Arby’s Potato Cakes are back, thanks to… Kyle MacLachlan?

Arby’s Potato Cakes are finally back on the menu, and Kyle MacLachlan is behind it all. Or rather, he has seen the signs and foretold the return of the classic Arby’s dish, as the leader of the Order of Potato Cakes.

“As a Potato Cakes devotee myself, I’m proud to enlighten all Potato Cakes lovers about the return of our cherished menu item,” said MacLachlan, leader of Arby’s newly founded Order of Potato Cakes via press release. “We’ve been waiting three long years, and our voices have finally been heard. Potato Cakes are back at Arby’s thanks to The Powers that Beef!”

You know, I didn’t go to journalism school, but I feel pretty confident that one of the first lessons they teach is “start every article with two paragraphs of nonsense to really draw them in.” And then the 201 class is “make the third paragraph a bit of meta-text that comments on the nonsense of the first two paragraphs, rather than providing any real information.” Glad I didn’t spend the $50k on that! I just knew all of it naturally!

Anywho, the long and short of this news is that Potato Cakes are at Arby’s now, after leaving the menu in 2021. If you’re not familiar: they’re hash browns. I’m sorry to just drop that on you like that, but that’s what they are. Arby’s describes them as “shredded potato fried to a crispy golden brown,” which, let’s be real, is a hash brown. I guess the big difference here is that they’re a triangle – potentially like an “A” for Arby’s? – instead of a rectangle, like at other chains. They’re also an all-day thing, rather than just breakfast, so perhaps that separates them as well. But yeah. Hash browns.

So, what’s the deal with the Kyle MacLachlan thing? Between his classic role on Twin Peaks and his recent role on Fallout, the actor is intrinsically associated with cult-like behavior. With Arby’s indicating that fans have been demanding online for the Potato Cakes’ return, they’re leaning into that for the ad campaign, with MacLachlan as the leader of the Potato Cake cult.

And furthermore, Arby’s has added a whole line of merch on their online ArbysShop.com, all themed around Potato Cakes. That includes a candle, a necklace, and much more.

All this is only for a limited time, meaning the cult will be back to sacrificing potatoes in the dead of night by the end of the year. In the meantime, you can get a 3-piece Potato Cakes at Arby’s now for $2.39.