McDonald’s introduces Filet-O-Fish with Old Bay to spice up sales

Seafood lovers have long known the secret to spicing up the catch of the day.

While Filet-O-Fish may not be the most popular McDonald’s menu item, the chain is trying a testing a new flavor to its sandwich that has been around since the 1960s.

The burger chain is rolling out a version of its fish sandwich topped with an Old Bay spiced tartar sauce at select locations in the Maryland, Virginia, Washington, D.C., Delaware and West Virginia area starting on Feb. 16. The beloved spice mixture that includes paprika, celery salt, pepper and nutmeg, originated in the Baltimore area.  Today Old Bay is owned by spice giant McCormick --but it's still popular, especially on crabs, which are plentiful in the area.

After several quarters of flagging sales, McDonald’s could use a little spicing up. On Old Bay’s website, the seasoning mixture proudly proclaims: "There are two things you need to know about OLD BAY® Seasoning: 1) it's great on seafood and 2) it's great on everything else."

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