Category Archives: Messages from Alan

2020 US McRib Release Day!

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It is finally here, 2020 US McRib Release Day!

First, today is a day many years coming for some parts of the United States. McRib fans are rejoicing, but none more than in regions where it has been nearly a decade since the McRib was last offered. Thank you all for your continued contributions to the webpage, my goal has always been to create a community of McRib fans helping each other track down this tasty sandwich.

Second, last night, I received a promotional box for this year’s McRib from McDonalds. The McRib promotion this year is a tie in to the No-Shave November non-profit organization. As November is over, McDonalds is promoting shaving for a good cause, a portion of McRib sales from December 2nd.

https://www.no-shave.org

Additionally, McDonalds wanted to reaffirm their commitment to Black-owned businesses by sourcing swag from the Ceylon company. It is a nice shaving kit for sure!

While these promotional boxes are more elusive than a McRib in February, I can direct you to their promotion where they will be giving out 10,000 McRibs if you share a selfie of yourself on Twitter or Instagram with your clean shaven face, use hashtag #Shave4McRibSweepstakes and tag @McDonalds.

Lastly, Please continue to send your reports! I noticed McRib advertising is still saying “at participating locations” so it is possible there are still some locations that will not be offering the McRib this year. As the McRib inventory dwindles, we are going to need those McRib confirmations to help fans race to get their last McRibs of the season.

Remember, you can follow us for all the most up to date information on our Blog, Twitter, and Facebook page.

The 2020 Central America McRib Release

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As we earlier brought to attention on social media, the 2020 Central America McRib Release has arrived. It appears that the offering this year very closely mirrors that of what was offered last year. There are variations of the McRib with bacon, onion rings, and one with cheese.

Photo from https://juntosencasa.mcdonalds.com.gt/ribiembre/
Photo from https://juntosencasa.mcdonalds.com.gt/ribiembre/
McDonalds Guatemala Promotional Materials for the 2020 McRib

Not only are they promoting the McRib sandwich itself, however are also promoting using McRib BBQ sauce with their side item options.

Competition Response

Not wanting to miss out on the opportunity, competing sandwich shop DelPuente is promoting their take on the McRib sandwich, one that might have made a complimentary addition to the idea of McRib variations offered at McDonalds. While we tend to avoid McRib clones, this one is so close to the real thing it seemed worth mentioning.

Their sandwich features a similar “boneless” pork rib patty slathered in BBQ sauce, and pickles on top. The sandwich is served on a hoagie style bun that appears to even have the same topping as the McRib. Their offering differs as it brings a layer of pulled pork, red onion, lettuce, and mustard on it.


English Translation: Delicious boneless pork rib bathed in BBQ sauce, Pulled Pork, onion, pickles, mustard and lettuce. Includes Curly Fries and Frezka natural

It appears that Central America is going to have a lot of pork sandwich options this year, making the decision of picking which to have a tasty challenge.

McRib to return in 2020

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This article is now outdated. Please see our newer 2020 US McRib post.

Good news fellow US McRib fans, the McRib is going to return in 2020 at some US stores again this year! We have been calling around, and with the help of a few other fans, have enough confidence to now announce that McRibs will again grace the menu of select locations in 2020.

When will the McRib be back?

So when exactly will the McRib be back? A few bits of information point to when the sandwich will return. First, throughout the calls that we have made we had a few indicate a date range. Those that indicated it would be back have replied that the McRib will be back toward the end of October. A larger number of stores indicated they were not sure. It would seem the volume of uncertainty would suggest a very limited release. Not to worry, history shows that some future promotions ran at McDonalds do not start showing up until about a month before the planned release. We are right at that window, so we are not alarmed yet to the scale of the McRib season. One fan in Atlanta was in contact with an owner of multiple stores there and they too indicated a late October release (thank you John!)

A second hint of when the sandwich was in our historical archives. Reviewing our archives to see exactly when the McRib has returned in the past. This year being a presidential election year, we looked back at the past few presidential election years and again see late October/first week of November as the most likely date for the McRib to return.

October 29 – November 5, 2016 McRib Confirmations

Where will the McRib return?

Exactly which locations will have the McRib is still uncertain. With the state of things this year, we wouldn’t think there would be a return to all locations. Also historically we know that new offerings on the menu can prevent the McRib from returning as focus is put on the new offering. The emphasis currently appears to be on musician labeled meals. As they are now on to the second of these pairings, the campaign may draw conflict in some markets.

That is what we currently have for information on the McRib returning in 2020 within US markets. As we get closer to the release date more information should become available and we will share that as it does so. Until then, lets reflect back on this fan’s love of the McRib as shown by his unique costume!

McRib Update : October 24, 2019

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Here is the latest update for October 24, 2019 that we have regarding the McRib in the United States. Did the McRib return to your state? How long will it be here? What deals are the best?

Continue reading →

McRib 2019 US Release Information

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McRibs are back in the US for 2019! We have been receiving a number of confirmations today from all over the lower 48 states. Most interesting is the number of reports for locations that have not had confirmations for a number of years. As such, it came as no surprise today when media outlets began reporting that this year’s season would result in 10,000 stores offering the tasty BBQ sandwich resulting in a number of locations offering the McRib that had not in recent year. This is a significant increase compared to last year’s release.

Availability as reported at the time of this post

When can fans begin to see the McRib in the US?

We sampled a number of stores today to see what is new. We found that the McRib will begin more widespread rollout coming up next week. While there are additional locations offering the sandwich this year, some locations will see a minor change to when you can have the sandwich. A number of locations, not all, are restricting the McRib to the before midnight menu. This feels like a compromise with locations that felt the sandwich was too messy to offer. With a limited number of hours of availability the messy nature of the sandwich can be less of an impact.

How long will the McRib be around?

How long will this year’s season be? Some of the stores we talked with said they are planning through the end of November. As a limited time item, the McRib can and will disappear sooner at some locations. History tells us that locations that less commonly offer the McRib will have less inventory to sell.

How you can help

If you find a McRib make sure to report it at https://mcriblocator.com/report.html and send us a photo of your receipt. Make sure your receipt shows the location and date purchased as well as your McRib order. Send your confirmation photo to photos@mcriblocator.com . Thank you!

McRib rolls out in Ukraine

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We were tipped off earlier from Kenny A (thank you!) that the McRib is back for fans in Ukraine. This was tested in a few markets a few years ago, clearly it did well enough to return. Pork apparently was so popular they also introduced a second Pork Sandwich (photos with translation to English from Google below) as part of their Ukraine Burgers promotion.

The Rye Burger looks interesting, let us know in the comments if you would be interested in this new sandwich.

Notice in the photo below that Kenny shared the McRib is in a sleeve in order to keep the sandwich cleaner for consumers.

Unfortunately the promotion is a couple of weeks into McRibs, so likely not much time left for fans in the region.

No word yet on when to expect the McRib back in the United States, however we will be sure to share what we discover.