While for most the image of McDonald's (MCD) -) is exclusively connected to fries and the Big Mac, a large number of people also like coming to the Golden Arches for various types of sweet treats.
First launched out of Australia in 1993, the McCafé concept helped win over the coffee crowd with a bakery-style lineup of everything from macarons in France to the apple fritter and blueberry muffin in the US.
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Things went awry when, at the start of the summer, fans of the American selection of baked goods started noticing their absence in certain stores and asking if others were too on social media.
McDonald's
Fans React To 'Nightmare' Of Seeing Beloved Sweet Treats Cut
Markie Devo, an Instagram account known for leaking new fast-food items and menu cuts, was the first to announce that McDonald's had indeed cut the apple fritter, blueberry muffin and cinnamon roll from its McCafe lineup.
As often happens when fast-food chains decide to remove an item that many enjoy, panic and outraged responses soon started to spread on social media.
"They got rid of the apple fritter from McDonald’s 😭😭😭 someone please wake me up from this nightmare!!!!" one person wrote on Twitter on June 26. "I've done nothing to deserve this."
Others called the situation "unacceptable" and "an outrage."
In its statement to media outlets, McDonald's confirmed that it was "phasing out our McCafé Bakery line-up" of the apple fritter, blueberry muffin and cinnamon roll.
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"We know goodbyes are never easy – but fans can still satisfy their sweet tooth with our iconic Chocolate Chip Cookies, Baked Apple Pie and frozen desserts at restaurants nationwide," the fast-food chain said.
The three bakery items launched in the US in 2020 as a way to lure in breakfast customers at a time when morning sales were low due to the pandemic. As they are ready to serve, the items were made available all day and quickly won over the hearts of sweet-toothed fans.
In general, the McCafé concept is more popular internationally than it is in the US. While McDonald's locations in countries like France, Italy and Japan serve an extensive selection of both bakery-style and cold desserts (including grape and melon floats and a lemon cheese pie in the latter country), American customers generally associate the Golden Arches with little other than the McFlurry and the handheld apple pie.
While McDonald's has been testing several dessert options in recent months (including a Krispy Kreme (DNUT) -) partnership in Kentucky), its slimmed-down sweet menu in the US now features only ice cream, the baked apple pie, different types of McFlurries and the chocolate chip cookie.
The three McCafe items are still available at some locations but fans can expect to see them less and less before they are fully phased out — a change that some particularly vocal fans just cannot fathom.
"The cinnamon roll LITERALLY just became my pregnancy craving," another person wrote on Twitter. "McDonald's is DONE.”
Still others jumped on the hype around the desserts to demand a return of other beloved items from the Golden Arches' vault including the Cinnamelts that were taken off the menu during the pandemic and its bagel sandwiches.
