McDonald's Drags McRib Out Of Retirement For Yet Another Comeback Tour

The McRib is a shadow: It's there or it's not there, depending on the position of the sun. It always follows you. For now—until it's not—the McRib is back at most (but not all) McDonald's, the chain announced. And just as quickly it will disappear... until it reappears.

First released in 1981 as a limited-menu item, the McRib has inspired rabid fans who can't get enough of the BBQ-sauce-drenched, rib-shaped-but-ribless pork patty, described on the McDonald's website as "a tasty fan favorite, slathered in tangy barbecue sauce and topped with slivered onions and tart pickles, all on a hoagie style bun." With as many farewell tours as Cher, McDonald's has insinuated many times that the McRib's existence is fleeting, even though it always would come back, and this only served to stoke this demand.

Then 2010 saw the first nationwide release of the McRib since The Flintstones' movie promotion in 1994, and fans have been conditioned to expect fall releases of their fave fast-food pork sandwich (despite a few skipped years) ever since. For its 2018 comeback, the sandwich will be available in 9,000 of McDonald's nearly 14,000 U.S. locations. To help fans out, there's even a McRib locator to report helpful McRib sightings.