When McDonald’s announced in October 2022 that the McRib was returning for its “Farewell Tour,” many tears were shed and much farewell merchandise was sold. But we didn’t believe the charade for one moment. It might come and go, but the iconic sandwich is too beloved to ever leave for good. Now, to virtually no one’s surprise, McDonald’s has confirmed that the McRib is indeed making its way back to some locations, despite last year’s insinuations about its permanent retirement.
When is the McDonald’s McRib coming back?
“It turns out not everyone was ready to say goodbye to the McRib after last year’s Farewell Tour,” McDonald’s told The Takeout via email. “While it won’t be available nationwide, some lucky fans may find their favorite elusive saucy sandwich at their local McDonald’s restaurants this November.”
McDonald’s is being coy when it comes to revealing which locations will actually have the McRib this November, so it will be up to the dedicated McRib fanatics nationwide (of which there are plenty) to sniff it out and report their findings. We will, of course, be doing the same.
The McRib ‘Farewell Tour,’ explained
In October 2022, McDonald’s dropped its typical annual announcement that McRib season was upon us and that fans could look forward to ordering it soon. The plot twist was the added caveat that 2022 would be the McRib’s “Farewell Tour.” Immediately suspicious of this sudden departure, The Takeout reached out to McDonald’s for more information. At the time, the brand appeared to confirm that this would indeed be the McRib’s final run.
“After three straight years headlining our nationwide menu, this fall will be the McRib’s Farewell Tour - complete with limited-edition throwback McRib merch available for purchase, so diehard fans can forever rock their favorite sandwich even after it’s gone from the menu,” read a statement from McDonald’s sent to The Takeout via email.
Despite this celebratory sendoff, we still weren’t so convinced the McRib was truly leaving for good. After all, McDonald’s had already placed the sandwich on a farewell run in 2005 and again in 2006. We pressed the company for further details on this goodbye run and were met with more elusive statements. McDonald’s told The Takeout it couldn’t be certain what the future might hold and that customers should grab the McRib while they can because it would not be returning “nationwide” any time soon.
The key word here is “nationwide.” Just as we suspected, the McRib is coming back, but it will be available only in some markets, as is often the case with its return. Without the use of the more definitive word “discontinued,” we were hesitant to believe that the farewell tour was anything more than a big marketing stunt.
Normally we’d hate to say “I told you so,” but it’s important not to take these fast food promotions at face value, because you might lose precious energy mourning the loss of something you’ll just get to eat again in a few short months.