Iconic Fast Food Menu Items You’ve Probably Forgotten
Menus at big chains change constantly, and not every experiment sticks around. A lot of items showed up for a short run, drew some attention, and then disappeared. They’re not on the boards anymore, but plenty of people still talk about them.
Arch Deluxe
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McDonald’s spent the mid-1990s trying to win over adults with the Arch Deluxe. It came on a fancy bun with a tangy mustard-mayo sauce, pitched as “the burger with the grown-up taste.” Despite heavy advertising, the campaign never landed with its intended adult audience. It’s now remembered mostly for its marketing push.
Cini-Minis
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Ask anyone who went to Burger King in the late ’90s, and Cini-Minis are bound to come up. These tiny cinnamon rolls came in four-packs with icing on the side. Kids loved them, and morning commuters could snag them as a quick sugar rush. Fans still sign petitions begging for their return.
KFC Potato Wedges
Credit: Instagram
People still talk about KFC’s wedges like a lost treasure. Fans swore by the crispy batter coating and how wedges stayed hot longer than fries. In 2020, KFC swapped them for standard fries nationwide, sparking complaints online. Many are still hunting copycat recipes recreating that peppery crunch.
McSalad Shakers
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McDonald’s tried to make salads “fun” in the early 2000s by selling them in clear cups. Customers poured in dressing, sealed the lid, and shook until everything was coated. It was messy, but people loved the novelty of eating lettuce like a milkshake. However, the gimmick wore off fast.
Bigfoot Pizza
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Pizza Hut’s answer to Little Caesars’ two-for-one deal was an oversized rectangle pizza called the Bigfoot. It measured two feet long and sold at a low price. Families loved the portion. It vanished after a short run. Its size, though, made it unforgettable to anyone who tried it.
BK Burger Shots
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If you remember the commercials, you remember Burger Shots. Burger King introduced these bite-sized sliders in 2008 to challenge White Castle. They come in packs of two or six, stuck together and pulled apart by hand. The campaign outlived the food itself, with ads featuring over-the-top scenarios.
McDLT
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McDonald’s promoted the McDLT with a 1985 commercial starring Jason Alexander, years before Seinfeld. The burger came in a divided Styrofoam container: hot beef patty on one side, cold toppings on the other. The challenge was to keep the lettuce and tomato fresh until assembled.
Taco Bell Volcano Menu
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People still call it one of the chain’s boldest creations. The Volcano line launched in 1995 with tacos, burritos, and nachos drenched in fiery red sauce. Its spiciness built a devoted following, and fans stocked up on sauce packets whenever the menu returned for a limited run.
McPizza
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McDonald’s once experimented with serving pizza during the late 1980s and early ’90s. The personal-sized pies were cooked in special ovens, but they took longer than the chain’s fast-paced model could handle. That doomed the experiment, although a handful of Canadian and U.S. locations kept them going longer.
Wendy’s Superbar
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In the late 1980s, Wendy’s offered a self-serve salad and pasta bar called the Superbar. Customers could pile up plates of spaghetti, pudding, or tacos for a few dollars. It became a popular value meal, but keeping the stations clean proved difficult. By the late ’90s, the concept was phased out.
Double Down
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KFC stunned the public in 2010 with the Double Down: bacon, cheese, and sauce sandwiched between two fried chicken filets instead of bread. Critics called it reckless, but curiosity drove huge sales. It became a limited-time sensation and has popped back up several times since.
Szechuan Sauce
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McDonald’s Szechuan Sauce was a 1998 promotional dip for Disney’s Mulan. It faded quickly, but Rick and Morty revived its legend in 2017 with a throwaway joke. Fans flooded McDonald’s locations demanding the sauce, forcing the chain to bring it back in 2017, 2018, and 2022. Each release sold out quickly.
Taco Bell Cinnamon Crispas
Credit: Youtube
Before cinnamon twists, Taco Bell’s dessert was Cinnamon Crispas—fried tortilla chips covered in sugar and spice. They sold for just 39 cents in the 1980s and became a cheap sweet treat. The item eventually gave way to lighter twists, but Crispas still holds a place in Taco Bell lore.
Pizza Hut P’Zone
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Pizza Hut’s take on the calzone debuted in 2002. Bigger than most competitors’, it had parmesan on the crust and hearty fillings inside. Marketing made it sound distinct, but ultimately, it was a calzone by another name. Loyal fans mention it in forums whenever discontinued Pizza Hut items come up.
Little Caesars Big! Big! Bucket of Spaghetti
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The bucket didn’t last long, but people still laugh about it. In the 1990s, Little Caesars sold a literal bucket of spaghetti with breadsticks for under $9. The deal leaned into the chain’s “Pizza! Pizza!” value branding, except this time it was pasta. Families got an absurd amount of food for cheap.