Restaurant discounting 2016-style

So long, dollar menu, and hello, meal deal. Restaurant chains are rethinking their rock-bottom deals this year to get a higher ticket, slashing the price of a sizeable meal rather than hawking individual items at near-giveaway levels.

Pizza Hut customers won’t even get the discount unless they order at least two items off the chain’s new $5 menu. Spend $10 for a pie and sodas for four, instead of paying $6.99 for just the pizza (albeit two pies). No meal, no deal.

With each option on the separate roster priced at $5, Pizza Hut is at the high end of the bundled bargaining. For that kind of money, Burger King and McDonald’s are promising multi-course lunches and dinners—with change left over.

Here’s a quick rundown of what discounting looks so far in 2016.

The flame broiler is all but jeering at Wendy’s with its new lure for price shoppers. Wendy’s 4 for $4 deal consists of a bacon cheeseburger, small fries, a small soda and four chicken nuggets. BK offers the same items, plus a cookie for dessert.

Big Mac is undercutting its two arch-rivals in price while touting the added advantage of choice. Customers can pick any two items off the four-option McPick menu for $2, total. A soda is not one of the choices. Add a small drink, and the meal will still likely fall below $4.

The choices are a McChicken sandwich, a McDouble cheeseburger, an order of fries and three mozzarella sticks with marinara dipping sauce.

Customers have to order at least two items at $5 each to get the price cut, choosing from seven possible components. The options include a medium pizza with one topping; eight boneless “wings”; an order of Toscani pasta; an order of bread or flavor sticks; a giant cookie; a similarly oversized brownie; and four sodas.

Blame the new bundling wars on the pig-tailed redhead. Wendy’s unwrapped its deal back in October, acknowledging that the offer was intended to boost lunch traffic. The value package broke new ground by including both a sandwich and nuggets, items that are usually offered as either/or’s.