The creator of the Big Mac and Chicken McNuggets (not to mention the McRib) appears to be more open to bringing back its past hits these days.
McDonald’s (MCD) – Get McDonald’s Corporation Report has a deep history of past products and special offers that fans of the brand remember fondly. The chain often simply ignores that because some well-loved past items or offers disappeared for a reason.
The chain, for example, dropped All-Day Breakfast and fried apple pies because of the demands those products placed on the company’s kitchens. In other cases, it hasn’t brought back past menu offers because while a small part of its fanbase loved the product, it wasn’t actually a hit the first time around (McSalad Shakers and the Arch Deluxe fall into that group).
In recent months, McDonald’s has leaned into fan service by bringing back its beloved Szechuan Sauce and it has at least tested the return of the Steak Bagel breakfast sandwich. The chain has also teased/trolled its customers by posting “Bring back ___” on Twitter (which elicited tens of thousands of responses) and posting a second Tweet that implied “Snack Wraps,” perhaps the most-requested discontinued menu item, might be brought back.
And, now there are signs that the chain plans to bring back a beloved Halloween favorite that has not been seen since 2016.
McDonald’s Has a Trick (or Treat) up its Sleeve
A number of news outlets have reported that McDonald’s plans to bring back a version of its famed Halloween buckets back. The company has not confirmed this and did not immediately respond to a request from TheStreet’s Veronika Bondarenko asking for comment.
A reported image of the 2022 version of the Halloween buckets, which were originally named McPunk’n, McBoo, and McGoblin, appeared on the markie_devo Instagram account, which is a generally reliable source when it comes to food and snack-based news.
October 18th McDonald’s Halloween Pails will return.
-There are 3 designs
-Only 1 will be in-store at a time
-The pail serves as both the toy and Happy Meal Box.
Once again I have to disclose..McDonald’s has not confirmed or denied this
McDonald’s has made no public comment on the potential return.
McDonald’s Leans Into Nostalgia
While its rivals aggressively change their menus and use limited-time offers (LTOs), McDonald’s has been more careful. It has a few items it brings back seasonally like the Shamrock Shake, but it generally keeps its menu more consistent than rivals Restaurant Brands International’s (QSR) – Get Restaurant Brands International Inc. Report Burger King and Wendy’s (WEN) – Get Wendy’s Company (The) Report.
McDonald’s certainly adds new items, but they are generally attempts at expanding the chain’s menu, not LTOs. Over the past two years, partly due to the pandemic, McDonald’s has kept its new product and LTO offerings very sparse, focusing instead on celebrity meals and menu hacks which actually don’t add any new products to the chain’s offerings.
Bringing back Halloween buckets would be a return to something McDonald’s used to do quite often — the special giveaway. At various times over the years, the chain gave out Coca-Cola glasses, many Happy Meal toys tied to big movies, and, even a selection of Star Wars items.
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The challenge for the fast-food giant has been that putting a toy into a Happy Meal has been seen as an improper way to entice kids to eat unhealthy food. And, environmentalists were not thrilled with the chain putting essentially disposable plastic toys in its meals.
Halloween buckets are a sort of smart compromise. They’re reusable (and could be used for storage) and Halloween already involves kids eating a lot of candy. McDonald’s giving them a bucket to collect that candy in doesn’t really make things worse.
Mostly, if this actually happens, it shows that the chain has started listening to its fans and that, when it’s practical, it may delight them by bringing things back from the past. That might not lead to a Snack Wraps return (they add complication in the kitchen) but it does open the door for other items to come back.
