The McDonald’s Item That Disappeared Almost Everywhere
McDonald’s has experimented with hundreds of menu items across decades, but most vanish quietly when they don’t work. One of those forgotten items is McSpaghetti, a pasta dish that once appeared in U.S. locations in the 1980s and 1990s. While it disappeared nearly everywhere else, it never left the menu in the Philippines.
There, McSpaghetti is a regular lineup item that customers continue to buy. Its survival in that market is not based on nostalgia or branding experiments. Instead, it is about local tastes, smart adaptation, and the way fast food companies compete in different regions.
McDonald’s Added Pasta to Its U.S. Menu in the Late 1980s
McSpaghetti launched as part of a larger plan to expand McDonald’s dinner options in the U.S. The selection also included lasagna and fettuccine Alfredo, and every pasta dish came with garlic bread. According to an article in The Chicago Tribune in 1992, the lineup received “good consumer acceptance.” But the company faced problems with keeping the dishes consistent across different franchises. They struggled to maintain the necessary equipment and supplies. Analysts weren’t impressed, and there were doubts about how pasta fit into the McDonald’s brand.
By the mid-1990s, most locations stopped selling McSpaghetti. Only a few franchises appeared to hang on to it slightly longer. The corporate side moved on, and the McPasta experiment became one of many discontinued efforts. It joined other now-forgotten items like the Hula Burger and McDLT. For most customers in the U.S., it faded from memory as quickly as it arrived.
McSpaghetti Remains a Core Menu Item in the Philippines
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In the Philippines, McSpaghetti never felt out of place. Filipino-style spaghetti is already popular there, especially at children’s parties and casual gatherings. It’s made with a sweet tomato-based sauce, usually including banana ketchup, and topped with sliced hot dogs. McDonald’s adapted their version to match this local preference.
The McSpaghetti served in the Philippines further contains the same sweet red sauce and hot dog slices, finished with shredded cheese. It’s available as a standalone meal or as a side paired with fried chicken. The dish became popular because it fit within existing food habits rather than trying to change them. It also competed directly with Jollibee, the country’s largest fast food chain, which offers a nearly identical spaghetti dish.
McSpaghetti’s Survival Highlights McDonald’s Global Strategy
The continued presence of McSpaghetti in the Philippines reflects McDonald’s long-standing approach to localization. Instead of applying the same range of dishes everywhere, the company adapts offerings to fit the eating habits of each market. Spaghetti with sweet-style sauce and hot dog slices is already part of everyday meals for Filipinos.
It should also be noted that by introducing a version of that dish through its own meal options, McDonald’s wasn’t trying to introduce something new; rather, it was meeting an existing expectation. This same strategy appears in other countries.
In India, McDonald’s features a McAloo Tikki made with spiced potato, which caters to the country’s many vegetarian diners. In Malaysia, customers can order chicken congee with chilies and shallots, a common local breakfast. Meanwhile, McDonald’s in France once sold the McBaguette, which used mustard and Emmental cheese inside a traditional French loaf.