McDonald's MCD fans in the United Kingdom woke up to the sad news that several beloved breakfast items are permanently leaving the menu. Bagels and breakfast wraps will no longer be sold by the country's roughly 1,300 locations.
"Good news: You can get a McMuffin for 99p [pence] today via the McDonald's App," McDonald's U.K. wrote on Twitter (TWTR). "...you're still thinking about the bad news, aren't you?"
These items' disappearance had already been picked up by the most loyal breakfast fans days earlier — some speculated that it was a temporary removal as McDonald's was preparing to launch something new. (The chain is currently focusing its attention on ingratiating the McPlant meat-free burger into the hearts of U.K. and the U.S. consumers.)
But in a short statement attached to the tweet, McDonald's confirmed that "despite speculation and following a trial speculation period, Breakfast Bagels & Breakfast Wraps will not be returning to the menu."
"We are always working on our menu and look forward to introducing some new breakfast items later this year," the company said in a statement to TheStreet. On social media, McDonald's also said that "this is a mutual decision to the extent that a bagel can make its own decision."
Despite a fairly stable menu offering, the chain dropped its salads during the pandemic and experimented with bringing back a blueberry and crème pie earlier this week.
McDonald's Clapping Back, But Fans Are Not Amused
Even though the restaurant tried to pacify fans with words of cheap McMuffins, the online reaction was swift and ferocious — as seen in the hubbub around the removal and potential relaunch of Taco Bell's Mexican Pizza, menu changes to beloved fast food items can bring out very strong reactions from fans.
"You ruined my day completely so you could save the hassle," a user named Jake (@jaiik) from Manchester wrote on Twitter. "I hope you now spend the time on new breakfast items because you have all the variety of a lockdown 1 menu."
In response to messages about how cravings for a hot bagel from McDonald's would now "never be satisfied," McDonald's responded by saying that "sometimes you have to move on to bigger and better things."
"There was never a good time to tell you..." the fast-food chain under another post claiming that it was particularly cruel to announce this news on a Monday.
But What About America?
The menu cutting only applies to restaurants across the UK, McDonald's confirmed to TheStreet — the American menu currently features items like the Bacon, Egg, And Cheese Bagel as well as plain bagels with cream cheese.
The U.K. menu, in turn, has a number of breakfast items tailored to British tastes and not available in the US: a breakfast roll with brown sauce and a bacon roll with ketchup.
And, as often happens in business, one restaurant's bad PR may be another's opportunity: Tim Hortons, a Toronto-based donut chain with a strong presence in the U.K., wrote that they've "heard Breakfast Wraps & Bagels have already moved on" underneath McDonald's post.
UPDATE: This article was updated with a statement from McDonald's.
