The recent announcement from McDonald’s is that the McRib is now back on the menu. People tend to have a love/hate relationship with the sandwich but it doesn’t matter what your feelings are, you have to admit there is always a lot of hype when the menu changes. CNN reports that the scarcity of the McRib on the McDonald’s menu is actually what makes the sandwich so appealing.
McDonald’s is well known for providing familiar foods that can be found at thousands of locations and are consistent from one place to another. That isn’t the case with the McRib. You can’t just wander into a McDonald’s at random and expect that it will always be on the menu. If you are a fan, you can pay attention to the news or use McRib trackers to find the latest location where the sandwich is available.
Even though there are many people who love the McRib, don’t expect it to be a permanent part of the McDonald’s menu anytime soon. The fast-food giant realizes that having a seasonal item on the menu helps to fuel business. The reason? Because people will be more motivated to head to McDonald’s and buy the sandwich when they know it is only available for a limited time. Those temporary additions to the menu also add to the food that has been a staple for many years.
The McRib first showed up in McDonald’s in 1981 but it wasn’t a huge hit at that time. It was eventually removed from the menu in 1985 but when it showed back up in 1994, there was a nostalgia to help fuel the sales. People gave the ‘mystery meat’ sandwich more of a chance and it became a recurring menu item due to the newfound popularity by 2005.
On Monday, October 7, the McRib season officially started. The sandwich can now be found at more than 10,000 McDonald’s restaurants in the United States. Just be aware that they won’t be on the menu long, so hit the drive through the next time you pass by.