CKE Takes to Twitch for Culinary Showdown
Carl's Jr. and Hardee's are switching on the CKE Test Kitchen charbroilers and experimenting with new recipes to kick off a custom collaboration with interactive livestreaming service, Twitch, to bring fans new menu items they never knew they needed.
The collaboration will allow social media users, as well as Twitch streamers and viewers, the opportunity to create their own "happy" and potentially create a new menu item. Throughout the past few weeks, fans have had the opportunity to vote for their favorite ingredients on social media.
A LTO is Born
With these insights, Chef Owen Klein, vice president of global culinary innovation of CKE Restaurants, and notable Twitch streamer and Ambassador, Storymodebae, will host a Culinary Showdown livestream on Monday, Aug. 22, to create one-of-a-kind, limited-time menu items based on earlier community submissions.
"Carl's Jr. and Hardee's are always looking for the next craveable item and this collaboration with Twitch allows fans to join in on our creative process at our Nashville area test kitchen," said Chef Owen Klein, vice president of global culinary innovation of CKE Restaurants. "The culinary team is excited to see what limited-time offering fans help us create during the culinary stream."
"Although innovative collaborations are not new for our brands, we're taking it to the next level with this fan-forward joint effort with Twitch," said Chad Crawford, chief brand officer of CKE Restaurants. "From our recent market transformation updates to new limited-time menu items, we're always looking to hear from our guests on what to offer next. Now, we can instantly hear from them through the magic of the Twitch service."
Following the Culinary Showdown stream, fans can vote on the menu items of their dreams during weekly streams on Twitch with notable streamers including DaydreamerDan, DataDave and more. Each streamer will taste test each community-designed menu item and invite their viewers to vote on their favorites. During the week of Oct. 24, Storymodebae will return to announce the winning limited-time menu item. In this final stream, viewers will have to work together in Chat to decode a series of clues that will unlock and reveal the new menu item. Following the stream, the special item will be offered at a Carl's Jr. and Hardee's in two select markets.
Twitch's Brand Partnership Studio worked with CKE on designing and bringing to life this series of custom sponsored livestreams on Twitch.
"The Twitch experience has always been grounded in the shared passions of our community and the interactivity that drives the service," said Adam Harris, Global Head of Twitch's Brand Partnership Studio. "Leaning into those core values, we've created exciting programming with CKE, where Twitch viewers will play a part in creating new menu concepts and seeing them come to life in select stores. This is a great example of how brands are building live, engaging activations that bridge on- and offline experiences."
Viewers can tune in to the livestream with Storymodebae and CKE for a chance to "Choose Your Happy" on Aug. 22 at www.twitch.tv/storymodebae.