? Hasn't John Stossel taught you your lesson yet?
You forgot the "sarcasm" tag.
Thank goodness. It was embarrassing ordering "biggie" fries.
I was diagnosed Type Two diabetic three years ago, and been on sugar pills since, wasn't until Last spring when MY obgyn put me on strong estrogen, I started losing weight naturally.
i lost over 60 pounds in less than 6 months, and for years before I took the estrogen, I had been walking 3-4 extra miles a nite, during the work week.
You are misinformed and uneducated bout diabetes and how people are individually, and UNIQUELY affected!
Plus there are other types of diabetes, where there's extreme weight loss, and low sugar. Mine will cause my organs, glands and senses to die slowly in my later years. Others could die instantly.
Since I started the estrogen, and losing weight, my diabetes is better controlled and for the first time in TEN YEARS I have no muscle fatigue, and I am working out and still losing weight. My joints no longer hurt, because of the lack of estrogen in my bones!
You stole my 'thank you.'
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