Burger King now has a new way to grill. After spending more than three years rolling the equipment into stores, the flexible broiler is online at all U.S locations, opening the way for creative menu innovations, starting with extra-thick burgers.
"This new broiler is a game-changing piece of equipment and a significant point of differentiation for us," Burger King's John Schaufelberger, senior vice president, global product marketing and innovation, said in a news release. "Not only is the technology revolutionary to our industry, it is proprietary to the Burger King brand. It allows us to up the ante in our product development across the board — from superior quality food and unconventional menu innovations to even more competitive value offerings."
The state-of-the-art equipment is the heart of Burger King restaurant kitchens. The broiler, supplied by either Nieco Automatic Broilers or Duke Manufacturing, features proprietary technology that allows restaurants to further enhance the brand's signature flame-fresh taste and provides the flexibility necessary to explore a wider range of innovative, delicious, fire-grilled foods.
Duke's batch broiler, for example, can cook up to eight Whopper patties at one time. The oven's control system cycles the amount of heat used during the cooking process based on parameters designed for the specific product. (Click here to view a slideshow of images of the new broilers and menu options.)
BKC is testing a variety of products that can now be made on the new broiler, including fall-off-the-bone BK Fire-Grilled Ribs, stuffed burgers packed with flavor from the inside out, and an array of one-of-a-kind offerings for breakfast, snacks and even flame-kissed desserts.
Steakhouse XT debut
First off the new broilers is the Steakhouse XT premium burger line, featuring an extra-thick, juicy steakhouse patty more than 30 percent larger than McDonald's Angus Third Pounders. The new burgers include:
- The Steakhouse XT — Features seven ounces of seasoned ground beef topped with crisp lettuce, onions, red-ripe tomatoes, ketchup and mayo on a corn-dusted bakery bun
- The A.1. Steakhouse XT — All of the ingredients on the Steakhouse XT plus A.1. steak sauce, American cheese and crispy onions
- The Smoky Cheddar Steakhouse XT — A limited-time-only burger featuring smoky barbeque sauce, cheddar cheese and bacon
For a limited time only, the Steakhouse XT is available at participating restaurants in the United States and Canada for a special introductory retail price of $3.99. The A.1. Steakhouse XT and Smoky Cheddar Steakhouse XT are available for a suggested retail price of $4.49. Both the Steakhouse XT and the A.1. Steakhouse XT are permanent additions to the Burger King menu.
Environmental benefits
While the company set out to branch into new product innovations with its updated broilers, the new systems realized unexpected benefits. One of the broiler systems supports energy efficiency by reducing gas consumption in Burger King restaurants by 52 percent and electricity consumption by 90 percent when compared to systems of the past, allowing operators to achieve a 12-18 month return on investment on the equipment's installation.
As of Feb. 1, virtually all Burger King restaurants in the United States and Canada have installed the new broiler and the broiler's rollout to international markets is expected to be completed over the course of 2010.
