McDonald’s ‘Grinch Salt’ pickle fries finally come to U.S. in festive adult Happy Meal

It’s not roast beast, but it will have to do. After years of waiting, American fans of brined cucumbers, McDonald’s fries and Dr. Seuss’s curmudgeonly holiday classic How the Grinch Stole Christmas will finally be able to enjoy all three simultaneously when participating Golden Arches franchises start serving Dill Pickle “Grinch Salt” McShaker Fries for the first time on Dec. 2.

“Sprinkle the tangy, dill pickle seasoning into the McShaker bag and shake for a bold twist on our World Famous Fries that will make your taste buds pucker with delight,” McDonald’s said in a statement. The mean, green fries will be available as part of adult Happy Meals that include either a Big Mac or 10-piece Chicken McNuggets, along with a medium drink and “a pair of spirited socks” in “four unhinged colors” that have been “scribbled with messages from the Grinch himself.”

“The Grinch was here,” reads one of the notes.

Seeking to prove that their own hearts are not two sizes too small — and, perhaps, to capitalize on a flurry of recent Seuss releases such as Netflix’s The Sneetches and a new cinematic take on The Cat in the Hat — McDonald’s brass decided to include the U.S. in this year’s holiday Dill Pickle “Grinch Salt” McShaker Fries drop.

The fast food chain has previously offered pickle fries and Grinch collectibles to customers in Canada, the U.K. and Ireland — but not in the United States.

Even now, other English-speaking countries will be treated to different Seussian delights, including “mismatched” socks in the U.K. and Canada, and four Grinch-themed Sand Globes — plus “Frozen Fanta Lemon ruined with Green Apple Popping Pearls that POP and turn everything green” — in Australia.

Little Cindy-Lou Whos who happen to live Down Under can also get a Grinch Happy Meal with “one of 12 collectible Grinch toys — from Max Star to Grinch Snowball.”

As prices have climbed at McDonald’s in recent years, the company has increasingly leaned on limited-time food items and pop-culture nostalgia to attract customers. Adult Happy Meals, which launched in 2022 with Cactus Plant Flea Market toys and continued with Collector Meal cups and McDonaldland Meals, are central to this strategy.

The Grinch, however, insisted that he is only collaborating with McDonald’s for the “chaos.”

“THiS iS MY MEAL AND i DiDN’T PARTNER WiTH McDONALD’S OUT OF THE GOODNESS OF MY HEART,” he explained in what the company described as “a handwritten note on crumpled paper from Mt. Crumpit.” The Grinch added that he “SAW AN OPPORTUNiTY TO BRiNG MiSCHiEF TO YOUR BELOVED ‘RESTAURANT’ WiTH MY DELiCiOUS CHAOS FOR THE HOLiDAYS AND i TOOK iT.”