Menu innovation and upgrades to various items had a significant positive impact on sales during the quarter. The chain also relaunched nachos with chicken, bacon and ranch. Chili’s eliminated a net total of six menu items to help the team focus more on food quality and consistency, Hochman said. That recipe was developed a year ago and is inspired by Popeyes’ chicken sandwich. “It has the potential to drive customer traffic both with new and existing guests.”Menu innovation isn’t Chili’s sole traffic driver, however.