10 Strange Things About Your Favorite Chains That Sound Fake (But Aren’t)
Major restaurant chains build their reputations on consistency, which makes their strangest decisions even more surprising. Over the years, some have launched unusual menu items, tested odd promotions, or made unexpected business moves that feel fictional at first glance. Yet each of these moments actually happened, shaped by marketing strategy, cultural trends, or bold attempts to stand out in a crowded industry.
Burger King Once Sold Jet-Black Burgers Made With Charcoal
In Japan, Burger King launched black buns made with bamboo charcoal and squid ink. The burgers looked like Halloween props but were sold as normal menu items. Japan’s fast-food market often rewards novelty, and limited-time visuals can drive massive foot traffic. Customers lined up mostly out of curiosity, but many came back because the flavor profile was close to the standard Whopper formula.
McDonald’s Tried Bubblegum-Flavored Broccoli for Kids
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McDonald’s researchers once tested broccoli coated in a bubblegum-style sweetness to make vegetables more appealing to children. The result was exactly what you would expect: kids hated it, and adults found it deeply unsettling. Even McDonald’s executives later joked it was one of their strangest product experiments. It never made it past internal testing, but the fact that it existed still surprises people.
Subway Once Had Thousands More US Locations Than McDonald’s
Image via Wikimedia Commons/Michael Rivera
For years, Subway has had more locations than McDonald’s across the United States. The chain grew aggressively through smaller footprints and franchise-friendly startup costs. Instead of massive standalone buildings, Subway thrived inside gas stations, Walmart stores, airports, and college campuses. The strategy helped them expand faster than almost any restaurant brand in American history.
Taco Bell Runs a Real Wedding Chapel in Las Vegas
At its Las Vegas Strip Cantina location, Taco Bell operates a licensed wedding venue where couples can legally get married. Packages include food, branded merchandise, and ceremony space. Hundreds of couples have already used it. The idea started as a marketing stunt but turned into a steady stream of tourism revenue thanks to Vegas’s nonstop demand for unconventional wedding experiences.
Pizza Hut Paid Over $1 Million to Deliver Pizza to Space
In 2001, Pizza Hut arranged for a pizza delivery to astronauts aboard the International Space Station. The company reportedly spent more than $1 million on logistics, testing, and transport coordination. The pizza itself had to be redesigned with less sauce and salt so it could be consumed in microgravity. It remains one of the most expensive marketing stunts ever tied to a single food item.
KFC Released Fried-Chicken-Scented Sunscreen
KFC once launched sunscreen that smelled like fried chicken. It was partly a joke and partly a real promotional giveaway. Fans rushed to claim bottles online, and it sold out quickly. The stunt worked because it leaned into the brand’s identity while staying weird enough to go viral. Even people who never got one still remember hearing about it.
Red Lobster’s Most Famous Food Didn’t Exist When the Chain Opened
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Cheddar Bay Biscuits feel like they have always been part of Red Lobster. They were not. The biscuits launched in the early 1990s as a replacement for hush puppies that customers did not love. They became so popular that they moved from being a waiting-area snack to a centerpiece menu item. The name “Cheddar Bay” was completely invented to sound coastal and cozy.
KFC Became Japan’s Default Christmas Dinner
In Japan, ordering KFC for Christmas is a nationwide tradition dating back to a 1970s marketing campaign positioning fried chicken as a holiday turkey substitute. Today, families pre-order weeks in advance. Some locations sell up to ten times their normal daily volume on Christmas Eve. Special holiday buckets and packaging are released every year like seasonal collectibles.
Wendy’s Once Ran an All-You-Can-Eat Buffet
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During the late 1980s and early 1990s, Wendy’s operated the SuperBar, which included pasta, tacos, salad, and dessert stations. Customers paid one price and could eat unlimited portions. It boosted traffic at first, but eventually collapsed under food waste costs and operational complexity. Still, people who experienced it remember it as a fast-food fever dream.
Pizza Hut Made a Limited Pizza-Scented Perfume
Pizza Hut Canada once created a perfume that smelled like opening a hot pizza box. Fewer than 110 bottles were produced and given away to fans as part of a social media campaign. Recipients confirmed it genuinely smelled like fresh dough and melted cheese.