Congress has cut federal funding for public media — a $3.4 million loss for LAist. We count on readers like you to protect our nonprofit newsroom. Become a monthly member and sustain local journalism.
This is an archival story that predates current editorial management.
This archival content was written, edited, and published prior to LAist's acquisition by its current owner, Southern California Public Radio ("SCPR"). Content, such as language choice and subject matter, in archival articles therefore may not align with SCPR's current editorial standards. To learn more about those standards and why we make this distinction, please click here.
Shamrock Shakes - They're Ba-a-a-a-a-ck!!!
()
Uncle O'Grimacey! This year there hasn't been any advertising for that horror of horrors, the Shamrock Shake. But curiosity got the best of me. I headed over to the local McDonalds and ordered one up. The employees gathered to stare at me the way people do when I ask for my tacos extra spicy or I'm about to eat something like pig's ears. I heard one of the employees mumble to the other, "Did you taste it?"
It is just as hideous as I remembered. It is like a blank milkshake that tastes like nothing. You think vanilla is "nothing" but it is surreal when you realize how powerful vanilla is, and how bad "nothing" really is. Hiding under the frothy blandness was just the barest hint of spearmint. Not something half-decent like peppermint, no - spearmint. Girl Scout Thin Mints would run away crying if they knew what a bad name McDonalds was giving to minty treats.
I asked the gathering of employees if all of the McDonalds had Shamrock shakes, or just a few select locations. They just stared at me and shrugged. There were no signs advertising the shakes, and it wasn't even on the menu. Not even the drive-thru menu. It's like their dirty little secret. The only good thing I can report is that they have really tuned down the use of food coloring. In the 70s they put so much food coloring in the Shamrock shake, it was known for turning children's poo bright blue.
Support for LAist comes from
Check out fun retro McDonalds commercials full of minty wrongness after the jump
I'm not an offensive stereotype because I'm not human - I'm a Grimace - what the hell is a Grimace??? Why did they name a character after an unpleasant facial expression?
Nyquil sundaes? Next party for sure!
What? This isn't a bar? Never mind. Can you just put a little whiskey in this? And why not a potato as long as we're going there.
()
I believe you can also order a McGrasshopper - half chocolate, which might have been less disgusting. Or maybe more disgusting. The official, and less appealing name of the mint-chocolate shake is the "Minty Mudbath" in a cross-promotion with Shrek the Third.
Some people LOVE Shamrock shakes and have websites devoted to the minty treat.
Support for LAist comes from
Uncle O'grimacey resides in his home country for eleven months of the year and visits his nephew Grimace in March, bringing with him the incredibly delicious Shamrock Shake.
After reading that quote, I somehow started thinking about William Burroughs and Mugwumps and I saw visions the Shamrock shake being milked from O'grimacey's numerous teats, hidden in the folds of his enormous green blubber. And I just about lost my shake.
If I haven't dissuaded you yet, you can search for Shamrock locations, or report your find here. I did my duty as a good citizen. I reported my find.
Do you think someone was having fun on Wikipedia?
Shamrock Shakes were widely available across Canada and the United States until the early 1990s. According to the McDonald’s website, Shamrock Shakes are now sold exclusively in Ireland
Photos by Elise for LAist
As Editor-in-Chief of our newsroom, I’m extremely proud of the work our top-notch journalists are doing here at LAist. We’re doing more hard-hitting watchdog journalism than ever before — powerful reporting on the economy, elections, climate and the homelessness crisis that is making a difference in your lives. At the same time, it’s never been more difficult to maintain a paywall-free, independent news source that informs, inspires, and engages everyone.
Simply put, we cannot do this essential work without your help. Federal funding for public media has been clawed back by Congress and that means LAist has lost $3.4 million in federal funding over the next two years. So we’re asking for your help. LAist has been there for you and we’re asking you to be here for us.
We rely on donations from readers like you to stay independent, which keeps our nonprofit newsroom strong and accountable to you.
No matter where you stand on the political spectrum, press freedom is at the core of keeping our nation free and fair. And as the landscape of free press changes, LAist will remain a voice you know and trust, but the amount of reader support we receive will help determine how strong of a newsroom we are going forward to cover the important news from our community.
Please take action today to support your trusted source for local news with a donation that makes sense for your budget.
Thank you for your generous support and believing in independent news.
Chip in now to fund your local journalism
(
LAist
)
Trending on LAist
-
If approved, the more than 62-acre project would include 50 housing lots and a marina less than a mile from Jackie and Shadow's famous nest overlooking the lake. -
The U.S. Supreme Court lifted limits on immigration sweeps in Southern California, overturning a lower court ruling that prohibited agents from stopping people based on their appearance.
-
Censorship has long been controversial. But lately, the issue of who does and doesn’t have the right to restrict kids’ access to books has been heating up across the country in the so-called culture wars.
-
With less to prove than LA, the city is becoming a center of impressive culinary creativity.
-
Nearly 470 sections of guardrailing were stolen in the last fiscal year in L.A. and Ventura counties.
-
Monarch butterflies are on a path to extinction, but there is a way to support them — and maybe see them in your own yard — by planting milkweed.
Best of LAist