We Desperately Miss When Fast Food Chains Offered This Collectible Item

Sure, the toys inside fast food kids' meals are fun, but what if you're an adult and still like the idea of a little take-home treat with your food? Well, if you remember the 1970s, '80s, or '90s, you probably know that there used to be something for you, and it was even more fun than McDonald's old-school Happy Meal toys. For years, fast food restaurants across the United States offered novelty collectible glasses as part of promotional drives. The glasses were often high quality and durable, like the McDonald's "Flintstones" mug series, which featured a set of four different solid glass mugs for customers to collect.

Most of the glasses were movie tie-ins and would be available for a limited time only, a tactic fast food chains used to get diners to spend more. Products featuring Disney animations, Star Wars, the Muppets, and more were released in promotional glass form. McDonald's also released glasses featuring the McDonaldland characters, which dedicated collectors can still scout out online today. Burger King also released glasses in the 1970s that featured the King himself and a variety of members of what can only be called the Burger Court.

Why did these quirky treasures stop popping up at fast food restaurants with every blockbuster release? Well, the answer is complicated, but it might have something to do with the fact that some of the glasses were actually dangerous. Yep, that's right — the paint used to decorate this vintage dishware is likely to contain lead and cadmium, both of which are dangerous to consume. Beyond that, films like "Fast Food Nation" and "Supersize Me" in the 2000s led to growing concern about whether fast food should be marketed to children. Legal challenges to McDonald's Happy Meals in the 2010s may have helped dampen fast food's appetite for promotional products.

Today, you can find vintage promotional glasses in secondhand stores and online. Remember, though, because of the aforementioned lead paint, it's probably best to use them for decorative purposes only. Although, if you want a novelty fast food glass you can drink out of, in 2024, McDonald's launched a limited run of Collector's Edition glasses, featuring pure glass and safe-to-use depictions of McDonald's-themed takes on Hello Kitty, Hot Wheels, and other iconic toy lines. If you didn't get them the first time around, you can find these online for a sweet sip of nostalgia.