Kat with a K

Thanks, Friendly's!

I've loved Friendly's for as long as I can remember. I have great memories of going there as a small child with my family. And after band concerts in high school. And to escape campus for a little while in the small town where I went to college. And, in fact, for my mother's birthday just last year, and many many other times in between. Friendly's grilled cheese is one of my ultimate comfort foods, and it isn't Christmas without their peppermint stick ice cream. (Let's not discuss Christmas Eve 2008, when I drove around Connecticut looking for enough of that for my mom to make her amazing brownie/ice cream cake.) It's safe to say that I'm generally a Friendly's fan.

But the past few years, I've been disappointed with their lack of vegetarian options. I mean, yes, I adore their grilled cheese beyond all reason, but it's nice to have a choice. Last fall sometime, Friendly's had a Q&A on Twitter with their CEO, and I was not the only one to bring up this issue. They promised they were working on it. A little while later, they asked for veggie burger brand suggestions. A few days ago, I went to a local Friendly's, and there it was! A little note had appeared on the menu saying that they would substitute Boca burgers in any of the burger dishes. I tried the Zesty Queso Burger Melt (cheese, jalapenos, tortilla strips, on sourdough) and it was great. It's nice to see a company listen to its customers' requests and make concrete steps toward filling them.