11 Restaurant Chains Launching Exciting New Menu Items In June

What do massive chocolate chip cookies, cheesy chicken Alfredo, and Mediterranean-spiced steak all have in common? Well, in great news for foodies throughout the United States, these are all prime examples of the exciting new items that are hitting restaurant menus this June. 

If you're tuned in to the restaurant industry, you'll surely know that the major chains are always cooking new food and drink options to stay relevant and popular. Last month's new menu launches, for example, included a line of boba drinks at Starbucks, a Golden BBQ Chicken Sandwich at Popeyes, and the first-ever steak offerings at Sweetgreen. This month, chains are rolling out yet another fun slate of new items, including some returning favorites and never-before-seen options.

From Chick-fil-A to Cava, read on for all of the chains introducing exciting new foods and beverages in June!

Wendy's

Wendy's is giving its classic chicken nuggets a saucy makeover just in time for summer. The chain just launched a new line of Saucy Nuggs that are freshly tossed in the customer's choice of one of seven flavors: Honey BBQ, Spicy Honey BBQ, Garlic Parm, Spicy Garlic Parm, Buffalo, Spicy Buffalo, or Spicy Ghost Pepper. 

While in-person customers can try the new nuggets starting on June 10, digital customers have early access starting on June 3. They're available in four-piece, six-piece, 10-piece, and 20-piece order sizes.

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Chick-fil-A

Chick-fil-A tested a new spin on its grilled chicken sandwich exclusively in select markets last year, but fans nationwide will finally get the opportunity to sample it this month. A new Maple Pepper Bacon Sandwich is officially hitting menus on June 10—and Chick-fil-A executives say it's unlike any sandwich they've rolled out before.

"We are always looking for ways to make unique twists to our entrée selection and the Maple Pepper Bacon Sandwich is a delicious spin on the Chick-fil-A flavors our guests know and love," Allison Duncan, Chick-fil-A's director of menu and packaging, said in a statement. "It is a delicious blend of sweet, savory and spicy, offering an entirely different flavor profile than any other sandwich we've launched."

The sandwich features a lemon herb marinated chicken breast that's grilled and served on a maple-flavored brioche bun. It's also topped with Pepper Jack cheese, lettuce, sweet and spicy pickles, and bacon tossed in a brown sugar and pepper blend.

As a bonus to fans, Chick-fil-A's seasonal Peach Milkshake is also returning for its 15th limited-time run on June 10. The cool treat features a blend of Chick-fil-A's Icedream dessert and peach purée, topped with whipped cream and a cherry.

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Taco Bell

Back in February this year, Taco Bell previewed exciting plans to launch a new Crunchwrap Supreme with a massive Cheez-It in its center. On June 6, the highly-anticipated collab item officially hit menus nationwide for a limited time. 

The Big Cheez-It Crunchwrap Supreme comes with the same seasoned beef, nacho cheese sauce, lettuce, reduced-fat sour cream, and diced tomatoes you'll find in the original. But instead of the tostada shell that's usually folded inside a Crunchwrap, the new iteration comes with a Cheez-It cracker that's 16 larger than its normal size. 

Taco Bell also debuted a new Big Cheez-It Tostada, which features the massive Cheez-It topped with layers of seasoned beef, diced tomatoes, lettuce, shredded cheese, and reduced-fat sour cream. Additionally, customers can snag a new Big Cheez-It Box that includes a Big Cheez-It Crunchwrap Supreme, Beefy 5-Layer Burrito, regular-sized Nacho Fries, and a medium fountain drink.

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Burger King

Burger King fans in Omaha, Neb., and Hunstville, Ala., are in luck this June. Starting on June 6, the chain is testing an exciting new line of Flame-Grilled Chicken Sandwiches and Wraps exclusively in those two markets. Burger King sometimes rolls out new menu innovations on a limited basis before offering them nationally, so fans can hope for a wider launch of these items further down the road. 

During the test, customers can order Burger King's Royal Crispy Chicken Sandwich, Fiery Royal Crispy Chicken Sandwich, and Bacon and Swiss Royal Crispy Chicken Sandwich with a flame-grilled chicken breast in lieu of the usual crispy chicken fillet. Customers can also swap the chicken breast fillet for a half piece of flame-grilled chicken breast in any of its Royal Crispy Wraps. The wraps will be available in Classic, Fiery, Honey Mustard, Philly, Fiery Bacon, and Bacon and Cheddar flavors.

 Every Burger King Chicken Sandwich, Tasted & Ranked

Subway

Subway brought back one of its beloved footlongs just before the start of June, but contrary to what you might expect, the returning item isn't a sandwich. 

Just a couple of weeks after Subway debuted a new Footlong Cookie in January, the chain began facing shortages of the item because demand was so intense. It temporarily stopped selling the cookies through its app and third-party ordering channels as a result. 

Thankfully, Subway has been toiling since then to boost its supplies so it can keep the Footlong Cookie in stock. It's officially back on the menu right now alongside Subway's other two footlong snacks that launched in January: the Cinnabon Footlong Churro and Auntie Anne's Footlong Pretzel.

 Every New Subway Sandwich Wrap, Tasted & Ranked

Cava

Starting this month, Cava fans nationwide have an exciting new protein option to add to their bowls and pita wraps: Grilled Steak. The beef is grass-fed, pasture-raised, and seasoned with Mediterranean spices like sun-dried tomato powder and Aleppo pepper.

Guests can ask for the new steak in any custom order, or sample it in two new curated Cava menu items. The new Steak Mezze Salad comes with Grilled Steak, crumbled feta, fire-roasted corn, tzatziki, red pepper hummus, pickled onions, arugula, baby spinach, garlic dressing, and Greek vinaigrette. Meanwhile, the new Steak + Feta Pita features Grilled Steak, Crazy Feta, feta, red pepper hummus, pickles, garlic dressing, Greek vinaigrette, and romaine.

Sonic

The next time you're thinking of stopping by Sonic, just know your side order of French fries will look and taste different than usual. In the first update to its French fries in more than 10 years, the drive-in chain just rolled out brand-new Groovy Fries and Groovy Sauce. 

Sonic described the new fries in a press release as "hot, crispy, perfectly salted, and made with deep grooves." Meanwhile, the new Groovy Sauce features ranch, herbs, and a small kick of Sriracha for extra oomph. Guests can request the new condiment alongside their fries. 

To celebrate the launch, Sonic is selling all sizes of Groovy Fries for just $1 throughout June while supplies last. 

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First Watch

First Watch introduces a new limited-time menu for every season, and its special collection of summer 2024 foods and beverages finally arrived this month. In keeping with its tradition of highlighting seasonal ingredients, First Watch's latest menu heavily features the iconic summer flavors of sweet corn, strawberries, blueberries, and watermelon. 6254a4d1642c605c54bf1cab17d50f1e

Among the new additions are a Strawberry Tres Leches French Toast, Blueberry Lemon Cornbread, and a Watermelon Wake-Up beverage that customers can order spiked. On the savory side, guests can opt for a new Carnitas Breakfast Quesadilla packed with hand-pulled pork or a Shishito Brisket Hash with blistered shishito peppers and a variety of other flavorful components. 

First Watch's summer menu will remain available through Aug. 11.

White Castle

Not just one, but a handful of exciting new items hit White Castle menus this month. The fresh additions include two new flavor spins on its classic Chicken Rings: Smoky BBQ Chicken Rings dusted with a blend of bold spices and Hidden Valley Ranch Chicken Rings coated in savory, tangy Hidden Valley Ranch seasoning. 

Phillip Bach, White Castle's head chef and director of product innovation, said in a statement that the new seasonings "elevate our iconic Chicken Rings to a whole new level."

Just in time for summer, White Castle has also dropped a new Strawberry Banana Smoothie and Strawberry Lemonade Smoothie. Both are made with "the perfect blend of refreshing ingredients," including fruit and yogurt, according to a press release.

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Noodles & Company

Italian chains have some new competition with the launch of Noodles & Company's latest dish: the Baked 4-Cheese Chicken Alfredo. This new offering features a combination of penne noodles, spinach, a four-cheese blend, and Alfredo sauce, which is then topped with oven-baked mozzarella, grilled chicken, and Italian seasoning.

While the Baked 4-Cheese Chicken Alfredo officially launches on June 20, Noodles Rewards members have early access as of June 5.

Customers can also still enjoy Noodles' fan-favorite Steak Stroganoff for the time being. The dish returned for a limited time in April and quickly sold out, but Noodles announced in May that it would return for one more limited run.

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Wayback Burgers

The weather is getting warmer and warmer—and so is the menu at Wayback Burgers. The chain just launched two fiery new limited-time items to celebrate the start of summer: a Ghost Pepper Burger and Spicy Cheese Curds. The former features two beef patties topped with melted cheddar cheese, two slices of applewood smoked bacon, jalapeños, and a spicy ghost pepper sauce. The latter consists of crispy cheddar cheese curds tossed in Texas Pete Dust Dry Seasoning, which has the same flavors as Texas Pete's Original Hot Sauce.

For dessert lovers, Wayback also just introduced a new Strawberry Shortcake Shake made with vanilla ice cream, vanilla cake, and strawberry purée. The shake is also topped with whipped cream and crumbled vanilla cake pieces. 

Wayback's new summer items will remain available through Aug. 31.