As more and more people are becoming health-conscious in their dining habits, vegetarian and meatless options are growing in their popularity. And, with Vegetarian Awareness Month being celebrated in the U.S. in October of every year, the idea of increasing the number and quality of vegetarian or “veggie” menu options is catching on.

Hard Rock Cafe, as an example, is doing a vegetarian limited time offer (also known as an LTO) with a number of veggie options. Last year, the global chain included such items on its menu as a Quinoa Burger, Southwest Spiced Tofu and a Black Bean Wrap.

According to Wikipedia, Bacon Jam is “...a bacon-based relish, similar to the Austrian starter Verhackert. It is made through a process of slow cooking the bacon, along with onions, vinegar, brown sugar and spices, before mixing in a food processor.”

So it’s like relish. But it’s jam. Bacon-based jam, at that. So, what exactly are we using this for again?

Well, let us tell you: You can use bacon jam for just about anything. Throw it on your burgers, your dawgs, your sandwiches - whatever you like.

If you open your lunch container and see leftovers or that sandwich you made last night, you’re not alone. More and more people are choosing to NOT spend money on sandwiches, soups and salads and are instead saving a few bucks by making their own lunch at home.

New data from the USA suggest that lunch traffic in QSR/fast-casual restaurant locations is slowing faster that it has in recent years - down seven percent in 2016 as compared to 2015 numbers.

Part of the reason is that more Americans are working from home than ever before (on at least 1-2 days each week) and lunch is either too expensive to eat out every day, or there is no dining option nearby.

How bad do you want a veggie burger? Just ask the over 20,000 people in the United States who have signed a change.org petition demanding (not even requesting) that In-N-Out add a vegetarian burger option to its menu.

Sounds simple, right? Give customers what they want and they’ll be happy. But the truth is, you can’t please everybody and sometimes you shouldn’t even try. This is the case with In-N-Out. You see, the chain’s menu is famous for its bare-bones approach: Burgers, cheeseburgers, fries and shakes. If you’re thirsty, go ahead and order a soda.

Sometimes, certain marketing promotions pay off big-time for QSR and fast-casual restaurant operators. This kind of success can make it tempting to re-use those same promotions or marketing tactics. But there comes a point where this strategy may backfire - in a big way.

Take Burger King, for example. With same-store sales slumping (down 0.5%) across the USA and Canada leadership at the brand need only look to one place in particular:

Cheetos Chicken Fries.

While the predecessors to the Cheetos Chicken Fries (Chicken Fries and Mac ‘n Cheetos) made a relatively decent splash in the market, the latest iteration of the fries fell flat. Very flat, in fact.