Some of America’s most familiar burger joints are undergoing an image makeover. McDonald’s for example has embarked on a $400 million “brand reinvention,” featuring upscale decor, an interactive computer-game kiosk, and a more extensive menu of dessert offerings. Several of the fast-food chain’s franchisees are also appealing to customers’ collective sweet tooth, adding dessert bars and “dessert centers” with display cases and video monitors that feature dessert items.

Meanwhile, Burger King Corporation recently announced a global initiative to remodel its nearly 11,000 restaurants. The new design already can be seen at a prototype outlet in Reno, Nev. and at restaurants in Atlanta, New England, Texas, and Germany, as well as Orlando, Fla., where sales at the chain’s 18 local restaurants have risen an average of 30 percent.

Even a common burger condiment is getting a new look. Next month, H.J. Heinz will debut its new green ketchup, which tastes exactly like the red kind. The verdant topping, aimed at the kids’ market, will come in a plastic, hourglass-shaped bottle that squirts a thin stream — the better to draw with. To help it appear to parents, will also be fortified with vitamin C.