(NEXSTAR) – Glazed hams and Yule logs are all well and good, but is it really Christmas without a mouthful of custard-filled fast-food pie?
McDonald’s doesn’t think so.
Just in time for the holidays, Mickey D’s is bringing back its Holiday Pie — a vanilla custard-filled pie topped with a sugary glaze and festive sprinkles. The item, introduced over two decades ago, has since developed a cult following among McDonald’s fans, thanks partly to its limited seasonal and geographical availability.
As such, the limited-time offering is only available at participating locations in select regions throughout the U.S., according to McDonald’s. A representative for the company declined to specify which markets, exactly, would be offering the pies, but Twitter activity suggests the treats have been spotted in many corners of the country, including Texas, Oregon, Ohio, California, Illinois, New York, and parts of New England.
Customers are encouraged to use the McDonald’s app to check availability at their local restaurants. The Holiday Pie will be available at participating restaurants through early January, McDonald’s said.
McDonald’s Holiday Pies were first introduced in 1999 when they were served inside promotional packaging advertising the release of “Toy Story 2,” according to the Smithsonian National Museum of American History. Anecdotal evidence indicates the pies were largely absent from the seasonal menu for the following decade but returned for limited runs around November or December in select regions.
“It is arguably one of the rarest mcdonalds [sic] menu items to date,” reads an excerpt from an unofficial McDonald’s Wiki page hosted by Fandom, Inc.