A McDonald's manager has explained what Grimace is and people can’t believe it

Virgin Radio

7 Sep 2021, 14:03

When you think of all the characters in the McDonald’s universe, the first one that springs to mind, obviously aside from Ronald himself, is probably Hamburglar. Then you’ve got some of the others, such as Mayor McCheese and that big purple one, called Grimace. But what actually is Grimace? Well, a McDonald’s manager has come up with an explanation which has shaken the internet.

You'll know Grimace is the large, purple blobby-type creature that maybe looks slightly like an aubergine. But aubergine’s aren’t exactly a prominent part of the McDonald’s menu, so it was never really clear what exactly the weird smiling fellow was supposed to be. Until now. 

A Canadian McDonald's manager called Brian Bates recently gave a definitive explanation as to what Grimace is. While being interviewed by CBC after winning Outstanding Manager of the Year, Bates explained that Grimace isn't supposed to be a mythical creature, or an alien, nor is he representing any type of food. In fact, he’s a taste bud. Yep, you read that right.

"He is an enormous taste bud, but a taste bud nonetheless," Bates said.

The purpose of Grimace is to show that the food tastes good, but this revelation has left the internet shocked. Star Trek’s George Takei tweeted: "Oh dear," and other Twitter users were also quick to comment.

This surprising Grimace news is perhaps all the more confusing because, back in 2012,  the McDonald's corporate Twitter account claimed Grimace to be "the embodiment of a milkshake, though others still insist he's a taste bud.” 

Regarding the recent news that Grimace is a taste bud, one Twitter user wrote that it was, “The most useless but fascinating piece of random information I've seen in a long time.” 

We’d go along with that!