Burger King Goes Casual Dining

Following the recent news that Burger King

had slipped to third place behind Wendy's

and, obviously, McDonald's

, the fast food chain announced on Sunday that it would be spending millions updating its image and menu in an attempt to claw its way back. According to

, the new Burger King features brick façade replacing the gaudy plastic décor of before, and mood lightning replacing the over-facing power lamps. The menus will include made-to-order smoothies (with real fruit) and three new salads topped with apple slices and dried cranberries. If that does not sound much like the Burger King that we have known and loved/loathed (delete as applicable), that is because it is not. BKC is putting on its gloves and stepping into the ring, looking to at least put up a bit of a fight rather than go down with a whimper. So, rather than focus on the young, hungry guys market, it is changing direction and aiming at moms, families and Boomers. Over the course of the next year, Burger King will spend $750 million fixing the menu, revamping marketing, tweaking operations and updating the Appearance of its 7,204 U.S. stores. The new menu rolled out on Sunday. "This is the biggest change in scope in the history of the brand," says Steve Wiborg, executive vice president and president of North American operations. "It's the chain's largest investment in a one-year time frame." Wiborg is correct – this is a huge revamp for BKC, and it represents a significant risk. However, it is also true that the company had to try something if it wanted to get that number two spot back. In fact, Wiborg is aiming higher. “Everything is focused on getting to be No. 1,” he says. “For us to set our sights on any other number is not something I signed up for." Those are perhaps the noises that one would want a boss to make. After all, “We're Number Two” makes for a terrible football chant. But realistically, the chances of this revamp taking Burger King above McDonald's are slim. Still, steady progress is better than no progress. The next twelve months will be fascinating. The question on everyone's mind is, will a Whopper still be called a Whopper? Burger King has been notoriously slow to evolve , and it is unlikely that a few wraps and MCD-esque salads will make the difference.