I’m a 32-year-old mum & only just noticed a special feature in Happy Meal boxes – even McDonald’s staff didn’t know it
WHO doesn’t love a cheeky Happy Meal from McDonald’s?
But did you know that the children’s favourite has a special hidden feature even some staff aren’t aware of?
The popular item, which was sold a whopping 200million times in the USA alone in 2022, comes in the signature box, containing Hamburger or Chicken McNuggets®, complete with kids fries, apple slices, choice of beverage, and a Happy Meal toy.
But what many foodies may not know is that the vibrant red McDonald’s box can also be turned into a plate for a mess-free meal.
The discovery was recently made by one mum-of-two Kirsty Fox, who took to TikTok to share her shock.
”32 years old and just finding out that Happy Meal boxes turn into a plate,” the gobsmacked mum was stunned in the clip.
According to Kirsty, who regularly shares parenting-related content on her platform, the box now comes with a segregated line of cardboard around 3/4 of the way down to the box.
Once the mum started pulling the line, the top of the Happy Meal box came off, leaving Kirsty with a medium-sized square box.
Once she’d removed the top from the bottom, Kirsty then filled the DIY plate with a portion of their signature fries, before giving them to her tot.
”Am I the last person on the planet to notice this,” she wondered in the caption, as more than 185k people gave the clip a like.
But it seems that it’s not just Kirsty who was totally shocked by the McDonald’s hack – even some employees admitted that hadn’t had a clue about the feature.
One former worker said: ”Was a manager at a McDonald’s for 8 years.
”This is something new, they haven’t always been like this.”
”I’ve worked at McDonald’s for 4 years and I didn’t know this until now,” an employee chimed in.
Someone else agreed, writing: ”Gonna say this is definitely new, not old thing.”
But whilst some loved the plate trick, others reckoned it would cause a major drama at the fast food place, with toddlers having a tantrum.
”Until the kid starts screaming because you just ripped up their favourite thing for the moment.”
”Am I the only one that uses it for a trash can?” a foodie chuckled.
How to make McDonald's Happy Meal box into a plate:
1. Pull the line of cardboard 3/4 of the way down the Happy Meal box- this will remove the top of the box.
2. Use the bottom of the box as a plate. As the edges of the box are still attached, no food will be falling out.
3. Give kids the top half of the box to use as a hat.
Making kids happy since 1979
The Happy Meal was officially launched worldwide in 1979, after the brand realised they didn’t have much of an appeal to children.
The idea was to “make the kids happy and the parents will bring them” and the strategy catered to a strong need of children to play or be engaged in fun activities.
According to “The Times Daily,” the meals — which included a burger, fries, cookies, and a soft drink — came with one of a number of small toy options, like a “McDoodler” stencil or “McWrist” wallet.
McDonald’s first-ever Happy Meal portrayed a circus theme.