Big Changes Are Coming To Fast Food Chains In 2025

What keeps the world going round? An argument could be made in favor of powerhouse fast food companies like McDonald's, Burger King, or Starbucks, whose countless storefronts keep millions of hungry consumers around the globe fed daily. In recent years, however, even some of the largest fast casual chains in the game have found themselves struggling, bending under the pressure of economic downturn and slower customer traffic as a result.

But 2025 is a new year, and many chains intend to hit the ground running. Plans for revamping business, restoring consumer interest, making environmentally-friendly changes, experimenting in new markets, and more abound among some of the world's best-known beloved restaurants. But whether or not these efforts will pay off in the coming months remains to be seen. From new locations to economical menus to groundbreaking technologies to condiment stations, here are some big changes coming to popular fast food chains in 2025.

With all the costs required by the present day, a value menu at a fast food establishment can present a much-appreciated way for consumers to comfortably afford a meal for themselves and their families. McDonald's has frequently extended the hand of savings to its consumer base via its accessible dollar menu items, $5 value meals, extra value meals, and more ... but even these deals haven't been enough at the close of 2024. In the wake of a deadly E. Coli outbreak linked to the Quarter Pounder burger that caused waves of illness to spread throughout the United States, business is decidedly down for the company with the golden arches.

Perhaps this is what inspired McDonald's upcoming New Year's resolution: an all-new value menu, reportedly set to drop in 2025. The company's CEO, Chris Kempczinski, has hinted that this new collection of specials will be holistic in nature, mirroring that of Australia's McSmart Menu or the Saver Menu featured in the U.K. The details of what will be included were released by McDonald's in November 2024, and it includes a "buy one add one for $1" deal on popular menu items such as 6 piece nuggets, small fries, and breakfast items including the sausage McMuffin. There will also be a $5 meal deal, as well as local deals and in-app exclusive deals.

The celebrated poultry chain, Chick-fil-A, may be one of America's top spots to grab a mouth-watering chicken sandwich, but its presence overseas has been surprisingly limited. Other than Puerto Rico and Canada, the wafting smell of the chain's fried tenders and salted waffle fries has been mostly reserved for consumers in the United States alone. All of that stands to change, however, in 2025.

With the new year comes an exciting new restaurant presence in both the United Kingdom and Asia. Construction on five of the U.K.'s very first Chick-fil-A locations is reportedly set to begin in early 2025, while in the latter half of the year, Singapore will see its very first bright-red storefront, as well. The fast food poultry powerhouse has no plans to stop there, however; according to the company's website, these openings are just a baby step in what will eventually become an international leap. Chick-fil-A assures that customers will see a major increase in its international presence over the next few years, though the details surrounding these subsequent overseas store-building plans are currently undisclosed.

If there's one thing that can be said for the celebrated burger chain, Wendy's, it's that it never shies away from a technological challenge. In 2023, the company known for its red-headed logo joined forces with Google Cloud to develop Wendy'sFreshAI, an artificial intelligence-based drive thru ordering system. Despite skepticism and even downright mockery from some consumers, the company has not given up on its honing of this tool, continually implementing it into more and more locations since its development. In 2025, the company will allegedly continue in its technological growth with a new AI-powered feature — one that has many consumers raising their eyebrows yet again.

An experimental automatic price-changing tool will be going into effect at select Wendy's test locations in the new year. This mechanism will reportedly have the ability to change prices and other aspects of the menu board based on number of customers and other contingencies — the idea of which is not sitting well with nervous consumers worried about potentially dishonest up-charges. Wendy's ensures, however, that it has no intention of using its new tool to hike up price tags on menu items; rather, to lower them during slower hours in an attempt to generate customer interest. Will consumers accept this price-changing tool with open arms, or will they reject it wholeheartedly? This remains to be seen, we suppose. 

The city of Chicago may have stunning buildings, beautiful lake views, and deep dish pizzas galore, but one thing it hasn't had for the last 40 years? A local Jack in the Box. It's true; Illinois' largest city has been without the varied fast food chain for the past four decades. But in late 2024 and into 2025, the winds of change are blowing into the windy city — right along with the smell of the famous Jack in the Box tacos.

Twelve Jack in the Box locations are expected to be planted over the duration of the coming year — two of these are already open — marking a historic new beginning for both the franchise and craving Chicago residents. The company reports that this initial planting is just the beginning of an intended larger expansion, potentially culminating in 125 established locations in the Chicago market. Because the corporation is motivated to expand in the region, this denotes a grand opportunity for interested businesspersons in the area to establish their own franchises under the Jack in the Box banner, the company outlines on its website. If you're a Chicago resident dreaming of owning and operating a Jack rather than just eating it on your way into work, the time to act is now. 

Stepping into a Five Guys, with its old-fashioned diner-like atmosphere, stacks of peanuts, and delicious hand-spun milkshakes, often feels like stepping into the American past. Seeming to embody the classic fast food scene of the U.S. in the 1950's, this burger-and-fries chain has not only performed well in the American market, but in international ones, as well. With a presence established in Europe, Asia, and the Middle East, Five Guys has been named the most popular fast food chain in the U.K. by Market Force on two separate occasions — not bad for a smash-burger joint.

And in 2025, the corporation will reportedly be venturing further into international territory by opening up its very first location in Portugal. In an interview with Bloomberg Europe, John Eckbert, CEO of Five Guys Europe, announced the company's exciting plans to expand into the Portuguese market, identifying Lisbon as its potential starting site. This news, of course, made an exciting splash in the Portuguese press — and as we inch closer to 2025, we look forward to seeing a new country have its dreams of burger-induced bliss fulfilled.

In today's modern world, social media holds the power to change things for people and companies in the blink of an eye. And most recently, Chipotle found itself at the forefront of a string of online attacks on platforms such as TikTok and Reddit. The reasoning? That the company, which had previously been praised for its ample and generous portion sizes, was skimping on the size of its bowls, burritos, and other coveted menu staples.

"I ordered on the app the other day," said a disappointed eater on a Reddit thread under r/Chipotle discussing the issue. "My burrito was the size of a can of Pepsi. Never again." These claims were echoed so loudly by online consumers, the serving CEO had to address them. After an internal investigation, the portion concerns were reportedly found to be true — at least, for approximately 10% of company locations. These storefronts, the company assured, would be provided with training to change the methods under which they were operating and ensure that customers were receiving the amount of food they were allotted for their purchase. In Chipotle's annual 2024 earnings report, the corporation emphasized its renewed commitment to ensuring "consistent and generous portions." In addition to filling its burritos to bursting once again, over 300 new Chipotle locations are scheduled to open in the new year, and continued success in the Canadian market is projected. 

PFAS stands for per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, a group of heat, water, and grease-resistant chemicals traditionally used in many commercial products like clothing, cleaning products, and firefighting foam. Modern research has linked exposure to many kinds of PFAS to increased cancer risk, fertility problems, high cholesterol, and immune system suppression in humans, among others. For this reason, the Environmental Protection Agency has dedicated itself to having the use of PFAS, otherwise known as "forever chemicals," regulated and — ideally — eliminated for good.

But for a worldwide fast food chain with thousands of locations under its belt, total elimination evidently takes time. After being sued alongside McDonald's in 2022 for the presence of PFAS in its packaging, Burger King, in accordance with the EPA's three-year phase-out initiative, announced its dedication to ditching the forever chemicals that traditionally prevented grease build-up on its wrappers by 2025 or sooner. In February 2024, the FDA triumphantly announced that grease-resistant packaging containing PFAS were no longer being sold by suppliers anywhere in the United States market — a huge win for American health moving forward. By the start of 2025, we should all be able to order a Whopper with the confidence that the last of the PFAS-filled packaging is out of the picture. Your wrapper may be greasier, but it won't be leaching harmful chemicals into your burger — and we'd consider that a trade worth making.

When we enter a Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen and order a freshly-breaded-and-fried chicken patty sandwich, we expect it to be just as satisfying as the one we ordered from that other Popeyes location a few cities over. Sadly, consistently has been a repeat complaint when it comes to the celebrated poultry chain. Reports of differing eating experiences between locations led the company's higher-ups to do some internal research as to the cause of these alleged inconsistencies — and what they found involved the kitchens themselves.

The corporation found that the kitchens of many of its locations were outdated. With no updated or automated technologies installed in the cooking spaces, employees were performing the majority of the work — such as the breading and battering of chicken — by hand. Not only does this make for a slower preparatory process, it also makes for a more inconsistent one; different employees and locations will have slightly different processes, after all. In 2025, the Popeyes corporation reportedly plans to install a whopping 30 new updates in its kitchens across the board, including modernized technologies such as automatic chicken-breaders. This will not only make service faster, but will ideally lead to a more consistent product for customers. It's a win-win.

Bojangles, the fast food chain famous for its sweet tea, chicken, and biscuits, has established itself as a quintessentially Southern fast food chain, given its heavy concentration in the Southeastern regions of the United States. In 2025, however, it appears that this North Carolina-based corporation will be exchanging cowboy boots for a pair of flip flops as it heads west for the golden state.

In the coming year, Bojangles will begin serving up buttery breakfast biscuits and mashed potatoes and gravy for consumers in Los Angeles County, as its very first location drops in California. This initial storefront is part of a larger expansion plan, which will reportedly include around 30 restaurants in the state. Allegedly, deals to build in Arizona are also in the works — marking a pivotal moment for the franchise as Bojangles begins stepping outside of its comfort zone for the first time. We'll be watching with anticipation to see if the company strikes gold on its journey out west. 

Raising Cane's may have started as the humble dream of a college kid named Todd Graves, but it has grown well beyond a young man's idea for a joint specializing in chicken fingers. The once-small poultry chain has grown into a full-blown franchise over 800 locations strong in the U.S. — and it has no plans to slow its roll in 2025.

News outlets across America are alight with reports about new Raising Cane's locations coming to their communities in the new year. From Montgomeryville, Pennsylvania to Boise, Idaho to Seattle, Washington and beyond, the country will be seeing extreme growth from the chicken chain in 2025 — and the traffic to these new locations will likely be significant. "Is raising canes really that good?" asked a recent user on Reddit, describing how a new storefront in their city of Pittsburgh had a consistent daily line wrapped around the building. Responding users hopped on to confirm that this seems to be typical where newly-established Raising Cane's locations are concerned. "The lines in San Diego are always around the building," said one. "The sauce is good, decent fries, and great bread." One thing's for sure: you might want to plan to get to that new location near you plenty early on opening day. 

Let's face it: it often feels like there's a Starbucks (or two) on every corner we pass. As the world's largest coffee chain, it usually goes without saying that you'll be able to find a sign with the recognizable green siren wherever you travel. Though the company's overwhelming visibility and presence won't change in the coming year, surprisingly, it won't grow much, either. The Starbucks corporation has reported that an official halt will be placed on new builds in 2025 so the company can instead focus its efforts on another aspect of the business — getting its existing locations up to par.

Sales are reportedly down for the coffee giant. Starbucks' CEO, Brian Niccol, described its end-of-year financial numbers as being very disheartening, outlining that a change is needed to bring consumers back to stores. While the company will continue to keep its end goal of increased global expansion by 2030 in its sights, 2025 will mean a systematic scaling-back on aggressive expansion, and an investment in stores already placed. Under this "Back to Starbucks" plan, Niccol plans to decrease wait times for customers, reinstate condiment stations, tighten up menus, and recreate that comfortable, welcoming atmosphere from the Starbucks days of old.

Due to the extreme worldwide demand for coffee, ethical issues in bean farming and sourcing have developed as an unfortunate byproduct. Exploitation of workers, low and unfair wages, deforestation, dangerous pesticide usage, and others are all part of the dark side of our favorite cup of Joe. These problems have led some coffee companies to step up to the plate of change, vowing only to provide products brewed from responsibly and ethically-harvested coffee beans.

One of these is Dunkin,' the Massachusetts-based coffee-and-breakfast fast food chain. In 2022, Dunkin' announced the start of a new initiative called the "Dunkin' Drive-To Sustainability Program," which would culminate with completely ethically-sourced coffee by the year 2025. Via teamwork with its sources, the company committed to increased verification and vetting, as well as helping to provide education for farmers in their employ. Additionally, Dunkin' has granted donations to OneTree Planted, a tree-planting non-profit agency, as well as the World Coffee Research, a non-profit leader in coffee-angled agricultural research, as part of its initiative. In the coming year, Dunkin's efforts come to a close — meaning a better cup of coffee not just for you, but for the rest of the world. Sign us up for a cup of sustainable coffee with cream-and-sugar, please. 

When it comes to ordering at a fast casual restaurant, you've probably considered price, calories, and your own craving — not carbon emissions. However, Panera, in a step to lower its carbon footprint and give its Earth-passionate consumers a chance to order greener food, has added a 'low carbon certified' sticker to a number of its menu entrées. Partnering with the World Resources Institute to determine which of its meals require the least number of greenhouse gasses to supply and produce, Panera has developed a line of Coolfood meals ... and it appears that this environmentally-friendly foods list will grow with fervor in 2025.

Panera recently affirmed its dedication to assisting with climate change efforts and reducing its carbon footprint as a corporation on its website. This includes packaging changes, the continued institution of renewable energy sources in Panera facilities, and — you guessed it — more Coolfood-certified meals on its menu in 2025. While there's still a long way to go in the fast food industry where sustainability is concerned, you can't help but applaud Panera for blazing the trail. We look forward to seeing what 2025 has in store for our fast food stops — greener meals included.