After much anticipation, The Friends Meal has officially launched in British McDonald’s restaurants - but some fans have complained that a major ‘blunder’ has occurred.
It may have been more than two decades since the beloved sitcom, starring Jennifer Aniston, Matt LeBlanc, and Courteney Cox, came to end on NBC, but Friends fever is still seemingly alive and kicking.
Over the years, there have been themed pop-up cafés, collaborations with Build-A-Bear and Polly Pocket, and thousands have taken the pilgrimage to visit the core six’s famous Greenwich Village apartment.
Now, UK dwellers can belatedly celebrate Friends’ 30th anniversary with the help of McDonald’s.
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On Tuesday (3 February), the Warner Bros. collaboration launched, switching up fast-food item packaging, and introducing a new ‘adult Happy Meal’ concept: The Friends Meal.
Anyone who purchases one of these limited-time boxes will be able to choose a Big Mac, a McPlant, or a pack of Chicken McNuggets as their main meal.
They will also receive a carton of fries, a drink, and an exclusive mini-figure, modelled after the main cast.
Unfortunately, McDonald’s has confirmed that if you want dinky versions of Rachel, Ross, Phoebe, Monica, Chandler, and Joey, then you will have to lucky dip for them as they won’t be being put on sale individually.
The brand has also confirmed that it won’t be encouraging customers to plead with staff to put certain toys into their meals - but still, there’s no harm in asking right?
The coveted Friends Meals have already proved a hit, but have also received some backlash across social media.
Various X users have claimed to have ordered the combo, only to find that staff forgot to put a figure in.
“Not me finally being able to buy the Friends @McDonalds meal and then forgetting to give me my little figurine!!” typed one.
Another posted on the platform: “When you go to McDonald’s for the new Friends toys and they don’t put them in your order and won’t replace them. Absolute joke @McDonalds.”
A third alleged: “Thank you so much @McDonaldsUK for promoting the Friends thing but actually forgetting to include the figurine in our meal order tonight, absolutely f****ng livid!”
A McDonald's spokesperson told FOODbible: "We know how excited our customers are about our brand new FRIENDS Meal and the limited-edition collectible that comes with it.
"We take order accuracy very seriously, and we are sorry for any disappointment caused when some customers did not receive the collectible as expected.
"Our teams are working hard to make sure every order is fulfilled correctly, and we encourage anyone affected to speak to a crew member in the restaurant or contact our customer services team.”
If you don’t fancy forking out for the Friends Meal, then McDonald’s has an array of new items that may entice you instead.
On Tuesday, The Philly Cheese Stack returned to participating restaurants while the Tikka Chicken Wrap made its debut.
The latter will be available to purchase as the Wrap of the Day on Wednesdays and Saturdays.
Maccies’ sweet counter has also levelled up, with a new brownie pie and moreish McFlurry flavours being introduced.
For a limited time, fast-food enthusiasts will also be able to get their mitts on packs of Pizza Mozzarella Dippers.
The bitesize delight is available in multiples of three or nine, and comes with an Italian-inspired Marinara dipping sauce.
Topics: Fast Food, McDonalds , Social Media, UK Food, TV and Film
Ella Scott