The first sandwich in this line of products was the McDLT, launched in 1984. It was sold in a novel form of packaging where the meat and bottom bun was prepared separately from the lettuce, tomato, cheese, pickles, sauces, and top bun and both were then packaged into a specially designed two-sided container. The consumer was then expected to finalize preparation of it by combining the “hot” and “cool” sides just before eating. The company discontinued it by January 1991 to appear more environmentally friendly as it moved away from polystyrene packaging which was integral to the McDLT “experience”.
The McBarge, officially named the Seaborne II (formerly the Friendship 500), was a former McDonald’s restaurant, built on a 187-foot-long (57 m) barge for Expo ’86 in Vancouver, British Columbia. Apart from brief use by its original owner, McDonald’s, in 1986, the McBarge has never actively been used for anything and was drifting from owner to owner for thirty-four years. By the end of March 2025, the McBarge had partially sunk into the Fraser River.
The 1986 World Exposition on Transportation and Communication, or simply Expo 86, was a world’s fair held in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada from May 2 until October 13, 1986.