Chili’s jumps into chicken fray, boasts sandwich that will 'shame' competition
Chili's (EAT) on Tuesday entered the white hot battlefield of fast food chicken, boasting that it was "ready to put all other chicken sandwiches to shame" with its new menu item.
On Tuesday, the fast casual chain introduced the Chili’s Chicken Sandwich, which includes a hand-battered, breaded chicken breast topped with a "secret sauce," nestled between a buttered and toasted brioche bun. The sandwich is topped with a tomato slice, lettuce, and comes with a side of fries.
“We didn’t want to create just another chicken sandwich. We’re all about food perfection and wanted to create the best chicken sandwich and that takes time," Chili's said in a statement.
Like Burger King's recently-released Ch'King, Chili's added that it had tested the new sandwich "over a year to ensure we give our guests the perfect bite," the company added.
Chicken sandwich fanatics, however, will only have a limited window to try the new item, since it will only be available on menus nationwide from Tuesday through June 30th.
Customers can order the latest creation at a Chili's restaurant location, to-go, or through delivery on the app.
As fast food chains ramp up their digital offerings, Chili's is including its reward program in this launch. For My Chili’s Rewards members, it costs $10 dollars as part of its 3 for $10 dollar offering that includes a non-alcoholic beverage, an appetizer and an entrée.
Chili's is the lastest company to take a shot at scoring big on the public's seemingly bottomless appetite for poultry, even as competition stiffens in the fast food industry.
Along with Burger King (QSR), Taco Bell (YUM) has released a Naked Chicken Chalupa and a Chicken Sandwich Taco early this year. Separately, McDonald's (MCD) debuted its chicken sandwich with three different versions back in February.
Other fast food chains to introduce a new chicken sandwich creation this year include KFC, Wendy's, Arby’s, Jimmy John’s and Shake Shack (SHAK).
Brooke DiPalma is a producer and reporter for Yahoo Finance. Follow her on Twitter at @BrookeDiPalma or email her at bdipalma@yahoofinance.com. Check out her latest:
