8 Discontinued McDonald's Burgers We May Never Get Back

The selection of McDonald's items available in 2026 includes some snazzy additions to the burger catalog that are sure to find a fanbase, provided they last long enough. Considering how many creations the fast food giant has introduced over the years, it's a wonder that anything beyond the core collection gets a permanent spot for more than a few years. The harsh reality is that, while many selections circle back around as limited releases and nostalgic throwbacks, there's a world of discontinued McDonald's burgers that never see the light of day again.

Other regions of the world still rock versions of some of these burgers on their menus, which may give the most devoted fans of a Cheddar Melt or an Angus Third Pounder hope for an eventual comeback. But even if we never see them under the Golden Arches stateside again, they made an indelible impression while they were around. It may not have always been a good impression, but it was indelible nonetheless. From the 1960s selections that missed the mark entirely to early 2000s fast food items that deserve a revival, these McDonald's burgers live on in our memories, if not in our dining plans.

Okay, so the McDonald's Hula Burger wasn't technically a burger, per se. Unless you consider slapping sliced fruit on a bun and topping it with cheese to be a burger, in which case, you may need a primer on what a burger really is. Considering its wackiness, it's not hard to reach conclusions on what happened to the McDonald's Hula Burger. Even the most ardent plant-based eaters may scratch their heads about this oddball 1960s invention. It long-predates Clara Peller's 1984 "Where's the beef?" call for McDonald's major competitor, Wendy's, but the question is just as relevant.

What would make a fast-food outlet known for its beef patties serve up a switcheroo and slip a circular fruit substitute in where the burger should have been? Well, McDonald's founder Ray Kroc thought it would be a solid stand-in to accommodate Catholic customers who didn't eat meat on Fridays. It was a competitor to the original Filet-O-Fish, crafted by McDonald's franchisee Lou Groen, who was himself Catholic. We all know how that battle turned out.

Though we're not likely to see the Hula Burger circle back around anytime soon, kudos to Kroc for thinking outside the clamshell container. But discontinuing a fruit burger with cheese? That sounds like the only right follow-up move to make.

The sheer electrical excitement of customers ordering a McDLT could have powered a small town. It was 1985, and the company was getting ahead of the soggy-topping curve, serving up a two-sided DIY burger featuring a special clamshell container designed to keep the burger hot and tasty while also keeping the lettuce and tomatoes fresh and crisp. It may not have been the kind of innovation that advances civilizations, but for burger lovers who were tired of soggy veggies and slimy patties, it was a groundbreaking move.

In his pre-George Costanza years, future "Seinfeld" alum Jason Alexander appeared in TV ads for the McDLT, shilling for McDonald's while bouncing down the street and singing about the burger. Other ads tapped into the rhythmic possibilities of describing the hot and cool elements, turning the jingle into a very '80s music video. The high-energy musical numbers filled screens with undue yet infectious enthusiasm in a way that only mid-'80s marketing could — and yet it couldn't save the burger or ensure a reintroduction to remind us all of what we're missing this far down the line. 

What went wrong here? Backlash against the additional Styrofoam packaging was a big factor in the pullback in the eco-conscious '90s, as was the reality that not all locations had the capability to properly maintain the hot-and-cool format of the burger. Live and learn, as the wise ones say, even when it comes to innovative burgers.

Carnivores who weren't satisfied with a Quarter Pounder were previously offered the Angus Third Pounder, a mega McDonald's burger that was heavier and higher quality than the usual specialty burger. It appeared like a fever dream in 2009 to tempt fast food connoisseurs into switching their orders. There was a Bacon and Cheese version for the traditionalists; Mushroom and Swiss for gourmets; and Deluxe with cheese, tomatoes, lettuce, red onion, pickles, and mayonnaise for those wanting the works. Adding pub-style burgers that dared to stray from the usual McDonald's layout was a risky move designed to broaden the audience with premium sandwiches that met fast casual dining on its own turf.

Though the less-greasy Angus patties and flavor combos were praised, some questioned whether its $4 price point would be prohibitive for customers to test it out — what we wouldn't give for a premium sandwich that cheap now. Hope was high for McDonald's to keep up with the times after setting the pace for so long, and the Angus Third Pounder collection stuck around for four years — a pretty decent run.

A shift away from premium menu options in 2013 removed Angus Third Pounders from the lineup. Despite this being one of the more expensive McDonald's burgers at the time, fast food cravers still congregate online to reminisce about how good they had it with the Angus Third Pounder. If only that sort of energy could prompt a comeback.

After roping in the kids with PlayPlaces and Happy Meals, McDonald's took aim at the adults who accompanied them with the 1996 release of the Arch Deluxe. This was a grown-up burger with pub-style ambitions, pairing a ¼-pound beef patty with peppery bacon, better lettuce, a cheese slice, cool tomatoes, and a mustard-mayo sauce mix that seemed luxe for the bucks.

The adult angle carried over into the TV ads, which benefited from a mega-sized marketing budget from the fast food chain. One saw a McDonald's manager attending a career day event in a room filled with school kids, only to bore them with his mention of the Arch Deluxe. Another featured a chef whipping up the burger, gourmet-style. That's a pretty pointed message, but the chain had done plenty for younger eaters. A sandwich that lured diners with restaurant-level tastes into a fast-food setting wasn't a terrible plan.

But family is McDonald's target demographic, after all, and the extra cost of an Arch Deluxe put a kink in the strategy, driving off budget-conscious clans who depended on more affordable eats from the chain. With the addition of the Big Arch to the menu, the days of premium burgers at McDonald's may be having another moment. Sadly, we don't think the Arch Deluxe will be part of the celebration.

The name Big N' Tasty didn't give McDonald's fans a whole lot to go on. Was the patty bigger and tastier than the other burgers on the menu, or was the whole sandwich somehow enlarged for maximum enjoyment? The truth is that the late-1990s creation — which launched nationwide in 2000 – was a copycat of a Burger King Whopper that dropped mayonnaise into the mix of tomato, pickles, onions, ketchup, and lettuce mix on a quarter-pound burger. It was a shifty yet canny move for the chain, which was finding its royal competitor putting up a fight for customer dollars. This McDonald's specialty was even a price-buster back in 2000, appearing in the $0.99 bargain bite collection, back when affordable food was still thoughtful and generously sized. Those were the days.

The Big N' Tasty had a big, tasty lifespan, lasting for over a decade, until Ronald and crew dropped the ax in 2011 and cut the oversized burger from its U.S. roster. Sticking around for that many years means the sandwich impacted a great number of diners who want it back, stat. You can find a similar burger known as the Big Tasty in some international markets — including the U.K., Saudi Arabia, and France — but Redditors are still wondering how they can prompt a Big N' Tasty renaissance in the U.S., proclaiming cravings that have lasted the better part of two decades. Maybe someone should tell them that they can still grab a Whopper at that other place.

For those who tried it, it's near-impossible to forget the 1980s McDonald's staple that was the Cheddar Melt. It seemed like a pretty pointed jab at Arby's Beef 'n Cheddar, and featured a creamy cheese sauce, a teriyaki topping sauce (which was pretty innovative for the chain at the time), and onions. After launching in the late 1980s, the Cheddar Melt was quickly removed from access. It cropped back up in 2004 but disappeared again that same year, teasing the fans who recalled how different the sandwich was and longed for another go.

A similar creation, the Bacon Cheddar McMelt, was made available in the Dominican Republic in 2025, adding a bottom layer of queso to a bacon double-cheeseburger. But as far as finding a Cheddar Melt at a stateside McDonald's these days, there's no indication that you'll get your wish; the Bring Back the Cheddar Melt Facebook fan page launched in 2019, and the most recent entry is dated 2023. If the minimal public outcry for a reintroduction of the gooey sandwich has moved the needle, you'd never know it by perusing McDonald's plans for new items for the rest of 2026. It's better if you don't hold your breath for this one.

Fitness-minded diners who wanted to have their burger and eat it too were surely over the moon when the McLean Deluxe became an option under the arches in 1991. The label boasted a 91% fat-free patty – a concept that tapped into the nonfat product frenzy of the time.

The burger used a bakery roll with the standard lettuce-mustard-ketchup-tomato topping combo. Knowing that McDonald's demonized fat so much in the McLean Deluxe that the company actually formulated the "burger" from lean beef and seaweed-based fillers and water helps us all understand why this pick was plucked and tossed aside in 1996. It's a wonder that it even lasted that long, considering it was given the highly descriptive nickname The McFlopper.

The House of Ronald gets points for trying something new to keep its nutrition-lovers coming back for more without sacrificing their better-eating ethos. In the decades before plant-based meat offered a convincing substitute, going full-on hippie-style health food was a definite risk. Those who were willing to give it a shot have nothing but memories of disappointment to share, which sounds like the right takeaway for this one. Considering everything it had going against it and the wild unpopularity of a healthy option at McDonald's, we should all count ourselves lucky if the McLean never makes a return appearance — in Deluxe or any other form, for that matter.

McDonald's veered left from its usual basic burger offerings in 1979 and came up with the Chopped Beefsteak Sandwich, a nod to better living that could be had at most drive-thru windows around the U.S. It came with the less-savory-sounding Onion Nuggets (think spicier tater tots) to throw competition in the spokes of Burger King's onion rings.

This was the sort of big swing that could sway customers away from their neighborhood sub shops and steer them in the direction of a McDonald's drive-thru instead. Reddit users point out its resemblance to a McRib — which debuted in the early 1980s — featuring beef instead of pork, which may hint at why the sandwich fell out of favor and was replaced by the eternally returning, sauce-heavy, rib-style replacement.

Those who recall the sandwich understood the appeal and even found the charm in the accompanying Onion Nuggets. This creation feels like it could catch on nowadays if it had a proper marketing plan (and wasn't just available between 4 p.m. and 9 p.m.). It's already certain that the fast food nostalgia set would line up for a chance to revisit the Chopped Steak Sandwich and toss back a few Onion Nuggets. A burger fan can dream.