McDonald’s Opened a ‘Time Portal’ to 1998 to Bring Back Szechuan Sauce

McDonald’s has lived up to its promise to Rick and Morty creator Justin Roiland, sending him a jug of the fast food giant’s discontinued Szechuan dipping sauce that has featured prominently throughout the show.

Roiland told reporters at San Diego Comic Con earlier this month that McDonald’s had agreed to send him the condiment, which hasn’t been available in stores since a promotional run in 1998 for the Disney movie Mulan.

Late Sunday morning, Roiland tweeted photos of a 64 ounce bottle of the Szechuan sauce, which came with a special message.

“We wish we could have brought more sauce through, but we couldn’t risk keeping a portal like that open,” a McDonald’s chef by the name of “Mike” said in the note. “Think about it, if you knew in 1998 that McDonald’s would have All Day Breakfast in 2017, would you want to stay in 1998? Of course not. If we left the portal open, we’d have puka shells, bucket hats, and boy bands as far as the eye could see. It’s too risky, even for a sauce as delicious as this.”

Chef Mike added that “a few lucky fans will get to experience the glory,” suggesting that McDonald’s could be planning on offering the sauce once again.

The sauce’s frequent appearance in the Adult Swim series inspired a petition to get McDonald’s to bring back the condiment. More than 38,000 people have signed it so far.

Rick and Morty returns for its third season on Sunday, July 30.