1. McDonald’s Fried Fruit Pies
Those deep‑fried apple and cherry pies, crispy, bubbling golden, with hot sugary filling, were a fast‑food dessert legend until McDonald’s switched to baked versions in 1992. Fans still hunt for the original experience: Redditors remember “the best crust ever… it hurt, so worth the burn.” The transition to pale, doughy baked pies erased that nostalgic crunch and gooey intensity, making each bite feel like a consolation prize.
2. Planters Cheez Balls
Those iconic crunchy cheese spheres coated in addictive dust shaped fingers, faces and carpets orange, but that was part of the fun. Even though Planters reintroduced Cheez Balls in recent years, die‑hard fans insist the flavor and texture aren’t the same. Nostalgia tastes sharper than any modern recreation, leaving many convinced the original formula, and mess, can’t be replicated.
1. McDonald’s Pizza
In the late 1980s and early ’90s McDonald’s tested “McPizza” in over 500 locations, including Owensboro (KY), Evansville (IN), Orlando and Tell City, but quietly dropped it by around 2000 because the 11‑ to 16‑minute bake time clashed badly with the chain’s “fast” identity. Its buttery-crust family‑size pies were kind of iconic, but slowed down drive‑thrus, required special ovens, and felt out‑of‑sync with the usual burger rhythm, so it became a cautionary tale in brand mismatch rather than a permanent menu item.
2. Giggles Cookies
Nabisco’s 1980s‑era Giggles Cookies were sandwich cookies with smiley‑face cut‑outs and dual cream fillings, chocolate or vanilla shells hugging chocolate and vanilla creme. They disappeared by the late ’80s, but remain fondly recalled for combining playful design with simple flavor. Snack historians and nostalgia blogs often cite them as a beloved childhood treat that today’s stores barely acknowledge, and fans still draw them up as a symbol of whimsical snack marketing from a bygone era.
4. Reggie! Bar
Launched in 1978 as a promotional candy named after baseball legend Reggie Jackson, the Reggie! Bar combined caramel, peanuts, and chocolate in a round shape, and famously rained down on Yankee Stadium after Jackson’s opening-day home run. Despite generating huge buzz and millions in early sales, it disappeared by 1982, briefly resurfaced in the 1990s, and then vanished again. Fans still talk about its whimsical marketing, collectible wrapper, and unforgettable taste, long after the bar itself was gone.
5. Dr Pepper Red Fusion
Launched in 2002 as Dr Pepper’s first new flavor in over a century, Red Fusion debuted with a bold red can and berry‑cherry‑vanilla twist. It gained initial buzz and inspired online petitions , but sales dropped sharply after about 18 months, and it was discontinued by late 2004. While many still remember its distinctive color and taste fondly, others say it tasted like a weaker, flatter version of original Dr Pepper.
6. Pepsi Blue
Debuted in 2002 amidst the neon‑soda craze, Pepsi Blue aimed to dazzle with sweet berry flavor and electric blue hue. It quickly became polarizing, fans either loved the novelty or labeled it “undrinkable.” Despite marketing efforts, it never resonated broadly and was discontinued in the U.S. by 2004. Many former fans hope for its return, while others insist it’s one discontinued item that stayed gone for good.
8. Kraft Noodles Romanoff
Around 1968, this creamy, tangy noodle dish felt fancier than typical mac and cheese, golden curly noodles in a rich sauce made lunch feel special. It disappeared by the early 2000s, but fans on forums still call it “chicken glop” affectionately and claim no ready‑to‑eat dupe matches its unique texture and flavor. A childhood kitchen staple that seems impossibly dated yet deeply missed.
9. Jell‑O 1‑2‑3
Launched in 1969, this was a dessert innovation: pour, chill, and watch it self‑separate into three layers, a creamy top, a mousse‑like middle, and gelatin bottom. Though discontinued in 1996 due to prep complexity and declining sales, nostalgia runs deep. Some fans still recall it as sophisticated yet simple magic. Copycat instructions, using Jell‑O powder, Cool Whip, ice and blending, aim to recreate the effect.
10. Mug‑O‑Lunch Mac & Cheese
Introduced by Betty Crocker in the mid–1970s, this “just add water” cup meal was the precursor to modern instant lunches. The cheesy, microwaveable, or often just boiling water–prepared, mac at school or home held a special place in growing‑up memories. By the early ’80s it vanished, but commenters still say they “had the mac and cheese every day after school” and miss its simple comfort.
11. Chicken & Alphabet Soup
Campbell’s Chicken & Alphabet Soup was a charming hybrid, you got tender chicken pieces and little alphabet noodles in salty chicken broth, turning the act of eating soup into a playful literacy lesson. Many adults fondly recall learning letters spoonful by spoonful. Now, while Campbell’s still offers alphabet noodles, the unique combination with chicken is much harder to find. That missing magic, comfort and early childhood learning combined, leaves of us nostalgic for the version that felt more wholesome and distinctly memorable.
12. Koogle Flavored Peanut Butter
Koogle was Kraft’s playful twist on peanut butter, launched in the early 1970s with quirky banana, cinnamon, chocolate, and vanilla flavors, and an eccentric puppet mascot sporting “googly eyes.” Kids loved the novelty and moms loved the flavor variety. It vanished in the early ’80s, but memories linger of banana‑Koogle sandwiches and the fun packaging. The unique sweet‑spice profiles just don’t exist in mainstream spreads today, making Koogle a nostalgic icon that many still wish journal‑worthy grocers would bring back.
13. PB Max Bar
Introduced in 1989 by Mars, the PB Max was a hefty bar: whole‑grain cookie, sweetened peanut butter, oats, all enrobed in milk chocolate with crunchy pieces. It generated roughly $50 million in sales before being axed in 1993–94. The surprising reason? According to insiders, the Mars family reportedly disliked peanut butter and pulled the plug despite strong demand. Fans still rave that no combination of textures or balance ever matched PB Max, and many feel its end was more personal than market‑driven.
14. Tato Skins by Keebler
Keebler’s Tato Skins chips offered a bold cheddar & bacon flavor that perfectly captured the taste of loaded potato skin. Chip lovers remember how the uneven, curled shape coated your tongue in flavor. Although off‑brand versions exist, die‑hard fans insist the modern copies don’t match the original taste or recipe. Reddit nostalgia threads are full of comments like “nothing on old school Tato Skins” and “Keebler changed the recipe”. It’s one of those snacks where texture and flavor felt inseparable from memory.
15. Screaming Yellow Zonkers
This sugar‑glazed popcorn, bright yellow in both name and hue, was as well-loved for its quirky black packaging and irreverent copy (“how to mate your Zonkers”) as for its sweet buttery crunch. Launched in 1969 and discontinued in 2007 after Conagra acquired Lincoln Snacks, it felt like a circus in a snack bag. Online discussion shows fans’ frustration: “only thing close… Crunch & Munch, but definitely not the same”. Its blend of taste, humor, and design made it unforgettable, and deeply missed.
16. Pizzarias Chips
Keebler’s Pizzarias, introduced in 1991, were pizza‑dough–based tortilla chips in cheese, pepperoni, and supreme flavors. They sold roughly $75 million in year one and earned Keebler “New Product Marketer of the Year” honors in 1992. Discontinued in the late 1990s after corporate upheaval, they’ve since inspired fan petitions and social media campaigns urging Utz to relaunch them. The bold, authentic pizza taste combined with unique texture left a void no modern chip has really filled.
17. Old‑School Cheese Balls
The massive tubs of generic cheese balls, bright orange, powder‑coated, ultra‑artificially flavored, were snack staples of the ’70s and ’80s. They left orange fingerprints on everything and demanded licking fingers clean. Though Planters and other brands revived versions, none match those nostalgic tubs: the dust, the absurd size, and the unnatural-but-addictive flavor. For many, cheese balls were pure snack joy, and their modern analogs feel like timid echoes of the originals.
18. Cracklin’ Oat Bran
This crunchy cereal featured spiced oat clusters coated in sweet, crackling sugar glaze, uniquely satisfying and unlike anything on the shelf today. The brand is still sold, but longtime fans claim the original recipe has changed, texture flattened or spice scale shifted. Some now try Oatbake dupe brands, but they insist: nothing quite matches that cereal’s satisfying bite and flavor complexity. It’s not technically gone, but the memory of the original remains greater than the product we get today.
This story 18 Discontinued Grocery Items That People Still Crave (and a Few They Absolutely Don’t) was first published on Daily FETCH
