McDonalds Set to Take Crafted Drinks National in May
After testing beverage offerings in select markets, the company is bringing the platform to restaurants nationwide and giving franchisees a new add-on category to watch.
McDonald’s will roll out a new crafted beverage lineup nationwide next month, with energy drinks set to follow in August, The Wall Street Journal recently reported.
For franchisees, the move opens up a new sales lane in one of the restaurant industry’s most active categories. The menu will include drinks such as a Dirty Dr Pepper and Mango Pineapple Refresher, with pricing designed to come in below chains like Starbucks and Dutch Bros. The August addition of drinks like the Red Bull Dragonberry Energizer adds another layer to the platform and gives operators more ways to drive beverage purchases across dayparts.
McDonald’s had been working toward this rollout for some time. When it launched CosMc’s in late 2023, the concept gave the company room to experiment with refreshers, blended drinks, specialty lemonades, teas and cold coffee in a separate setting. It also gave the brand a better read on ordering habits. Customers tended to favor a more streamlined experience, and beverage orders often came with food attached.
In 2025, McDonald’s brought those ideas into more than 500 restaurants across Wisconsin, Colorado and surrounding markets. The test menu featured drinks like Toasted Vanilla Frappé, Strawberry Watermelon Refresher, Sprite Lunar Splash, Popping Tropic Refresher and Creamy Vanilla Cold Brew. The early results were encouraging. The beverages helped bring in additional visits, pushed average checks higher at different times of day and gave the Red Bull offerings particular momentum.
That kind of result matters to operators. Franchisees have already put thousands of dollars into new equipment to support the rollout, and the drink-making system was developed with input from both corporate leaders and restaurant operators. McDonald’s views beverages as a more than $100 billion global opportunity, and the national launch gives franchisees a clearer path to participate in that demand with a platform built for scale inside the existing restaurant model.
Read the original article here.
Want to learn more about how 1851 helps franchisees find the right franchise opportunity? Visit www.1851growthclub.com and start your journey.
Don’t Miss the Next Big Franchise Story
Sign up for the 1851 Franchise newsletter to get our biggest stories before everyone else
By signing up, you agree to our user agreement (including class action waiver and arbitration provisions), and acknowledge our privacy policy.
