Fast food chains are forever updating and innovating their menus in a bid to be the biggest and best on the planet. This means some menu items are limited-run failures that are quickly forgotten, while others become new cult classics. 2024 saw the launch of loads of exciting new menu options worldwide, including McDonald's biggest-ever burger and Pizza Hut's overstuffed Cheeseburger Melts. Here, we count down the most iconic items of the bunch.
Was there a fast food item from 2024 that you can't resist? Click or scroll through our gallery to see if it made the list.
We've based our ranking on the popularity of each menu item in its place of origin and beyond, and on the opinions of our well-travelled (and well-fed) team. The list is unavoidably subjective.
Taco Bell isn't afraid to be different, and it definitely painted outside the lines when it released its Crispy Chicken Nuggets right at the end of 2024. Going way against the grain, Taco Bell's nuggs are coated in crunchy tortilla chips to provide what it hopes is the last word in nuggets. The chain also offered a trio of cool sauces, including Hidden Valley Fire Ranch, Bell and Jalapeño Honey Mustard. Time will tell if it's a huge success.
https://www.tacobell.com/newsroom/taco-bell-reimagines-classic-chicken-nugget-with-tortilla-chip-breaded-chicken-nuggets-and-hidden-valley-ranch?msockid=1c3e0ee852d864ad09d81a5b53e0652a
Chick-fil-A introduced a new sandwich it hoped would become a summertime staple in the form of the Maple Pepper Bacon Sandwich. The dish was tested in 2023, but it was rolled out nationwide for a limited time in June 2024. Inside the maple-flavoured brioche bun, the sandwich featured a lemon and herb grilled chicken breast topped with pepper Jack cheese, sweet bacon, lettuce and pickles. It was certainly a different taste from its famous Chicken Sandwich.
https://www.chick-fil-a.com/press-room/chick-fil-a-introduces-new-sandwich-alongside-iconic-milkshake-available-nationwide
Pizza unveiled its Chicago Tavern-Style Pizza on an unsuspecting public in June 2024. This style of pizza comes from 1930s Chicago and involves a thin, crispy crust that's cut up into squares to be shared and enjoyed. Pizza Hut introduced this onto the menu in four different flavours: Pesto Margherita, The Ultimate, Spicy Chicken Sausage and Double Pepperoni. The chain claimed it was the first global brand to have a go at this pizza style, so at least it's taking chances.
https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/pizza-hut-unveils-new-chicago-tavern-style-pizza-and-toppings-transformation-with-biggest-toppings-menu-overhaul-in-over-a-decade-302174662.html
KFC declared 2024 as the year of the chicken tenders war in the ad campaign for its Original Recipe Chicken Tenders. It didn't prove quite accurate – fast food rivals didn't go as hard for the chicken tenders as they did the chicken sandwich – but KFC did make an argument for the superiority of its chicken tenders. Double hand-breaded and seasoned with the brand's fabled secret spice mix, the chicken tenders were pretty darn tasty.
https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/kfc-issues-battle-cry-to-tenders-rivals--introducing-new-original-recipe-tenders-and-zesty-comeback-sauce-from-the-original-fried-chicken-brand-302274619.html
Shake Shack celebrated the start of summer with the release of a new summer BBQ menu. The idea was to introduce the smoky flavours of a backyard BBQ to the world of fast food, and the chain nailed it with the Smoky Classic BBQ Burger. This was a cheeseburger topped with smoked bacon, pickles, crispy onions and a classic BBQ sauce. It struck the right note with customers, who might just be on the lookout for the dish in 2025.
https://shakeshack.com/blog/our-food/our-summer-bbq-menu-is-here#/
Proving that the fast food game isn't all about big burgers and crispy chicken, Dunkin' set out to offer something a little different in May. Offered as part of its summer menu, the Green Goddess Wrap is a vividly coloured lavash wrap containing a wholesome filling of egg whites, farro (a grain similar to quinoa), sun-dried tomatoes, spinach, feta and Green Goddess dressing. The lunchtime treat only contains 260 calories, leaving plenty of room for one of the chain's famous doughnuts.
A popular Five Guys hack saw fans ordering a grilled cheese sandwich with a patty on the side to create their own patty melt at the table. But Five Guys made things a whole lot easier in September 2024, when it made an all-new Patty Melt an official part of its menu. Consisting of a burger patty sitting between melted American cheese slices inside a toasted upside-down burger bun, it's actually a little cheaper than the hack version. Additional toppings are, of course, up to you.
Have you ever wished you could enjoy a burger in bite-sized pieces without worrying about greasing your fingers? Well, these Burger Bites from Hungry Jack's in Australia could be for you. The miniature munchies contain a dizzying combo of beef, cheese and ketchup, all inside a crispy crumb. Hungry Jack's (known as Burger King in the rest of the world) said that Burger Bites are a snack unique to the chain. The snackable balls hit menus in February and have proven wildly popular.
Pizza Hut invited fast food fans in the US and Canada to 'cheat on your cheeseburger' with a bold ad campaign in May. It was all in aid of its new Cheeseburger Melt menu item – a folded pizza slice coated in Parmesan cheese and stuffed with beef, bacon, onions, mozzarella and Cheddar cheese. To top it all off, the treat came with a side serving of a new dipping sauce. Pizza Hut wanted people to forgo their usual McDonald's and Burger King cheeseburgers for this new limited-time-only venture.
McDonald's UK dropped a fun new menu just in time for summer 2024. It included the return of some fan-favourite burgers, but most enticing of all was the UK-only Skittles McFlurry. The chain described the new treat as ‘chewy, refreshing and undeniably sweet’, which is exactly what you want from a fast food dessert. It featured the brand's signature soft-serve ice cream mixed together with Skittles, fudge pieces and a purple Skittles-like sauce.
To coincide with the start of the football season in the US, Popeyes launched its latest attempt to win over wing fans. The chain already has half a dozen wing flavours in its lineup – but in September 2024, it added Sweet 'N Smokey Chipotle Wings to the menu. True to its name, the sauce combined hot chipotle chillies with the sweet taste of honey. The result wasn't worlds apart from Popeyes' Sweet 'N Spicy Wings, but it was enough of a difference to keep fans happy.
LEON has long been a favourite with UK fast food fans looking for something a little bit healthier on the high street. One of the chain's most popular offerings is its GFC nuggets – gluten-free chicken thigh chunks in a crispy coating. But since July 2024, LEON has introduced a rival contender in the form of Hot Honey GFC Chicken Nuggets. They're the same gluten-free nuggets, but slathered in a sriracha hot honey sauce and topped with a spicy seasoning.
There was a lot of burger in the Great King Yeti The One Pounder. The mammoth feast – containing an incredible 1,637 calories – came piled high with four beef patties and six slices of Gouda cheese. The finishing touch was two layers of cheesy white sauce. It wasn't a burger for the faint of heart, but anyone up to the challenge earned themselves an 'I Did It' sticker for taming this monster. Launched in February, the Great King Yeti The One Pounder was a limited-time offer from Burger King Japan.
A cult-favourite item that always seems to be coming and going, limited-edition Nacho Fries first appeared on Taco Bell’s menu in 2018. They're a pretty simple creation, consisting of seasoned French fries and a side of creamy nacho cheese sauce. But in 2024, Taco Bell released a new take on the dish: Secret Aardvark Nacho Fries, which come smothered in Secret Aardvark's famous tropical hot sauce, plus sour cream, nacho cheese sauce and pico de gallo.
Hungry Jack's is normally known for its burgers, but it branched out a little in August 2024. The outlet promised customers that its Jack's Fried Chicken Southern Style Tenders would be 'the ultimate dipping experience' and offered up a choice of four sauces: spicy, aioli, barbecue or sweet and sour. The new tenders came in a box of three or five, and Hungry Jack's also launched a chicken burger – Parmi Jack's Fried Chicken – alongside them.
From the fast food chain that brought you the famous Pickle Juice Slush came another strangely delicious concoction: the Peanut Butter and Bacon Cheeseburger, featuring two beef patties, cheese, bacon, onions and creamy peanut butter piled high in a toasted bun. Sonic Drive-In offered this unusual combo for a limited time in January, hoping to entice fans with a blend of flavours that probably shouldn't have worked (but absolutely did).
Whataburger kicked off 2024 with its new WhataWings – and fans of the chain still can't get enough of them. The boneless wings come with your choice of Whataburger's top dipping sauces, including Honey Butter, Buffalo, Honey BBQ and Sweet & Spicy. They were supposed to be a limited-edition item available for a short time, but they proved so popular that their run was extended until the end of the year.
Tsukimi is a moon-viewing festival in Japan celebrating the harvest moon – and each year, fast food chains cash in on the event with the launch of new menu items. One of the most interesting ones in 2024 came from local chain MOS Burger. The Tsukimi Focaccia switched out a regular bun for a soft focaccia roll and offered a unique combination of fillings: two crescent-shaped sausages, a soft-boiled egg and barbecue sauce. The outlet also released a Menchi Katsu Focaccia, featuring a ground meat cutlet, and a Barbecue Focaccia.
While the name 'Aromatic Dashi Meat Tempura Gobo Udon Pizza' doesn't exactly roll off the tongue, that doesn't change the fact that this limited-edition pizza and noodle mash-up is an intriguing offer. The two foods seem too different to work together at first, but the combination of soft, chewy noodles, crispy pizza, tender beef and sweet soy sauce certainly had its fans. Customers lucky enough to get hold of this dish while it was offered in select Pizza Hut outlets in Japan also earned themselves a commemorative sticker.
If you wanted to swap your breakfast Egg McMuffin for something sweet in February 2024, then Wendy's was the place to go. That's when the chain released a breakfast collaboration with Cinnabon, in the form of the Cinnabon Pull-Apart. This sweet morning treat consisted of dough bites baked with cinnamon and smothered in Cinnabon's legendary cream cheese frosting. It also came in a cup, so you didn't end up with sticky fingers.
This is a burger you're highly unlikely to ever find on a menu at McDonald's or Burger King in the West. Dom Dom has long been known for its creative combinations, and the Pear Double Teriyaki Burger is another in a line of interesting launches. The juicy burger patties, coated in the chain's signature teriyaki sauce, pair surprisingly well with the large, crunchy pear slices nestled on top of them. The Pear Double Teriyaki Burger debuted in one store before positive customer reactions prompted it to roll out nationwide in August 2024.
In February, McDonald's tried its best to warm up Britain's freezing-cold winter with its first UK collaboration with Frank’s RedHot. The limited-edition menu item was given the descriptive name of McSpicy x Frank’s RedHot, allowing its already pretty fiery chicken burger to go up another level on the heat scale. The collab included a one-of-a-kind Frank’s RedHot mayo on top of punchy chicken, salad, Emmental cheese, jalapeños and onions. It was only on sale for as long as the chain had stock.
Subway is best known for its footlong subs, but the brand's Footlong Dippers are a new way to experience its amazing selection of breads, fillings and sauces. The dippers are lavash flatbreads rolled into a suitably long shape – perfect for dipping – and filled with cheese and a choice of pepperoni, chicken or yet more cheese. Sauces include honey mustard, sriracha, ranch and eight other signature dips.
Like many comfort food fans around the world, Canadians love pizza and mac 'n' cheese – so Little Caesars Canada made the not-so-bold decision to combine the two in its Crazy Puffs Mac & Cheese pizza pockets. Crazy Puffs have been a popular menu item for a while, but this version was unique to Canada when it launched in May. Small pieces of pizza dough are stuffed with oozy mac 'n' cheese, then the whole caboodle is topped with more shredded cheese and Cheddar seasoning.
Bonchon regulars had been asking the outlet to put its fantastic fried chicken in a sandwich for a long time – and in July 2024, Bonchon finally delivered. The Korean fried chicken chain wanted to give the humble chicken sandwich its own twist, though. The joint's delicious double-fried chicken is sandwiched between a toasted bun and served with one of its signature sauces, which include Soy Garlic, Spicy and Korean BBQ.
Putting mushrooms on a burger might be controversial for some, but McDonald's in Singapore has embraced the umami power of the humble fungi. Its Creamy Mushroom Double Cheeseburger launched in April 2024 and is a towering treat of grilled mushrooms in a spicy black pepper mayonnaise, placed atop two juicy cheeseburgers. If that's not enough meat for you, though, you could go for the Creamy Mushroom Triple Cheeseburger instead.
KFC announced in April that it was 'taking finger lickin' good to a whole new level' with the release of its Saucy Nuggets. They're the same hand-breaded white meat nuggets served elsewhere on the Colonel's menu, but this time they're coated in five sauce flavours, three of which are brand new. The most popular of the new sauces is probably Korean BBQ, which edges out Honey Sriracha and Sticky Chicky Sweet 'n Sour for the win.
In May, Popeyes in the US made a play for livening up lunchtimes by launching the Golden BBQ Chicken Sandwich. It was a new limited-edition variation of its legendary chicken sandwich, featuring a fried chicken breast smothered in a sweet and sour sauce and topped with pickles. Optional extras included cheese and bacon. The Golden BBQ Chicken Sandwich perhaps wasn't enough of an innovation to dethrone the original Chicken Sandwich, but it certainly had its fans.
Taco Bell brought Cheesy Street Chalupas to the whole of the US in July 2024 after a brief trial in select restaurants the year before. These hand-held heroes are a combination of street tacos and popular Taco Bell menu options, including the cheesy chalupa shell. Customers can choose between chicken or steak for the filling, finishing it off with onions, coriander and a spicy ranch dressing. A new customer favourite was born!
In October 2024, Wendy's dropped its SpongeBob SquarePants collaboration with the release of the Krabby Patty Kollab Burger and the Pineapple Under the Sea Frosty. The burger was a quarter pounder with two slices of American cheese, salad, pickle, and a top-secret sauce on a toasted bun. The Frosty was a vanilla base with a pineapple-mango swirl. It was the first time the iconic fictional food had ever made an official jump onto a fast food menu, and fans went mad for it.
https://eu.usatoday.com/story/money/food/2024/10/22/krabby-patty-meal-wendys/75794459007/
Fast food fans have been in a frenzy ever since McDonald’s announced in December 2023 that it would be launching its biggest ever burger. The wait was finally over in summer 2024, when the Big Arch (or Le Grand M) debuted exclusively in Canadian and Portuguese outlets. This massive burger comes complete with two quarter-pound patties, three slices of cheese, crispy and sliced onions, pickles, lettuce and a new spicy sauce. If the launch is successful, McDonald’s plans to roll it out globally.
Now discover the greatest limited-edition fast food items of all time