• by Teresa Buyikian , July 3, 2025

Pickle lovers also partial to fast food can rejoice, as one of the last remaining drive-in QSR joints has added the cult favorite Grillo’s Pickles to the menu.

In honor of National Pickle Month this July (yes, it is a real commemorative month, per Wikipedia), Sonic Drive-In highlights the Grillo’s partnership with a new ad from Mother Los Angeles. The “Pickle the World” ad, seen here, promotes the Sonic’s new pickle meal deal.

In the :30 spot, Sonic’s spokesman is seen in his van talking to the Grillo’s mascot pickle Sam, who is lounging on the dashboard. As the spokesman describes the new pickle-forward menu items, he suddenly starts to see everything around his van turn into pickles: a man talking on a pickle instead of a cell phone and a woman with a pet pickle. He asks Sam what he’s done to cause the pickle madness, as the viewer sees Sam levitate from the dashboard bathed in ethereal light.

Then, in a scene reminiscent of the plague of frogs falling from the sky in the film “Magnolia,”  the ad unleashes a new plague—of pickles. Chaos ensues, with people running for cover from the failing green projectiles. And then we see that spokesman himself has actually turned into a giant talking pickle.

The spot runs on national TV, online and streaming platforms, as well as on social media.

The new Grillo’s pickle items on the menu include the Big Dill Sonic Smasher, available as either a double or triple, with Angus beef patties, American cheese, dill pickle-seasoned crispy cucumbers, dilly ranch and Grillo's Pickle Chips. Customers can now also order the chain’s Tots or Groovy Fries with pickle seasoning, or get a Picklerita Slush: a frozen beverage that combines pickle and lime flavors with pickle-flavored boba.

Grillo’s Pickles was started by Travis Grillo in 2008, who used his 100-year-old family recipe to sell pickles out of a wooden cart in downtown Boston at $1 for two spears. The brand is now available nationwide in over 10,000 retail locations including Whole Foods and Walmart.