What nostalgic foods have you tried again recently and were like, meh?
Posted by EternalSunshineClem@reddit | Xennials | View on Reddit | 426 comments
For me it's Snickers ice cream bars. I loooved them back in the day. Got a small box recently and it was okay at best. Definitely not like how I remembered it. It's certainly possible that they have degraded the quality and made it worse now like they have with so many things. But the caramel didn't hit the same and it was way more falling apart instantly.
dstarpro@reddit
Velveeta Shells and Cheese. I really thought they were delicious once, but they tasted like ass.
Ordinary-Practice812@reddit
Ohhhhh nooooo I still love these to death - nothing beats a box when you’re hungover
dstarpro@reddit
I respect you.
Ordinary-Practice812@reddit
Hahahahahah thank you and you should try it again
epidemicsaints@reddit
Rolos. Pure sugar mush.
They didn't taste like chocolate or caramel and weren't chewy.
Milky Way tastes better though.
yeuzinips@reddit
Milky Way Midnight is where it's at
medievalkitty2@reddit
Speaking of candy bars - did Mars bars used to have almonds and nougat? Last time I had a mars bar, it tasted more like a Milky Way. Snickers Almond bars tastes like Mars bars used to. (Haven’t had any of them in a long while cause I like those Snickers almond bars a little too much lol.)
Dry-Imagination7793@reddit
Mars bars never had almonds unless you got a special edition or something. I ate a LOT of mars bars as a kid and would have hated an almond version lol
yeuzinips@reddit
I'm not sure. I can't recall ever eating a Mars bar...
rush87y@reddit
GOODBYE TRANSFATS!
The taste of some junk food has changed due to the reduction or removal of trans fats. Trans fats, often found in partially hydrogenated oils, were commonly used in junk food because they improve shelf life and enhance flavor and texture. However, as many countries, including the U.S., have phased out trans fats due to their negative health effects, manufacturers have had to modify their recipes.
The replacement ingredients, such as palm oil or other alternatives, can alter the taste, texture, and mouthfeel of these foods. While the changes may be subtle, some people have noticed differences in the flavor or crispiness of items like fried snacks, baked goods, and fast food.
Osurdum@reddit
Hostess cupcakes.
EternalSunshineClem@reddit (OP)
Agree. Any of the old school individually wrapped pastry things.
rush87y@reddit
gnrlgumby@reddit
Star crunch did not hit.
ennuiismymiddlename@reddit
Yeah I used to love those. Now the only LD treats I like are Nutty Bars, and Oatmeal Crème Pies.
retrodork@reddit
Little Debbie has transformed into BIG Debra lol
lionsandtigersnobear@reddit
My wife said if she called the show cheaters on me the would follow me and see me stopping at 3 gas stations a day stopping for my little Debbie. Stopped eating them 15 years ago. The temptation is still there though. Swiss cakes mmmm.
ennuiismymiddlename@reddit
Haha. “Giant Deborah”. Are you a fellow GMM fan, by chance?
Debbie-Hairy@reddit
I’m gonna look like Big Deborah if I don’t keep myself out of those cream pies.
LazyOldCat@reddit
Lil’ Diabeetus!
GroupCurious5679@reddit
I am !!!
retrodork@reddit
I didn't know what GMM is. I do know is when my wife showed me the big debra meme and that's all I see when I see the little Debbie logo with her face.
4RealMy1stAcct@reddit
Oatmeal cream pies. .. always fukks hard!!!!
tkcring@reddit
Lmao
AuntieLaLa420@reddit
Aldi has better nutty bars. Seriously, like what LD is supposed to be.
Assortedpez@reddit
The wife bought a box of oatmeal crème pies from BJ’s a year or two ago and I pretty much demolished the entire thing. She bought a couple more and I just kept slaying em…she stopped buying them. Those are still amazing
railmanmatt@reddit
Oatmeal creme pies FTW
ContributionHour8644@reddit
Man star crunch is just not good anymore.
svr0105@reddit
I loved them, but now you have to make your own. I share this recipe whenever I come across another Star Crunch fan. (I use regular chocolate chips instead of dairy-free because I'm not vegan.) https://saltedplains.com/healthy-star-crunch-gluten-free-vegan/
busa89@reddit
Star crunch is so ass.
SeasonPositive6771@reddit
Star crunch is okay at best now, they have really gone down in quality.
Not_a_werecat@reddit
That's the only one I still like. They're not amazing anymore, but still good enough that I'll eat one every so often.
ClickAndClackTheTap@reddit
Makes your mouth so greasy. 🤮
Osurdum@reddit
Must be the lack of trans fats.
epidemicsaints@reddit
there's really no difference between partially hydrogenated oil and fully hydrogenated oils. I think it's packaging and additives extending the shelf life. They used to only be a few weeks old max and now it's months.
lifeat24fps@reddit
We rarely buy it anymore because we live next to a bakery but supermarket bread is weird now.
It used to turn green with mold in a week. Found a forgotten few slices in the pantry that must have been at least a month and a half old. Still moist, no mold. Suspicious.
brinkbam@reddit
My husband just pulled out our camping gear that has been stored in the hall closet since about March (we live in the South so can only go camping in the cooler months) and found hamburger buns that we accidentally left in the food tote. Not a single speck of mold! But they did smell really bad 😂
flat_four_whore22@reddit
everything tastes so... waxy these days because of the additives.
Osurdum@reddit
That makes a lot of sense, the additives to keep extending shelf life.
larryb78@reddit
Fruit pies too
poop_pants_pee@reddit
The Entenmann's ones got the spot
mysecretissafe@reddit
Man when they stopped packaging ding dongs in foil was truly the day the music died. They’re also like 1/4 size smaller than they used to be.
Shoddy-Worry9131@reddit
I think they are shipped frozen now.
SlytherClaw79@reddit
Any of the chocolate coated snack cakes really. It tasted like I was biting into wax last time I tried eating a Swiss cake roll.
Osurdum@reddit
The cake seems a lot drier, too.
MotherofaPickle@reddit
You really h e to watch the Best Buy date on those. If it “expires” in a week or less, don’t bother.
mrmadchef@reddit
I grabbed an individually wrapped one at Meijer a while back as I was making my way to self checkout (I think it was a zebra cake). I'm sure I used to love them, but now... meh.
lisette729@reddit
Same with Tastycakes. They’re so much drier now.
weedandbombs@reddit
wow that's the first thing that popped in my head because one just gave me food poisoning a few weeks ago and I realized I've been sorely upset by them as of late.
Osurdum@reddit
Whoa, food poisoning? Yikes! I hope you are feeling better now.
weedandbombs@reddit
yes, thank you! they weren't even expired but I noticed the icing looked a bit lighter in color than usual, I'm guessing they were stored badly at some point. this was right after a few weeks of very hot weather, so who knows?
bleu_waffl3s@reddit
I had some ding dings recently and they were still just as good as when I was 5
nugsy_mcb@reddit
Every time I’ve had one recently they’ve been so dry and the fudge or icing on top has been almost chalky. The quality has definitely gone way down.
Smiling-Scrum2679@reddit
Cadbury cream eggs were my favorite things growing up. Tried one again about a year ago and nearly gagged. Just gross grainy white frosting and bland chocolate.
Smoovie32@reddit
Cadbury was bought by Hershey’s and they changed the chocolate formulation. Can’t say about the filling, but the chocolate has definitely gone down since the acquisition.
TooManyDraculas@reddit
Cadbury was not bought by Hershey.
Hershey was licensed to produce their brands in the US in the 80s. Not long after Cadbury's entered the US Market. They were barely marketed in the US before that.
Cadbury's was bought by Schweppes. in the 60s, which was then bought by (I think) Kraft. And then spun off into Mondelez.
They've both lowered the quality over the years. Like the UK version cuts the cocoa butter with vegetable oils now.
Smoovie32@reddit
Ah, thanks for the correction/clarification.
TooManyDraculas@reddit
Yeah. I'm not sure when Cadbury Cream Eggs were introduced to the US. But I assume it was the 80s, since that's the earliest evidence of them being advertised here I can find, And the first time the US gets mentioned in Histories of the product is the 80s add campaign with the Bunny.
That means they were always made by Hershey, and less good than the versions outside the US. And while Hershey's version has gotten worse. As has Hershey's in general. So have most versions of Cadbury's internationally. They've just got further to fall.
But generally it's not a recent difference. I grew up on Cadbury's people would bring from Ireland. And there was never a point that I can remember where the US stuff was much worth eating.
Smoovie32@reddit
I can confirm the 80s and I can confirm they have gotten worse. However, based off of recent posts in this sub, Reddit, I no longer trust how good my child brain thought they were back in the day. Apparently, none of the junk that we thought was awesome actually tastes awesome.
TooManyDraculas@reddit
I never liked them much.
But the Hershey's made Cadbury's in general is definitely worse than it was. They've acknowledged changes to the way they make it in the face of complaints.
PuppyJakeKhakiCollar@reddit
Cadbury chocolate tastes way better in the UK than the US.
2748seiceps@reddit
I had only eaten the Cadbury Caramel in Europe and my wife recently got a box from Sam's that had some in it. I was like oh man if those are like the UK ones I love them!
Had one square and didn't touch them again. We then took a trip to Europe and had some real ones and she completely understood after that.
CapOnFoam@reddit
I mean, they were that way back then too 😂 I hated those things. Grainy goo in the middle of waxy chocolate. And i say this as someone who will eat brown sugar right out of the container. 😬
The12th_secret_spice@reddit
Gushers, they don’t even gush anymore
scumbagspaceopera@reddit
Little Debbies (especially the Oatmeal Creme Pies). How can they get away with calling that "food"?! They are SO bad. They taste almost like plastic they're so artificial. Like many things these days they've been cheapened to all fuck.
punkasstubabitch@reddit
One night I made an 80’s meal with shake & bake and rice-a-roni. I. It was surprisingly very bland in comparison to how I remember. I added some tapatio.
TooManyDraculas@reddit
Even back in the day my family would make the rice a roni with chicken broth, add salt pepper and garlic to the shake and bake.
Most of this stuff has definitely dropped in quality over time. But a lot of it was pretty bland to start.
punkasstubabitch@reddit
I’m thinking my mom probably added stuff, but I never paid attention as a kid
New_Collection5295@reddit
“It’s Shake n Bake and I heealped!” Can never see that product without hearing the girl from the commercial.
throwitlikethewind@reddit
We always added our own seasonings to shake & bake. It was never that flavorful to me.
captainstormy@reddit
Meals like that, and the fact my mother and grandmother only used salt and pepper for spices were the reason why I developed a love of hot sauce.
Thomisawesome@reddit
I think back in the 80s, a lot of people’s go to seasoning was salt and pepper, so shake and bake or Rice-a-roni seemed like it had a lot of seasoning in it.
Now, most people are really comfortable with using herbs and spices.
ItsArseniooooooooooo@reddit
Rice-a-roni tastes like the box it comes in. It used to have a very distinct and robust flavor.
Deep-Interest9947@reddit
Everything nostalgic tastes bad now. Maybe it’s age but I’m pretty sure it’s just a decline in manufacturing.
EternalSunshineClem@reddit (OP)
I do think the quality of many things has gone down. A lot of shirts start getting holes in them a lot quicker, things like that
2748seiceps@reddit
If you look at the tags of most modern shirts you'll find they are basically made of plastic since polyester and acrylic is plastic.
Especially if you are looking at 'light' cotton they will do 50% polyester to lighten it.
PuppyJakeKhakiCollar@reddit
You're right. Prices have gone up but quantity and quality have gone way down for so many things, not just food.
LadySnack@reddit
The quality or quantity has taken a dive, it's sad
AHorseNamedPhil@reddit
Although it was coined for online services, enshittification could also sum up the decline in quality of a lot of snack foods.
sbernardjr@reddit
Yeah, I'm never quite sure if the product is worse or it's that I eat more grown-up stuff now on the regular. I think it's more column A than column B, though.
captainstormy@reddit
It's both for sure.
Every company focuses on making everything as cheaply as possible now. So I can certainly see them tinkering with the recipe to use cheaper ingredients and take less time to make.
For example I used to work at a BBQ restaurant in highschool. Back then all the stuff like cole slaw, BBQ sauce, the cakes and pies we had for dessert, soups for the salad bar, etc etc were all made fresh daily in house by a prep team.
These days all that stuff is done in factories by corporate and shipped to the store. It's not nearly as good. But the food is a lot cheaper that way and there is no need for a prep team anymore.
At the same time, I know my tastes have changed over the last 40 years. That isn't even a question. I like a lot of things I didn't used and don't like many I did. Plus I've discovered a whole world of herbs and spices. All my grandmother and mother ever used was salt and pepper. At Thanksgiving they would add pumpkin pie spice and sage. That was the whole accounting of their spice use. Never used garlic either.
shiftdown@reddit
Ingredients changes even moreso
CrybullyModsSuck@reddit
It's the CEO needing a new yacht.
Substitute a cheaper ingredient one year, quality drops 4%. Do it again a couple of years later, and again, and again over the course of 20 years and that quality has dropped in half.
Now the new CEO needs a yacht...
Key-Tell-4345@reddit
I agree, it’s like twice as processed as before maybe
kidthorazine@reddit
Fast food especially had a very noticeable steep dive in quality in 2020, I can imagine a lot of processed food getting hit just as hard.
Prof_HH@reddit
Quisp cereal. Loved it as a kid. I thought it wasn't made anymore. Stoked when I see it at the grocery. It was not like I remembered.
crazycatlady331@reddit
Rainbow sherbet. LOVED the stuff as a kid.
Bought some last year and decided it was not worth the calories.
VenomousUnicorn@reddit
Sorbet is where it's at now!
DateCard@reddit
Yes!! I bought a gallon a few months back after dental surgery and, even being one of the few things I could eat, I was done after a couple of spoonfuls. It left the nastiest aftertaste in my mouth.
Adelaide_Farmington@reddit
Pepperoni hot pockets. I swear they used to have a ton of cheese. Now it’s just pepperoni and heartburn.
EternalSunshineClem@reddit (OP)
That reminds me - I tried a poptart again recently and it was not good either! Way heavier on the crust part and light on the filling/topping
VenomousUnicorn@reddit
The only good Pop-Tarts are the off-brand Pop-Tarts at this point.
Illustrated-skies@reddit
The crust used to be buttery & delicious. Now it’s like dry, crumbly nastiness.
sheepcloud@reddit
This is a sincere “pain point” in the market because I would pay a premium for an original type of pop tart. Just sayin..
Schmuck1138@reddit
Did you toast and butter them?
Fearless-Comedian62@reddit
As someone who ate the crust then the filling, it's the same size but the crust isn't as good or I used to toast them? Something has changed.
aryn505@reddit
They skimp big time on the icing too.
flat_four_whore22@reddit
They're awful.
TemperatureTight465@reddit
I swear poptarts are 95% crust now
catforbrains@reddit
Agreed. There wasn't always a lot of filling but now they're like 1% filling and 99% crust.
Nomadzord@reddit
They had cubes of cheese in the 90s! Now it’s just cheese/sauce vomit sauce.
pmmlordraven@reddit
Yes! The "cheese" and sauce now are some weird goop that you no longer know where one ends, and the other begins.
Ineedavodka2019@reddit
Pizza rolls are just plastic and sadness.
nosleeptilbroccoli@reddit
The last few times we had pizza rolls the cheese didn’t even melt. We complained and got coupons for more pizza rolls. They still suck now.
javatimes@reddit
If it’s totinos, it’s not even real cheese
Schmuck1138@reddit
Did you microwave or bake them? I wasn't a fan of them growing up, until a coworker made them in the oven. They are decent when baked.
amayain@reddit
Baked (or fried) totinos pizza rolls are still great, especially dipped in ranch
Schmuck1138@reddit
With ranch!?! I haven't tried that. I'm a disappointment to the Midwest.
Schmuck1138@reddit
Hot pockets are garbage, but there are some pizza manufacturers that make a very tasty stromboli. Palermo's makes a decent one. The trick is to bake it
Adelaide_Farmington@reddit
I’ll look for those!
Christie318@reddit
I used to love Hot Pockets and Croissant Pockets. Tried them a few years ago…major disappointment.
libertyprivate@reddit
I came to say this. I strongly agree
Ginger_Snaps_Back@reddit
Disappointment Pockets.
dashrockwell@reddit
Dead Pockets
busa89@reddit
You almost couldn’t pay me to eat one of those today. I will still inhale a totino’s pizza on occasion though.
ennuiismymiddlename@reddit
Mmmm….pizza! https://youtu.be/KLHRjaUBb3o?si=tZUVryKX_5xCP0XT
chaz_patrick@reddit
Same for me with the damn totinos pizza rolls! Nothing but disappointment and heartburn
SeasonPositive6771@reddit
The pizza took a huge hit when they went to the rectangle shape instead of round. They've also had a huge declining quality. It just doesn't hit at all now.
ava1983@reddit
Omg same. I used to eat the shit out of hot pockets as a teenager and I tried one recently and it was so bad. Couldn’t eat more than one bite. Tasted like a soggy pastry filled with hot puke.
nobearable@reddit
Nestle Crunch. I knew I morphed into a dark chocolate snob but I had no idea Nestle Crunch bars would suck as bad as they do now. I used to eat so many of those things as a kid.
LadySnack@reddit
They started going with cheaper chocolate they are junk now
sbernardjr@reddit
I just ate a Nestle Crunch ice cream bar today and it was terrible.
EternalSunshineClem@reddit (OP)
Right? I don't know what's blander, the chocolate or the rice
Comfortable_Side_525@reddit
Those Stauffer animal crackers with pink frosting. I used to love those things when I was a kid. Found some a little while back and my soul was crushed by how flavorless they were.
LadySnack@reddit
Mothers frosted cookies are still good
twirlerina024@reddit
Trader Joe’s has a version of them seasonally, I think in spring. They’re shaped like flowers and taste as good as I remember the animals tasting.
RaeBethIsMyName@reddit
Circus Animals changed their recipe in the early 2000’s. The dye is different. The frosting is a different texture. They were my favourite. Now they taste like sadness.
cbatta2025@reddit
The Aldi version is pretty great
SeasonPositive6771@reddit
Apparently they have a totally different manufacturer now, they're pretty gross and it's so disappointing.
tommy2tone222@reddit
Pizza Hut pan pizza. Loved it as a kid but now it just tastes like bad bread.
squishpitcher@reddit
They don’t make it in cast iron pans anymore. The crust is really shitty compared to how it used to be.
kayesskayen@reddit
Jet's pizza tastes so much like Pizza Hut used to. And it has the fried bottom because of the pans they bake it in. It's delicious.
LadySnack@reddit
Jet city's do have the same crust, they are pricey for me so it's treat
squishpitcher@reddit
where is this magical place i’ve never heard of?
kayesskayen@reddit
https://www.jetspizza.com/jets-detroit-style-101/
I don't know how many there are but they opened one near me last year and I eat it more than I should lol
squishpitcher@reddit
Dang, not near me yet but they have a lot of locations!
Express-Structure480@reddit
You died for our sins! I had one about a decade ago, it was pretty rough and made it hard to believe they actually stay open selling that product. Dominos, on the other hand, while not “good” is good enough.
EternalSunshineClem@reddit (OP)
Same, but I have a feeling it always tastes like bad bread. Ellios, too, which I don't want to try as an adult.
c_b0t@reddit
Ellio's was always bad but, like, good bad.
LadySnack@reddit
Alot of companies have changed recipes since we were kids, quality and quantity changes have effected alot of foods. Butterfinger changed recipe. Hot pocket, and resses cup have less filling and are just not the same
Appdownyourthroat@reddit
I wonder how many answers are because of getting older and tastes changing, versus the enshittification and bait and switch with ingredients
VolunteerOnion@reddit
When I heard Choco tacos were being discontinued I went and had one. Meh I can see why they stopped selling
thinkb4youspeak@reddit
Most or all processed foods have declined in quality due to changing to cheaper ingredients.
Like palm oil and others.
otherwiseguy@reddit
I think everyone is forgetting that your ability to taste also gets worse as you get older--it shouldn't be too bad yet. But there has also been COVID.
I just notice a lot of "everything is so bland now" and it reminds me of people with COVID giving bad reviews to candles to Amazon because they don't smell.
wiiguyy@reddit
You guys sound like such old farts.
cheeseandrice4@reddit
I think a lot of that Meh is just getting older. My own kids still love all that shit. But as adults, yes, they are meh. Our taste buds change as we age.
someguy_reddit@reddit
Lunchables pizza.
LadyOfReason@reddit
Spaghettios 😭
Striking_Debate_8790@reddit
Hostess Twinkies.
EDH70@reddit
Razzles
Old_Introduction7236@reddit
Nutter Butters
EternalSunshineClem@reddit (OP)
Oh no do these suck now? I used to like these
Old_Introduction7236@reddit
Not sure if they changed the recipe or my taste buds changed but they seem blander now.
Capable-Grocery686@reddit
Fish sticks. A blanket of crumbs waved in the general direction of a fish.
Fun_Intention_5371@reddit
Honestly everything anymore
Like all the food is weird (probably less and less actual food in it.
Corporations are cutting corners and charging more. It's literally not even worth it to eat most days with the garbage they're putting out there
cowboyja@reddit
Anything from McDonald's, or really any fast food.
Tryn4SimpleLife@reddit
Carl's Jr/Hardee's still tastes the same to me. I have also been going to the same one for 20+ years. Still see the patties on the conveyor belt with all the fire
EternalSunshineClem@reddit (OP)
I embarrassingly still like Taco Bell
Thomisawesome@reddit
Taco Bell had disappointed me more than any other fast food as an adult. The last couple times I tried it, it was just so salty and somehow bland at the same time.
Considering I can go to a real Mexican restaurant for around $30, Taco Bell feels pointless these days.
PuppyJakeKhakiCollar@reddit
The prices are ridiculous now. I remember when you could go with $10 or $15 and get a bunch of stuff and still have money left over.
Outside-Ice-1400@reddit
Salty fast food? I don't believe it.
illini02@reddit
What are you guys buying that is that much.
I get taco bell more than I'd like to acknowledge, usually after a night out, and I almost never spend more than $10 and I'm full after.
EternalSunshineClem@reddit (OP)
Yeah the price is ridiculous. Like I'm not spending $20 at Taco Bell when I could pick up a local Pad Thai for that
Erik500red@reddit
You used to be able to go to Taco Bell and get a litetal bag full of food for under 10 bucks. Me & my wife went yesterday and only got a few things and spent $20. I only got 3 things and even they were off the "value" menu
Thomisawesome@reddit
Now I want pad Thai. lol.
Orang3Lazaru5@reddit
Taco Bell still slaps. My local one actually gives a fuck and the quality shows
EternalSunshineClem@reddit (OP)
It does. Unfortunately it's not cheaper now than to pick up food from an actual restaurant.
slothbuddy@reddit
I get a taco and a burrito for like $3 there. A restaurant would be easily 5 times as much
EternalSunshineClem@reddit (OP)
A taco and a burrito for 3 dollars at Taco Bell doesn't exist where I am (bay area)
slothbuddy@reddit
Looking on the app at a one in San Francisco and a cheesy bean and rice burrito is $1.69 and a spicy potato soft taco is $1.49?
EternalSunshineClem@reddit (OP)
I thought you meant their actual tacos and burritos. Those wouldn't fill anyone up even a little, it's like an appetizer.
slothbuddy@reddit
That's all I've eaten today and I've been up since 9. Wait no I also had a fun sized snickers
blue_groove@reddit
The thing that saddens me the most about Taco Bell in its current state is how small everything is now. The burritos were so much bigger in the 90's. Even the bean burritos were humongous compared to how small they are now.
medievalkitty2@reddit
I want to like Taco Bell, but the last two times my husband and I got it, we got food poisoning. Also the lettuce was weird and mealy so we were picking as much of that off as possible.
EternalSunshineClem@reddit (OP)
You got food poisoned from Taco Bell and then went back? That's ambitious!
medievalkitty2@reddit
We were hoping it was a fluke. We really loved Taco Bell! 😩
oldmamallama@reddit
Vegetarian here. Taco Bell is some of the only fast food I will eat. They’re shockingly veggie friendly.
medievalkitty2@reddit
I miss the Cantina bell menu.
PuppyJakeKhakiCollar@reddit
Wendy's is still good (at least the one near me is), but so many others have really gone downhill. Burger King still tastes good but whatever they cook everything in now makes me feel sick and I have heard others say the same thing.
illini02@reddit
I once saw something about McDonalds that was so true.
It said "McDonald's doesn't taste like cheeseburgers, it just tastes like McDonald's".
cbatta2025@reddit
Idk. Big Mac still satisfies
mlo9109@reddit
Agreed, same with the Pizza Hut comment above. Though, whether it's fast food or a local restaurant, I feel like any outside food has gone down in quality since COVID. It's a fun game of, is it my taste buds changing with age or life after COVID?
cheeker_sutherland@reddit
Pizza Hut has been bad since waaaay before Covid.
brinkbam@reddit
McDonald's McGriddle is still my go-to on the rare occasion I'm terribly hungover. It somehow helps lol
delibertine@reddit
I used to LOVE their breakfasts. Last time I ordered one was on a skiing trip decades ago and I was really looking forward to the comforting warmth, taste and crunch. I didn't even care it looked like someone had sat on the food, but it tasted like someone with no taste buds had tried to cook eggs and hash browns using the wrong ingredients in the dark
ItsArseniooooooooooo@reddit
Hotcakes and Sausage used to be so delicious back in the day. The butter had the little corn imprint on it. Sometimes I'd splurge as a kid and get two sausage patties. I tried it a few years back and it was tasteless.
Flurb4@reddit
Girl Scout cookies have gone to shit. Waxy chocolate, stale ingredients.
bigwomby@reddit
Fig Newtons. Ok as a kid, meh now.
homerj681@reddit
Sometimes I crave that ninja turtle cream pie, the green one with the Boston creme style filling... I know they were terrible, but they were so good. Did anyone else ever have one??
jp85213@reddit
I remember these too! They were yummy when we were kids.
spinereader81@reddit
How did I ever choke down Hershey's chocolate bars? They have never been good, but somehow I tolerated it as a kid. But I just can't do it anymore. It doesn't even taste like chocolate!
No-Translator-4584@reddit
Sabretts’ hot dogs. MacDonalds’ French fries.
QueenSheezyodaCosmos@reddit
All the pre packaged snack foods taste like chemicals to me nowadays.
RustySpanner2@reddit
Spaghettios - taste like the metal can they come in. Fritos, so salty!
Pineapple-Due@reddit
Fruit loops suck now
Smurfblossom@reddit
Pringles. I don't know what the hell they did to them but they now taste like cardboard covered in chemicals.
Botherguts@reddit
They are only 42% potato now.
YEMolly@reddit
Yeah, Pringles are gross. Haha
Kizenny@reddit
For real! WTF happened to them, they are small and bland AF.
Shen1076@reddit
Poptarts - now with just a hint of jelly
PuppyJakeKhakiCollar@reddit
TastyKakes. They were a staple of my childhood and so good. Ever since they were bought by another company, they have plummeted in quality. You just taste preservatives and they are so dry now. And I know it's not just my tastebuds maturing because my parents said the same thing.
jessek@reddit
I grew up with a natural foods mom so most processed foods were off the table for me. When I got old enough to buy my own I tried things like Chef Boyardee, Lunchables, etc and goddamn they were all terrible. Kids eat awful slop, is what I learned. The sugary breakfast cereals were pretty good though.
PuppyJakeKhakiCollar@reddit
I like Lunchables but agree Chef Boyardee is terrible. Even the Spaghetti-Os with the little hot dogs, which was gold standard when I was a kid, is awful.
RaeBethIsMyName@reddit
My mom wasn’t a natural foods mom but very nearly. The only time I had canned food was when we went camping but it was mainly Dinty Moore stew, chili or those weird Hormel canned tamales that looked like cigars. I remember thinking Spaghettios had to be good because of the commercials and finally got some as an adult and literally gagged. So awful. Same with most sugary cereals. Fruity Pebbles = 🤮 Capn Crunch? More like Capn Mouth Sores.
CapOnFoam@reddit
Same here! When I went off to college, I couldn’t WAIT to buy a box of Cookie Crisp. I’d always wanted to buy that but we weren’t allowed. Who wouldn’t want a bowl of cookies for breakfast?!?!
I was so disappointed to discover it’s cookie-shaped cereal, not cookies. This was like 25 years ago and I STILL feel disappointed lol
HipHopGrandpa@reddit
Your mom did you a solid and probably added a few years to your life.
Independent-Candy927@reddit
The opposite: cheez its. Damn they hold up
Konnorwolf@reddit
White cheddar!
Independent-Candy927@reddit
I would like to express solidarity, but IMO all these variants are just a distraction from the perfection of the original (white cheddar not sour enough)
Konnorwolf@reddit
Cheez It's in general are really good.
Appropriate_Bird_223@reddit
Planters cheesecakes and cheese curls. They disappeared for a decade and once brought back didn't taste the same.
XFrankXGrimesX@reddit
On the other hand I snapped up some Airheads on an impulse buy and loved the hell out of them. I was also stoned and still have an enormous sweet tooth which seems relevant
MNJayW@reddit
I thought they were good but were missing something. Then I realized where I always ate them, the city pool. It was the smell of chlorine that was missing.
CruelStrangers@reddit
Airheads just seem smaller, but we’ve grown 🤷
EternalSunshineClem@reddit (OP)
There are definitely still some nostalgic things I like too. But the ones that don't hit the same come with a high level of crushing disappointment.
XFrankXGrimesX@reddit
I don't think I've had them since they were all the rage in middle school. I gotta tell you, we were right about them.
Unable_Apartment_613@reddit
Milk chocolate is pretty bad overall now thanks to palm oil. We aren't just being nostalgic.
No_Ant508@reddit
Salsbury steak 🤢
ItsArseniooooooooooo@reddit
I went down cereal memory lane the other day.
Crunchberries, Apple Jacks, Froot Loops, and Apple Cinnamon Cheerios all tasted terrible.
I remember when the Apple Cinnamon Cheerios used to have bits of apple on them and Froot Loops only had three flavors.
All of the cereals now taste like their 1980s/90s generic counterparts.
weedandbombs@reddit
just an FYI... all of the Froot Loops are the same flavor. always has been.
they're just different colors.
captainstormy@reddit
I'm also like 99% sure the flavor is lavender.
I had some lavender ice cream one summer and my brain instantly connected it to froot loops.
weedandbombs@reddit
the flavor of Froot Loops is a blend of orange, lemon, lime, apple, cherry, raspberry, and blueberry.
captainstormy@reddit
Weird because lavender took my brain right to froot loops. Like instantly.
ItComeAFlood@reddit
Golden Grahams were the best in the 80s and 90s. Now they're trash.
Fearless-Comedian62@reddit
Oh it's so bad! Even the "Retro recipe" is trash.
gummi-demilo@reddit
They got rid of the apples in Apple Cinnamon Cheerios?! What the hell. I tried those before they were even sold thanks to my mom’s friend who worked for GM, they were my favorite variety of Cheerios.
mysecretissafe@reddit
Tab.
I go through this thing like once every 5-10 years where I think “Tab was awesome. I should go get some” and then I do, giggle about the “this legit gives you all the cancer” warning on the can, open it and have a taste and then go “oh.”
Then I remember that Tab was awesome because my Benson and Hedges smoking grandmother drank it and would let me have one as we sat out around the trash fire and toasted weenies and marshmallows while my older cousins threw half spent cans of Aqua Net on the fire to watch them explode out in BFE East Texas.
And that is one of the main reasons I was never a Nobel Prize candidate.
whiskeyandchickens@reddit
The limited rerelease of Zimas. Loved them back in the day; but the rerelease was gross.
heady_brosevelt@reddit
Every single snack has changed for the worse it has nothing to do with how good they used to be or how your taste has changed
AlchemistMustang@reddit
Ellio's pizza. It barely tastes like anything. That and Super Bagels were my favorite. Super Bagels are still okay.
equipped_metalblade@reddit
Clearly Canadian flavored sparkling water. I got so excited when I saw it was back too. Either they made it sooooo much sweeter than it used to be, or my taste buds have changed and I do not like things that sweet, possibly both
TemperatureTight465@reddit
Not necessarily nostalgic, but I tried a Magnum ice cream bar again and gross! It was somehow rubbery? But not in a partially thawed and refrozen way, like a cornstarch binder kind of way. Never again
EternalSunshineClem@reddit (OP)
Gross. Yeah the frozen treats aren't giving much lately.
c_b0t@reddit
So many of them are just glop. They don't melt.
Ethel_Marie@reddit
You should try Helados, if it's available where you live. Real cream, real fruit, no HFCS.
c_b0t@reddit
Will keep an eye out. Fortunately I live in a land of local ice cream shops.
Local-Friendship8166@reddit
It all has a chemical taste to me now.
TheDangDeal@reddit
Peanut Butter Cap’N Crunch
They taste less like peanut butter, and you can see this clear coating over them…likely to keep them crunchy longer…they were gross.
Chewy Chip A’Hoy
The consistency is rubbery and they taste of chemicals.
AuntieLaLa420@reddit
I won't try the Peanut Butter Crunch. I don't want to be THAT disappointed in a childhood fave. And I agree about the cookies, kind of a Play Dough type of texture, really weird.
TheDangDeal@reddit
It was truly disappointing as that was one of my favorite cereals growing up.
A few years ago they did a limited rerelease of Quisp…it held up
AuntieLaLa420@reddit
Last time I had it was when I went into labor with my son. He turned 41 this year.
Ordinary_Awareness71@reddit
While I can't point to a single item, many of the things I've tried later in life that I once loved just don't hit like they used to.
I'd say 85% of it is due to recipe changes, cost cutting, and the general chemical "enchancement" of our food and the addition of GMO ingredients and crap like "Corn Syrup" aka High Fructose Corn Syrup. Overall the food we get isn't as nutrient dense as it used to be and I blame "big ag" and Monsanto (and similar companies) for this.
I'd say that the other 15% is a change in my taste and taste buds evolving. Now that I'm older, I can afford better things and there are more options out there. Chocolate bars don't taste as good today (mainly because of the wax they use) but also because I can go to any of the six chocolatiers in my town and get small-batch chocolate made by hand. Sure it costs more than a Hershey's bar, but it's far better. Then there is Trader Joe's brand chocolate and anything with a "Trader" in the brand name, by company policy, will be GMO-free! Their chocolate bars are much better than the mass-produced crap and better priced than a chocolatier (usually). Not to mention the "Pound Plus" bars. They may way a pound, but they add 10 pounds to your waist line. LOL! But they do make excellent melting chocolate for doing your own chocolate dipped fruit.
On the tastebud topic, there was a discussion here a while back about things we would never eat growing up that we love now. For me it was brussel sprouts. Wouldn't touch them growing up, but roast them in an oven and drizzle them with a balsamic glaze and I'll eat them all. It's tastebuds evolving and better methods of cooking.
Not_HavingAGoodTime@reddit
Butterfinger....who ruined my favorite candy bar? The new recipe is so bad!
Background-Banana574@reddit
This isn’t a food you can buy but you have to make it. Many years ago I was craving “church casserole”. It’s basically homemade macaroni and cheese but you replace the macaroni with diced potatoes. I used to love how cheesy and savory it was. I found the recipe and noticed a severe lack of seasoning and realized that that saying is indeed true, “you can never go home again”. I think food before the mass integration of the internet sucks in comparison to food today. The entire world is comparing recipes and enhancing dishes with seasonings and additions not previously associated with those dishes.
SeasonPositive6771@reddit
I've worked with kids this whole time so many of you have missed the transformation in kids foods and junk food generally.
There has been a pretty continual decline in quality since we were kids but it took a sharp turn downwards around the pandemic, because they could.
Treats that were made with real fruit and fruit juices when we were kids are now made with high fructose corn syrup and fruit flavors. Sizes are much smaller and textures are pretty off to be honest.
You have to pay a lot more for better junk food, if it's even available.
There's been some limited regulation around it but things just got worse as a result. Kids drinks are supposed to be lower sugar now but they just added artificial sweetener so they taste like chemical garbage.
EternalSunshineClem@reddit (OP)
I work with kids too and their drinks are definitely not lower sugar, the marketers lie. My way of giving apple juice is like 25% apple juice and 75% water. Yes I'm that person.
moles-on-parade@reddit
Mott’s has been doing that themselves — and charging the same price for the same volume — since at least 2008 😡
EternalSunshineClem@reddit (OP)
Wow lol. Interesting too, the sugar is lower (though still grossly high) but the sodium is also higher. Seeing a lot more of that lately. People don't think things like soda would have high sodium.
mightbebutteredtoast@reddit
Soda is not high sodium…lol a single serving of potato chips easily has 10x the amount of sodium as a can of soda. The 35mg on that label…that’s like a single shake of a salt shaker. A single stalk of celery is about 50mg. This myth of soda being high in sodium is ridiculous. It’s high in sugar but what’s high in sodium is the bag of chips or the fast food people typically have soda with.
EternalSunshineClem@reddit (OP)
Most people assume that chips have salt in it..
mightbebutteredtoast@reddit
But still…soda is high in sodium compared to what? Water?
My point is that soda doesn’t even contribute a meaningful amount of sodium to people’s diets unless they’re drinking 10-15 of them a day. Most dietary sodium comes from processed food and table salt.
EternalSunshineClem@reddit (OP)
"The body needs only a small amount of sodium (less than 500 mg per day) to function properly."
A diet Pepsi has about 40 mg of sodium in it.
I am not saying that soda is high sodium as in the same as a tray of nachos. Just that it's higher than people assume when they consume a sweet beverage, and if you have several a day, that adds up.
mightbebutteredtoast@reddit
The bare minimum requirement of 500mg can’t even be achieved unless you’re eating a baby’s number of calories or your diet is entirely white rice or something equally ridiculous. You’re arguing with someone who has a degree in nutrition. AHA recommends 1500mg a day for people with blood pressure issues or known heart disease and less than 2300mg a day in general. Overall recommendation is that everyone should strive for 1500mg a day.
Sodium IS a problem in people’s diets but like I said, soda is nowhere near a major contributor to the problem. You achieve those recommended sodium intakes by literally adding zero salt to your food, which isn’t even necessarily healthy for athletes who need more.
And yes we agree than you’d need several sodas per day to make a meaningful impact on your intake. One serving is barely anything and you could sweat it out with about 2-3 minutes of exercise.
EternalSunshineClem@reddit (OP)
Pretty sure I'm not the one arguing here lol I wish you a happy day
VIPreality@reddit
I did a Whole 30 a few years ago and literally everything has sugar. I remember picking up a bag of hash browns with the brand name “simply potatoes” and the first ingredient after potatoes was dextrose.
EternalSunshineClem@reddit (OP)
Yes so many sneaky names for sugar, it's awful. Eating really well these days is truly a rich person luxury which is just so grossly unfair. I'm not rich but I spend an obscene amount of money on groceries for myself because I like the quality stuff from local markets.
sweet_pickles12@reddit
The one on the right seems to be the low sugar version… it’s half the calories and the text seems to be about sugar. They sell half calorie and ten calorie per serving versions of juice at the store, it’s like buying the 50/50 pre diluted antifreeze.
SeasonPositive6771@reddit
Yes, that's exactly the thing, everything is actually sweeter but now it's often a combination of high fructose corn syrup and artificial sweeteners instead of just sugar. It feels insane to say that sugar and fructose are so much better, but they really are. And they're so much more satisfying when you actually have something sweet.
squirrelfriend3@reddit
Yes! That’s why I love MexiCoke (Coca Cola from Mexico in the glass medio-litre bottle) because it’s made with real sugar. So satisfyingly sweet. I wish we could get it in smaller bottles or cans here in the US.
EternalSunshineClem@reddit (OP)
So nasty. Better to just have actual sugar than cancer causing chemicals that your body interprets as sugar the same way
Do_it_My_Way-79@reddit
SpaghettiOs. I bought some for my 8yo because I thought, “I liked it as a kid!” Absolutely barf. We shared a can & both of us never want to eat it again. 😂
jwillystyle77@reddit
ALL Halloween candy tastes like chemicals to me now. I feel bad for kids that this is what they get now.
TimeIsAPonyRide@reddit
Exactly. Cheap PGPR replaced a lot of the cocoa butter in their recipes, and voilà, it all tastes like wiper fluid now.
Tony’s Chocolonely bars are my new favorite, and they source their cocoa beans so they aren’t profiting from slavery and child labor so 👍
EternalSunshineClem@reddit (OP)
Organic dark chocolate almond and sea salt bars are where it's at
Reasonable-Wave8093@reddit
Reeses pnut butter cups are terrible now, i eat the justins cashew or Sunbuttr cups now
lisette729@reddit
I loathe Reese’s peanut butter cups now, oddly however I find the holiday treats like the pumpkins and trees etc. to taste the same as when I was a kid. They were always superior but I’m surprised I don’t think they taste different too.
jwillystyle77@reddit
I’ve been eating the Unreal chocolate/almond and peanut butter cups. Awesome but expensive.
Reasonable-Wave8093@reddit
Are they better than justins?
jwillystyle77@reddit
Costco has Unreal products so that’s where I get them. I’m sure Justin’s are similar.
medievalkitty2@reddit
I loooove Justin’s!
EternalSunshineClem@reddit (OP)
Those are also awesome
GibblersNoob@reddit
After becoming diabetic, dropping a ton of weight and no longer diabetic and I cracked open a Dr. Pepper and was like… what is this swill?
Virtual_Library_3443@reddit
Oh my gosh. Spaghetti-O’s are actually foul, the food of Satan himself.
SoggieTaco@reddit
Fruit Roll-Ups.
They were offered as a snack in a conference I was attending.
Last time I had one was like 1985. I remember them being thick and kinda gritty with a nice fruit flavor.
Now it’s thin and smooth and tastes like a melted jolly rancher.
I looked it up. Back in the 80s fruit roll ups were made with real fruit. Now they’re made with fruit juice, two types of corn syrup, and sugar, plus dyes and other stuff. (My bad. 5 types of sugar)
SeasonPositive6771@reddit
Yeah, I think people are trying to compare apples to oranges here. Most of these foods are not made with anywhere near the same ingredients.
too_old_to_be_clever@reddit
Which how the food became Meh.
Express-Structure480@reddit
Yes, but it’s more expensive and profitable.
BrokeModem@reddit
Yeah I remember when they made this shift - I think it was around the time they started putting those cut-out shapes in them and using color gradients? Made it much more like candy.
vs-1680@reddit
Remember that we live in late stage capitalism. It's not just in our imagination that these foods were better forty years ago. Corporations have had a lot of time to slowly use cheaper and cheaper ingredients while raising prices. We don't have the kinds of protections against this that Europeans do.
Dapper_Layer_4409@reddit
Frankenberry cereal. I lusted over it as a kid. Better as a memory of want than a fulfilled want. It’s not bad mind you—it’s decent compared to those other sugar cereals. But the taste did not trigger nostalgia or comfort.
JoeBiddyInTheHouse@reddit
I would say Olive Garden. I never thought it was "authentic" Italian food but it was an enjoyable meal about 25 years ago. Over the last decade or so the handful of times I've been there I've been disappointed. It's like bad fast food now. Was it always that bad or did it get worse? I really don't know.
Ethel_Marie@reddit
We drive to the "good" Olive Garden that's farther away from our house. The closer one has food that's always over salted, over cooked (or under), and they don't give you the salad and bread sticks until you order and pick either salad or soup. It's still not amazing, but my husband really likes it, so we go a few times per year.
EternalSunshineClem@reddit (OP)
Yes
BrassHockey@reddit
Pizza Hut pizza. It was my jam back in the day.
IDK what changed. Seems like it's not the same. Or maybe my tastes have changed.
SmashBrosUnite@reddit
Barilla pasta sauces- they are sweetened, barf
Ethel_Marie@reddit
Any canned or jarred pasta sauce, honestly. I haven't found any that are better than what I can make with tomato sauce, Challenge butter, and spices.
Which_Throat7535@reddit
Pimento cheese. The sandwich from Chick-Fil-A was a one and done for me; but I wouldn’t have survived child hood without pimento cheese sandwiches lol (not by request).
Ethel_Marie@reddit
I swear it used to taste so much better. Now it's garbage.
Otherwise-Ad7735@reddit
Pop tarts
Ethel_Marie@reddit
Why are they all covered in that horrible icing!! Do they even make the ones without it anymore?
DocBrutus@reddit
Kraft Mac and Cheese is straight garbage.
Ethel_Marie@reddit
I never liked the boxed Mac N Cheese of any brand. I remember my friends being really excited about it and I thought it was gross. The noodles were tiny and the cheese sauce tasted bad. Much prefer to make mine from scratch.
lisette729@reddit
Agreed. After some trial and error, I have discovered that the store brand white cheddar Mac and cheese boxes taste the same as Kraft used to. It was a huge pregnancy craving for me so I did some research on this😂
persistentlighthouse@reddit
Scrolled so far to find this!
Thomisawesome@reddit
The only thing I remember about those snicker ice cream bars is when they were new, Richard Simmons was on some interview (Regis, maybe). He said “As soon as I saw it on TV I asked my assistant to go get me one right away. I ate the whole thing and licked their wrapper. But you better believe I was on the treadmill afterward until I burned off all the calories.”
Ethel_Marie@reddit
Oh, man, I miss Richard Simmons and his sweatin' to the oldies. So much enthusiasm in one dude.
No-Scar-905@reddit
Pizza Rolls. Ate them a few years ago and they were TERRIBLE!
Ethel_Marie@reddit
I crave these. Stare at them when I'm in the frozen food isle. I don't buy them because I know they're not that good anyway.
GSM_Biker@reddit
Try any sweet you enjoyed as a kid. From breakfast cereals to ice cream…everything just tastes like High Fructose corn syrup.
Want a real bitter pill? Go sugar free for a month. Use Splenda in your coffee/tea if you must, but only eat foods with no added sugar. Afterward, try eating anything you enjoy now. You won’t be able to finish it.
We were the first sugar generation, and we remember what real sugar tastes like. Everything from Soda to grilled chicken has been permeated with HFCS to create addiction.
At this point, I’m waiting for them to figure out how to put it in vape juice.
Ethel_Marie@reddit
I lost 100lbs and part of how I did that was elimination of HFCS and avoiding added sugars. I can't eat a lot of what I used to because it tastes so, so bad. I drink a maximum of 2 sodas at a time and then I'm done for the next week or more.
januaryemberr@reddit
Pumpkin pie. Which sucks because it was the only pie I liked.
Ethel_Marie@reddit
I use butternut squash because it's easier to find and cheaper where I am. I can't tell that it's not pumpkin and it tastes amazing. But I make it from scratch.
Ginger_Snaps_Back@reddit
Try a homemade version, maybe? Ooh, or a sweet potato pie. Good pie is still out there.
januaryemberr@reddit
Yeah I tried making one at home but it still seemed... bland? Maybe I can find a more spiced recipe.
slvrcofe21@reddit
I always throw extra spices in mine. Delicious.
HoldMyBeer85@reddit
Try the King Arthur Flour recipe. I don't know how to share a link, but it's what I make every year now. It's got a pronounced spice flavor, it's fabulous.
januaryemberr@reddit
I'll go read about it. Ty!
SeasonPositive6771@reddit
Yeah, you can just go very heavy on the spices and get more out of it.
EternalSunshineClem@reddit (OP)
Needs extra ginger and cinnamon 🤩
Striking-Access-236@reddit
The famous Dutch chocolate ‘Koetjesrepen’…it is only chocolate in colour, so much sugar and so little flavour. Was a real disappointment, used to love those mini “chocolate” bars at my grandparents…
La_Croix_Life@reddit
Toaster Strudel. 😟
Styrofoam with glue icing
DrankTooMuchMead@reddit
And pop tarts taste like pure sugar, regardless of "flavor". Fucking disgusting. No wonder Europeans think we are crazy with unhealthy food.
Known-Fee9113@reddit
Yes. I bought a box of cherry ones recently out of nostalgia, because I used to love them in the 90s. They were not good. The cherry filling was like pink gooey gel.
EternalSunshineClem@reddit (OP)
Accurate lol
DrankTooMuchMead@reddit
Spaghetti Os. Not as flavorful as I remembered and gives me the runs, for some reason. Must be the preservatives.
Isaystomabel@reddit
Fresca
AuntieLaLa420@reddit
ngotnthe Fresca flavored vodka sodas, the only flavor I could distinguish was sweet.
Meatloaf_Mondai@reddit
Snyder's Honey Mustard pretzel pieces. They removed all the flavor. The pieces are barely even coated now. Threw the rest of the bag away.
Glad-Veterinarian365@reddit
I’ve had this within the last year and they were packed with flavor. I think u hit a bad batch or Covid messed up ur senses
SeasonPositive6771@reddit
I had the same experience! I think they were trying to reduce sodium or something? But yeah, not much flavor.
Scared-Elevator-2311@reddit
Hydrox cookies and Barnum Animal crackers. Im thinking the recipe on both of these must have changed. Because there is just no way they tasted that bad.
Schmuck1138@reddit
I think most of us here are missing the careless days of our youth.
gvsteve@reddit
I used to freaking LOVE Butterscotch Krimpets but they took out the trans fats and they don’t taste nearly as good now. Yes I know trans fats are terrible for you.
Ok_Egg_471@reddit
Clearly Canadian flavored sparkling water. That shit used to hit just right. I think they changed the formula because it tastes just, wrong, now.
HipHopGrandpa@reddit
It’s definitely way too syrupy sweet now. Or I’m just way more sensitive to sweeteners.
Ok_Egg_471@reddit
See now I thought there wasn’t enough flavor 🤷🏻♀️
LucMorningstar24601@reddit
I agree. It’s absolutely not the same.
sidvictorious@reddit
Oh no I've been waiting for them to show up at Costco because I know I'll binge drink them, and I was SO EXCITED for the rush of blackberry bubbles hitting my throat while Ace of Base plays in my head
No_Dependent_8346@reddit
Most of them to be honest, happy to report Nutty Buddys are still awesome!
slvrcofe21@reddit
It was only around for a short time but Crystal Pepsi. I loved it when I was younger. It tasted so different. Nothing like I remember.
Corn_Beefies@reddit
All Kool-Aid tastes like crap to me now.
Gr00mpa@reddit
Apple Fruit Pie like those Hostess ones.
DQ Blizzard
punkopops@reddit
Tang
Ash12783@reddit
Manwhich... Even the one labeled as "bold" is not as rich as flavorful as i remember the original manwhich being back in the day.
Also, the chef boyardee stuff like raviolis etc... I do not remember the sauce basically being orange water 🙃
SlackerDS5@reddit
Almost any candy/sweets from my youth, period. I think it’s. Mix of my tastes maturing, and the formulas they used have changed. Things don’t taste the same, and the ones that do are just mid, at best. Going to culinary school also factors in. You work with good chocolate and ingredients, the cheap stuff doesn’t cut it.
EternalSunshineClem@reddit (OP)
That's awesome you're going to culinary school! Sounds like a fantasy
Zerostar39@reddit
Oatmeal cream pies.
JamesEpic356@reddit
Yes! I bought a box and ended up throwing them away. What did they do to the texture?!?
GhostKingHoney@reddit
Australians, I bought a bag of Killer Pythons recently purely for the nostalgia.
What the fuck happened here ? Another victim of shrinkflation. They were noticeably thinner and shorter than the old ones.
I was so disappointed.
squirrelfriend3@reddit
But Australians make the best soft red licorice! Brach’s Candies in the US used to make incredible licorice in the Aussie style but they were as long as a Twizzler but as thick as a finger. And hollow so my siblings and I used to use them as straws to suck up generic orange soda. They stopped making them around 1995 or so.
No_Squash_8127@reddit
Chips Ahoy!
2occupantsandababy@reddit
Vienna sausages.
They're too damn salty.
captainstormy@reddit
All processed food is too damn salty. Sodium levels in food these days are out of control.
ses267@reddit
KFC. Maybe they changed the recipe or maybe as a dumb kid I didn't know what good fried chicken was but I used to love that shit.
captainstormy@reddit
Well cooked KFC is still good fried chicken.
Problem is fast food quality is horrible these days. Even at the same location it can be hit or miss seemingly at random.
DanicaDarkhand@reddit
Moon Pies, and anything Hostess
captainstormy@reddit
I'll go out in left field.
Flintstones vitamins. My iron levels were low recently so my doctor told me to take Flintstones kid vitamins with the extra iron.
That's the same thing I took as a kid. I remember liking them. They were more like a candy than a medicine.
Now the bottle clearly says they have removed the sugar, artificial colors, artificial flavors and HFCS.
They are all just kinda pale ugly colors and all taste the same. And that taste is like chalk that someone told you to pretend had a fruit flavor.
Seriously why do that to kids. It's a vitamin that they eat one per day of. Some artificial flavors and a little sugar to make them more appealing would be fine. No way I would have eaten these current ones as a kid. They are hard to choke down as an adult.
Konnorwolf@reddit
There are a lot of foods I never really stopped eating completely and notice the change over time. Pizza rolls in the oven are still okay. Hostess is not very good and the chocolate is waxy. I don't really care for pop tarts anymore. Cereal is another odd one. There are a couple that are still good while some are just not the same.
Torchness9@reddit
Chili’s Queso
EternalSunshineClem@reddit (OP)
Still can't be worse than Chipotle queso
Sea-Pain3633@reddit
Chef boyardee ravioli or spaghetti o’s!
InternationalLack614@reddit
Corn Pops. It's just not the same. Less sugar I guess but it just doesn't hit like it did at 12, ya know?
EternalSunshineClem@reddit (OP)
They all taste very stale, even fresh out of the box. They're inedible.
InternationalLack614@reddit
Exactly. They should have kept the foil bag!!
DateCard@reddit
All cereal should have a foil bag!
Automatic-Arm-532@reddit
Swiss Cake Rolls
Tato_tudo@reddit
I grew up on Miracle Whip. That was Mayo in our house. Then years later I learned to cook and started using regular mayo. I didn't form a hatred for Miracle Whip or anything. Nostalgia had me wanting a turkey sandwich with Miracle Whip so I bought a small jar. It just didn't hit the same way as when I was a kid. It was thicker and less tangy than I remember. Just meh.
shmelse@reddit
I had a Bomb Pop the other day, it broke my heart. In my childhood memory they glisten in the summer sun and burst with flavor. This thing I had was quite small and tasted of cherry cough syrup.
AbominableSnowbunny@reddit
They're TINY now fr.
DamarsLastKanar@reddit
How did I eat these.
AbominableSnowbunny@reddit
Booberry cereal. When I was little I loved all three monster cereals, but Boo would only appear sporadically. I can't believe how flavorless and disappointing it is as an adult.
flojo2012@reddit
Many of these foods, especially the sweet ones, actually are different
ybreddit@reddit
Almost anything prepackaged. And it's not just that my taste buds have changed, every single thing pre-packaged has been made with increasingly cheaper and crappier ingredients since I was a kid. There are a few exceptions, but only a few. Totino's still slaps, Oreos will always crush (i don't care about less frosting), there's only a few others.
sherahero@reddit
Spaghetti O's! Gross lol
levioh_snap@reddit
Poptarts. I was so excited and they were absolutely awful.
ennuiismymiddlename@reddit
Yep. The worst.
ennuiismymiddlename@reddit
I used to LOVE these things when I was a little kid. I had one last year, and I swear the “cheese” was so salty it chemically burned my mouth.
crookedhypotenuse@reddit
Funyuns. I loved them when I was a teen. They just taste like crunchy salt now.
starshine8316@reddit
Welch’s Grape Soda
Just doesn’t hit like it used to.
Cultural_Primary3807@reddit
This whole time I thought the ice cream in snickers ice cream bars was vanilla. It's peanut butter.
EternalSunshineClem@reddit (OP)
Weird, it tastes like a bland vanilla
Aggressive_Cellist_9@reddit
Quarter Pounders
Reasonable-Wave8093@reddit
Pop tarts, french fries…
winksoutloud@reddit
All French fries?
Reasonable-Wave8093@reddit
I liked baked better, as opposed to fried…
HipHopGrandpa@reddit
French fries aren’t good anymore? Who’s your French fry guy?
Reasonable-Wave8093@reddit
baked sweet potato fries are better 🧡
Littlemiss-what@reddit
Girl Scout cookies
MessDifferent1374@reddit
Girl Scout cookies….all of them, but specifically thin mints. I thought I loved them as a kid, but they’re just not good.
EternalSunshineClem@reddit (OP)
I am absolutely convinced they changed the ingredients of Girl Scout Cookies. Not to mention the massive shrinkflation.
MessDifferent1374@reddit
So it’s not just me! Okay!!
EternalSunshineClem@reddit (OP)
Nope they're not good! How do you ruin a chocolate peanut butter cookie
MessDifferent1374@reddit
💯
HereWeGoAgain-247@reddit
The problem is it’s not just “growing up,” but the products are just made at a lower quality now for profit reasons.
Recipe_Pretend@reddit
Spaghetti O’s. Hamburger Helper.
cheeker_sutherland@reddit
Always disgusting lol.
jwillystyle77@reddit
3 times the ingredients and 1/3 the flavor.
HipHopGrandpa@reddit
This is the correct answer for nearly everything listed here. Dyes, oils, syrups and science! And it all just tastes like sad.
shiftdown@reddit
You've got to be aware of how much the ingredients and manufacturing of these things has changed in 30-40 years. In some cases it's so far removed from the original you wouldn't even call it the same thing.
Illuminated_Lava316@reddit
Most of the best cereals from back then taste horrible now.
Top_Excitement_2843@reddit
Any little Debbie snack
No_Kaleidoscope9901@reddit
Reese’s PB cups, spaghettios, chef boyardee, Campbell’s tomato soup. All gross now. Don’t even get me started on Butterfingers.
EternalSunshineClem@reddit (OP)
Butterfingers give me about 10 minutes of extensive dental cleaning and flossing after, it's just not worth it at all.
Tjs dark chocolate PB cups are so much better than modern day Reese's
TPlain940@reddit
Eggo waffles are bland, cardboard dog shit now. Same with Frosted Flakes.
Fuck Kellogg's up against a fence with a fencepost.
SavingsLegitimate398@reddit
Steak-umms
topsee-turvee@reddit
My mom’s lasagna… ☹️
KeoniDm@reddit
Ovaltine. I guess that was our coffee as kids? Because as adults, it’s just “Meh” now. Much prefer coffee, tea, or even plain hot cocoa.
busa89@reddit
Me and my wife for bought hamburger helper recently for nostalgia purposes. It was terrible haha.
MrThouu@reddit
That's it with mine, the KFC chicken sandwiches (chicken sandwich and zinger), they were definitely better in the late 90s, not just my change in taste.
K-June@reddit
Vienna sausages. 😬
sweetnsaltyanxiety@reddit
I don’t know, I think those still taste the same. Salty little soft congealed meat sticks.
K-June@reddit
And Tijuana Mamas.
DethByCow@reddit
I’ll still eat the shit out of Tootsie rolls.
catforbrains@reddit
Same. I found out my local gas station chain sells them and I'll pick them up as a somewhat guilt free chocolate snack.
EternalSunshineClem@reddit (OP)
I still like Doritos. Are they good, no, but they're good to me!
tomqvaxy@reddit
Omg what. Those things are the tiddies. You sir have shamed your cow.
EternalSunshineClem@reddit (OP)
Have you tried one recently? No bueno
tomqvaxy@reddit
I did notice it was definitely smaller.
tomqvaxy@reddit
Like two years ago so yes but I suppose those could have been a rough two years.
unbalancedcentrifuge@reddit
Twinkies They just dont taste the same.
No_Pumpkin_1179@reddit
Cool ranch Doritos.
🤢
No-Championship-8677@reddit
Shake n bake!!!!!!
Strange-Dragonfly-20@reddit
Fruit filled pastry pockets
ScoutFinch80@reddit
All sweets. I'm sure it's a combo of the fact that everything is made from garbage now, and the fact that I went from having a MAJOR sweet tooth as a kid to eating almost no sugar as an adult.
SmallSaltyMermaid@reddit
Any thing Little Debbie’s or Hostess is just complete garbage now. I won’t even buy them as a treat for my kids.
WolverineFun6472@reddit
Pops cereal tasted stale. Snickers and Twix weren’t very good. Nothing is as good as I remember.
Meh-_-_-@reddit
Bagel bites. My wife and I made a sheet of them out of nostalgia a few years back, almost all of them ended in the trash bin.
Legitimate-Annual-90@reddit
Ring Dings, Hostess Cupcakes, and Twinkies
Key_Street1637@reddit
Monster Cereals (Boo Berry, Count Chocula, Franken Berry)
Mammoth_Ad_4806@reddit
B&M Brown Bread (the one that comes in a can). I had a kind to share my New England heritage with my children, so I picked up a can at the store… but I don’t remember it being so damn sweet. The kids were not impressed, lol.
ROCK-FLAG-AND-EAGLE@reddit
My mom is from Maine and I remember her trying to get us NC kids to eat it. I remember being unimpressed.
NYK-94@reddit
I recently ate a bowl of kids cereal and could not finish it. Way too sweet!
EternalSunshineClem@reddit (OP)
Which flavor?
NYK-94@reddit
Cap’n Crunch’s Peanut Butter Crunch.
EternalSunshineClem@reddit (OP)
Oh no that was always my fave too
NYK-94@reddit
Same here, even if it always tore up the roof of my mouth.