Burger King Rolls Out New Lower Calorie French Fries

Trends in fast food have added healthier items to the menu in the last few years, with fresh fruit, yogurt and more being offered for the first time. The staples of the fast food diet are still mostly burgers and fries, though, so instead of steering kids toward apple slices as a side dish, Burger King is taking the unlikely route of trying to make the company’s French fries healthier in order to entice new users.

Starting today, Burger King is pulling a Wendy’s and rolling out some brand new French fries. Unlike Wendy’s, the fast food outlet is sticking with its unique recipe, but is giving the new fries a makeover in size and shape and has come up with a recipe that will have “less porous batter,” keeping some of the calories from the oil out. Burger King is also changing the name of the French fries, calling them “satisfries.”

That’s a clever play on words, but it doesn’t exactly tell buyers how the French fries are different. First, the fries will have a new crinkly shape that should theoretically help people to differentiate between the brand’s “classic” fries. According to the Wall Street Journal, the new fries will also have 30% less calories and 40% less fat than the country’s most popular fast food fry, brought to you by McDonald’s.

Burger King wants to bring in avid snackers with the new fries. A value size order of the French fries will only cost a snacker 190 calories. The fries may be lower in calories, but there is a downside. The fries will cost an additional 25 cents more than the company’s classic French fries.

Fast food restaurant chains are constantly trying to change up their menus in order to entice new customers and stay on the cutting edge. McDonald’s recently announced it might be getting rid of its Dollar Menu. Both Burger King and Wendy’s have made changes to their French fries in recent years. Sometimes restaurants must change or die. It’s too early to tell whether the “satisfries” will live up to their name, but I’m game to try anything that is accompanied by a new sign, so at least the fast food chain has that going for it.