Noodles’ new era? Chain begins revamped menu rollout

BROOMFIELD — Noodles & Co. (Nasdaq: NDLS) is serving three new menu items, the first step in a menu overhaul leaders at the Broomfield-based pasta chain will help reverse a prolonged sales and earnings skid. 

The new offerings, which were tested this year in three trial markets, are lemon garlic shrimp scampi, chipotle chicken cavatappi and crispy chicken bacon alfredo.

The trio of new menu items “are just the beginning for Noodles & Company,” Noodles chief concept officer Scott Davis said in a prepared statement. “This launch is a significant milestone in our journey to deliver more sophisticated, dynamic flavors to our guests, and we’re confident that our fans—new and old alike—will find something to love. We’re just getting started, and these three new dishes are only the beginning of what’s to come.” 

Noodles CEO Drew Madsen, a former president at Panera Bread who was hired late last year to replace Noodle’s long-time CEO Dave Boennighausen, unveiled the company’s “menu transformation” efforts to investors and analysts in March, saying that Noodles must adopt a “new ‘contemporary comfort kitchen’ culinary identity.”

Noodles recorded a net loss of $13.6 million in the second quarter of 2024.

“While Noodles has consistently introduced new limited time offering menus in recent years, it has been a long time since we updated our core menu,” Madsen said during a March earnings call. “As a result, our menu looks dated compared to newer fast casual competitors.”

Noodles hired restaurant-industry consulting firm The Culinary Edge to help shape its ‘contemporary comfort kitchen’ identity.

The company said this week that it “will introduce even more innovative flavors and fresh ingredients throughout the upcoming year, reinforcing its position as the go-to destination for craveable, creative noodle dishes.”

on Facebook on LinkedIn