TGI Fridays is expanding its appetizer menu with a series of trendy new items.
The additions include a margarita shrimp cocktail, truffle tot-chos, steakhouse meatballs and loaded poblano queso (full details below). They add variety and new flavors alongside Fridays’ more traditional apps, such as mozzarella sticks, chicken wings and its signature loaded potato skins. All will share space on the new app menu, which now features a whopping 18 items, including sushi from Krispy Rice unveiled last week.
The 700-unit casual-dining chain also freshened up its main menu with two new salads—a Thai mango salad and a harvest grains salad—and a chicken al pastor bowl.
“Our guests are looking for a greater variety of bold and exciting flavors that can be enjoyed any time of day and these new offerings deliver on those expectations with unbeatable taste and quality,” CEO Brandon Coleman said in a statement.
Coleman became CEO in August and is on a mission to return Fridays to relevancy after years of sales declines and closures. Part of his strategy is to re-establish Fridays as a cool place to gather with friends, and apps will be a key element of that: They’re easy to share and appeal to groups and younger people. Fridays’ new app menu includes items starting at $3, encouraging guests to order a few for mixing and matching.
“We have to win the appetizer category,” Coleman said in an interview last week.
As Fridays’ app selection grows, its entree options will shrink, he said, with the intention of improving quality and execution. The result will be a menu that is smaller overall.
The brand is also keeping up with trends at the bar, where it has added hard seltzer, sake and mocktails. On Tuesday, it said it now serves nonalcoholic beer from Athletic Brewing Co., a nod to growing demand for booze-free bar options.
Here’s the full rundown of TGI Fridays’ new menu items:
- Margarita Shrimp Cocktail: Chile lime seasoned shrimp tossed with diced avocado, pico de gallo, diced fresh mango, and a light agave lime juice. Served with tortilla chips.
- Truffle Tot-chos: Seasoned, handmade potato tots freshly fried to a golden crispy, drizzled with truffle aioli, Parmesan-Romano, and parsley. Served with extra sauce for dipping.
- Steakhouse Meatballs: All beef steakhouse-style meatballs topped with a garlic and herb chimichurri sauce.
- Loaded Poblano Queso: Zesty and warm queso topped with fresh pico de gallo, mixed cheeses, and house made guacamole. Served with tortilla chips.
- Thai Mango Salad: Chopped romaine, shredded red and napa cabbages, julienne carrots, and candied pecans, mixed with a house-made sweet heat mango vinaigrette and served with a grilled fresh lime.
- Harvest Grains Salad: Baby kale, rocket arugula, brown rice, red quinoa, farrow, red onion, sweet potato, and craisins tossed in a lemon vinaigrette. Topped with dollops of goat cheese and candied pecan dust.
- Chicken Al Pastor Bowl: Freshly steamed jasmine rice topped with grilled chicken, fresh diced avocado, grilled pineapple, grated cheese blend, fire roasted corn and black bean salsa, and crispy tortilla strips. Drizzled with Al Pastor sauce and a squeeze of grilled lime.
- Athletic Brewing Co. Upside Dawn: A light-bodied brew crafted to remove gluten, Upside Dawn features floral and earthy notes.
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