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In 1998, marking the release of the Disney move “Mulan,” McDonald’s released a Szechuan sauce for its Chicken McNuggets. The promotion ran its course and the sauce went away.
Then last year a Cartoon Network show, “Rick and Morty,” a cult favorite, recounted a main character’s obsession with the long-gone sauce. Fans started campaigning for McDonald’s to bring it back.
So the chain decided to play along and made the sauce available again for one day last October.
It was a case of good intentions gone wrong. Supplies were limited — it never even made it to Hawaii. Customers were not just disappointed, they were angry — to the point that McDonald’s apologized: “We did not anticipate the overnight crowds, the cross-state travel and the amazing curiosity, passion and energy fans showed,” the company says on a special website, wewantthesauce.com.
The company even produced three podcasts about the whole debacle: Find them under “The Sauce” on major podcast sources.
Bottom line: The sauce is back — 20 million packets shipped nationwide. You have to ask for it, but a representative of McDonald’s in Hawaii says the islands have been supplied, for a limited time.
Here’s your chance to find out what the fuss was about. But act fast.
— Betty Shimabukuro, Star-Advertiser
RESTAURANT DINING SUPPORTS FARMS THROUGHOUT MARCH
Whether you’re rushing into 7-Eleven to pick up a quick bite, treating yourself to a scoop of ice cream at 8 Half Desserts or gathering the family for a special meal at Senia, you’ll have an opportunity to support local agriculture and ag education in public schools.
For the month of March, some 262 restaurants statewide are taking part in the annual Localicious Hawai‘i program, in which special dishes sold by each restaurant will generate $1 for the cause. The goal this year is to raise $50,000.
The Hawaii Agricultural Foundation launched Localicious in 2014. Since then the program has raised more than $170,000 to provide about 70 schools and 200 classrooms with garden kits and other ag-related curriculum, including “Where Would We Be Without Seeds,” “Aqua Pono Aquaponics,” “In the Fields” and “Kids Cooking Local.”
To see a list of participating restaurants, visit localicioushawaii.com.
— Joleen Oshiro, Star-Advertiser
BRUNCH BACKS UP OHIA FORESTS
The ohia forests are in trouble, threatened by the fungal virus rapid ohia death.
To the rescue: the Lyons Estate on the Big Island, which is raising funds to support the preservation of 20 acres of ohia lehua trees and to bank seedlings for future forests.
To the rescue, Part 2: Herringbone Waikiki, which is hosting a fundraising brunch from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday with a portion of proceeds going to Lyons Estate for its preservation project.
To the rescue, Part 3: you, simply by ordering off the menu Saturday. You can also order the day’s special of $25 bottomless mimosas and endless rose.
Bonus: Learn to make a haku lei using the lehua blossom in a free lesson with expert Meleana Estes.
Reservations are limited. Call 797-2435 or email waikiki@herringboneeats.com.
Herringbone is on the Grand Lanai, third level of the International Market Place. Parking will be validated.
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