Fast food chains typically mix their sugary drinks at the point of sale, which is why your Coke from McDonald’s may be a little more syrupy than what you’d get from a can or bottle of the stuff.
If you know what to ask for, you can combine Maccies’ slightly-overpowered Sprite with another ingredient to land what some social media users have dubbed a ‘secret menu’ item.
Various TikTokers have shared the ‘cotton candy’ (that's candy floss to us Brits) beverage and raved about its deliciousness, but you have to know what to ask for if you’re going to get one.
Apparently, the trick is to order a Sprite with three pumps of vanilla syrup typically reserved for the fast food chain’s coffee selection.
TikTok user @realbadlandschugs, a specialist in beverage chugging, shared his experience with the 'Cotton Candy Sprite' earlier in 2025.
"Y'all seen this, folks? Well, it looks like a McDonald's Sprite, it sounds like a McDonald's Sprite, but you add three pumps of vanilla syrup... this turns into a Cotton Candy Sprite!" he said in the viral TikTok clip.
"Oh man, this is the new hack for 2025! I'm telling you! The way they're reworking Sprite, it's amazing!"
A TikTok user claiming to be a McDonald’s employee – @mcdonalds_hacks101 – first shared the so-called secret menu item back in 2022, saying: “It actually tastes like cotton candy.”
He added: “At this point, I don’t even know, you just have to try it for yourself. But it tastes like cotton candy.”
TikTok user said in another clip after purchasing the secret menu item,
"Yo! This is really good, it tastes like cotton candy!" added user @yj_630 in another clip. "I give this a nine out of 10.”
A McDonald’s spokesperson told PEOPLE in 2020 that, while there isn't an official secret menu at McDonald’s, you can indeed get creative with your orders.
“We know our customers are really creative, and they tell us all the time that they enjoy customizing our menu,” the spokesperson said at the time.
An anonymous McDonald’s manager also took to Reddit’s ‘Ask Me Anything’ page to confirm that you can ‘add, remove or change ingredients by special request. These are called ‘grill orders’ (i.e. Big Mac no pickle)’.
If you want something specific, though, you’ll need to know exactly what goes into your ‘secret menu’ order as some staff won’t know various combinations by name.
“Order one and the workers might not know it by name,” said the anonymous manager. “But if you explain what it is, and are willing to pay for all the ingredients, it’s just another ‘grill order’ that we can make up.”
So there you have it, consider your 'secret menu' unlocked.
Featured Image Credit: Bernd Obermann/Getty ImagesTopics: Fast Food, McDonalds , TikTok, Social Media
Rachael Davis