Fall is the time when many restaurants refresh their menus with new or returning seasonal items.
In addition to turkey and pumpkin favorites, look for such trendy items as Dubai chocolate and protein bowls.
Here is a sampling of what’s out there.
Full service
BJ’s Restaurants: The Huntingon Beach chain is offering two limited-time Pizookies. The Monkey Bread Pizookie is back. And there’s a Dubai Chocolate Pizookie features a chocolate cookie and vanilla ice cream topped with pistachio sauce and sprinkled with toasted kataifi. There’s also a Dubai Chocolate Espresso Martini. bjsrestaurants.com
Corky’s Kitchen & Bakery: Specials through the end of the year include pumpkin pancakes, pumpkin shakes and a Pumpkin Scookie, “part scone, part cookie.” corkyskitchenandbakery.com
Cracker Barrel Old Country Store: Country Fried Turkey is back. crackerbarrel.com
Denny’s: Five Slams starting at $5 include a Rudolph Everyday Value Slam, two pancakes decorated to look like Santa’s reindeer. dennys.com
IHOP: A new value menu includes items such as a ham and cheese omelet for around $6. ihop.com
Lazy Dog Restaurants: This year’s fall menu includes several small plates such as French Onion Pastry Puffs, Tikka Masala Meatballs, Hot Honey Feta Dip and warm House Bread. Entrées include Steak & Veggie Kebabs and Pretzel-Crusted Pork Schnitzel. lazydogrestaurants.com
Market Broiler: 50/50 Chowder — half New England clam chowder, half Manhattan — is back. marketbroiler.com
Norms: The Bellflower-based chain expanded its menu in October with such items as an Inside Out Omelette King’s Hawaiian Cheeseburger Sliders and Mini Corn Dogs. norms.com
Polly’s Pies: Fall specials include Holiday Hushpuppies made with turkey, stuffing and mashed potatoes, Turkey Sliders and Pumpkin Pancakes. pollyspies.com
Red Lobster: New flavors for Seafood Boils include Lemon Pepper Butter, Old Bay & Butter and RL Signature Butter. redlobster.com
Stonefire Grill: Seasonal items include Shrimp and Kale Caesar Salad, Pear and Gorgonzola Salad, Nashville Hot Chicken Pizza and Banh Mi Pizza. stonefiregrill.com
The Cheesecake Factory: The Calabasas-based restaurant chain recently added 14 items to its already long menu. They include eight small bites such as Meatball Sliders and Crispy Rice Cakes with Crab and eight bowls such as Chicken Katsu. thecheesecakefactory.com
Quick service
Bushfire Kitchen: Specials include a Chipotle Braised Beef Bowl, a Farmstead Bowl with chicken, Maple Glazed Sweet Potatoes and Pumpkin Pie Empanadas. bushfirekitchen.com
California Fish Grill: Sustainable Protein Bowls have 31 to 56 grams of protein, the latter being the Everything Protein Bowl with Cajun-spiced shrimp, salmon, swai and chicken on a bed of beans and rice. cafishgrill.com
Chipotle Mexican Grill: Red Chimichurri sauce is available for a limited time. It’s made with roasted garlic, cilantro, chili peppers and citrus juice. chipotle.com
Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf: Holiday flavors include Tiramisu Cream Iced Latte, Tiramisu Ice Blended Drink and Peppermint Mocha Cream Iced Latte. coffeebean.com
Farmer Boys: Limited time items include breakfast burritos made with queso poblano, burgers with queso blanco, chocolate chip hot cakes and peppermint shakes. farmerboys.com
Jack in the Box: Current featured items include Nashville Hot Mozzarella Sticks and a Midnight Snack Shake with M&Ms, pretzel pieces, mini marshmallows and graham cracker crumbles. jackinthebox.com
Shake Shack: The Big Shack, a burger with two Angus beef patties on a potato bun, and French onion burgers are available for a limited time. shakeshack.com
The Habit Burger & Grill: Limited-time items include Cheesy Cauliflower Tots and a Peppermint Bark Shake. habitburger.com
Wienerschnitzel: Hostess shakes are flavored like Ding Dongs and Twinkies. wienerschnitzel.com