McAlister’s Deli has a massive menu with over 150 items, but Chief Brand Officer Danielle Porto Parra said the brand has room for new flavors. In August, the chain added several pork items, starters and sides and grab-and-go desserts to its core menu and is in the midst of testing several items like salads and grain bowls.
“This is our most significant menu update in years, and the impetus behind it was wanting to bring guests two things, modernize the menu and bring our guests some of the favorites of all those things,” Parra said.
McAlister’s isn’t the only chain working on big menu updates. Chains like Dave & Buster’s, Subway and Wendy’s have updated their menus within the past 12 months, with the goal of increasing sales and frequency. Other chains have focused on boosting their value propositions like IHOP and Olive Garden, the former of which saw positive traffic during the third quarter for the first time in several years after making its House Faves value menu available seven days a week.
McAlister’s menu update isn’t a value play, but a move to add more flavors to bring in more new and existing guests.
The chain offered pork items before as a limited-time offering, but the protein has never been a core menu element. Previous LTOs performed well, and there has always been strong consumer interest in pork, she said. Honey barbecue pork also has a lot of cross-functionality and has been added to a baked potato and a sandwich, creating two new menu items. McAlister’s also combined pork with mac and cheese to create a new, unique menu item, the Smokehouse Spud, Parra said.
Menu innovation doesn’t have to require big moves. The chain already offers brownies and Brookies — a brownie-cookie product — that are large handheld items. But using insight from Gen Z consumers and parents, the chain created bite-sized pieces of these dessert items served in its iced tea cups as a grab-and-go dessert item, Parra said.
So far the reception of the menu update has been “overwhelmingly positive,” Parra said.
“Sales are exceeding our expectations and our forecast,” she said, adding that the core menu update coincided with a physical menu board redesign. The menu boards now have more photos to help guests better shop the menu, and the company used eye tracking research and customer insights expertise to enhance the overall experience.
Additionally, McAlister’s is also seeing a lot of web and app orders for the new menu items.
Creating profitable products
The menu update arose from an effort to measure and quantify results to make sure items were profitable for franchisees. But the food also needs to attract more guests and increase their frequency, Parra said.
“We see this kind of menu innovation as absolutely critical, and we're laser focused on bringing in those items that are operationally easy to execute, where we have quality and craftsmanship that the guests value, and flavor that the guests value,” Parra said.
That means using SKUs across different menu items, and pulling the new flavors into catering, which is a big part of the company’s business model. Honey barbecue pork works not only on sandwiches and spuds, but also on nachos as a starter, she said. Having one ingredient that can work across platforms allows for bulk preparation, which is critical to catering.
Menu innovation that helps drive unit-level economics helps power stronger store openings, she said. McAlister’s new store openings are “more and more successful every year, [and] our sales in the first six weeks of an opening continue to increase year after year really dramatically and so the data backs up that success,” Parra said.
More innovation to come
While the menu update happened in August, McAlister’s isn’t done with menu innovation. It is currently testing salads with grains, which could further modernize the menu, in a number of markets , Parra said. This menu shift allows the brand to add some Mediterranean flavors, which it hasn’t offered before, as well as Southwestern Savannah and Creole flavors, the latter of which plays into McAlister’s southern heritage.
This test will continue into 2026, with menu items rolling out next year. Additionally, the chain has a 24-month pipeline of items that includes beverage innovation, which is an important way to win Gen Z consumers, Parra said.
“We see bright colors, bold flavors,” Parra said. “And we think we can achieve that really well with our platform of lemonade and tea, … as well as some kind of drink in the refresher space.”
The chain will soon release its Mardi Gras punch, a pink-purple drink that includes desert pear as a flavor. During the Halloween season, McAlister’s offered Witch’s Brew, a caramel apple-flavored drink that had a neon green color. It received “tremendous reception” on social media with millions of views across platforms, which Parra said tells the chain how well it is resonating with younger generations.
Carving a niche in fast casual
McAlister’s sits in the fast casual-plus space because it has a broad menu that includes starters, appetizers, entrees, salads, soups, sides, giant spuds and plated desserts, Parra said. While guests order at a counter, staff deliver food to their tables, and offer drink refills. Managers and staff often converse with guests during their meals, adding an extra element of hospitality, Parra said.
“We offer large sides for when you're dining with a group, and you can have your dessert service [tableside], all accompanied by someone checking in with you and providing that service,” Parra said.
That level of hospitality allows managers, franchisees and team members to offer guests special touches like a free cookie, handwritten thank you note, or a Try a Tea pass, which offers a free tea every day for 30 days,, Parra added.
“Our purpose as a brand is nourishing connections,” Parra said.” We’re always looking to do something a little extra.”
