12 discontinued childhood food items people would pay good money to eat just one more time

Childhood snacks will always bring nostalgia, but not all snacks withstand the changing times. Companies close, ingredients have to be changed due to new regulations, or they don't sell as well to younger generations. Whatever the reason, some delicious treats from childhood go the way of the dodo bird, and some people would pay anything to taste them again.

The thought of a discontinued treat likely crossed a Reddit user's mind when they asked people to share their favorite discontinued childhood treats that they'd pay $100 to eat one more time. Snacks that haven't seen the inside of a child's lunch box since the '90s were prominent on the "pay to eat it one last time" list. Nostalgia immediately flooded the senses of those suddenly reminded of snacks they hadn't eaten in decades.

1. Flintstone Push Ups

"These were a big part of my childhood. I can still taste the semi-dissolved cardboard container it comes in," one person writes. But orange had a pretty big contender–rainbow. "But did you ever have the Flintstones rainbow one? We used to walk to a laundry mat when I was very little and stop at a gas station along the way. They had them there. Pure bliss and innocence. Wish I could go back to that simple mindset. We were poor, and I made it out and am successful now, but life is sad and heavy sometimes."

2. Pudding Pops

No one knows what happened to these frozen pudding treats, but the craving is still strong with this one, as someone shares, "I've been craving a pudding pop for a decade now." Another writes, "Vanilla pudding pops were the best, no question. I really miss them." People admit to trying to satiate the craving by making their own, like this person who says, "My husband and I got the molds and make our own, but it's not the same. The swirl is a pain to make."

3. Cheetos Paws

These cheesy paw prints made every bad day just a little better for kids in the '90s, but they were discontinued, maybe because they were dangerously cheesy. "In the 90’s Cheetos had these paws… size of a silver dollar. They brought them back once, but they weren’t the same.. not even the size," one person laments. "Cheeto paws! They were the same as the x’s and o’s of the early 2000s. My guess is frito-lay removing trans fat from their snacks in 2003 is why they’ll never taste the same again. Not even close," another writes.

4. Book It Pizza Hut Personal Pan Pizza

Yes, it has to be the Book It era Personal Pan Pizza, because the formula must've changed when they stopped bribing kids to read with pizza. One person admits, "I am an avid reader because of Levar Burton (Reading Rainbow) and because I got a personal pan pizza from Pizza Hut after I read enough books in elementary school." What magic was in the trans fats that made things taste delicious? Someone shares that the new personal pan options don't taste the same, "It isn't the same Pizza. Not saying it is bad, just isn't the same. I can still smell that 90s Pizza Hut smell when I think about it. To be honest it was likely all those delicious Trans Fats, but damn they were tasty."

5. PB Crisps

This person is sharing the perfect Christmas gift if there's ever a limited edition run, writing, "PB Crisps. I would specifically stuff them in my stocking and eat them on Christmas morning like it's 1995 again." One person has been on a mission for over a decade, writing, "This has been my personal obsession for decades at this point. Was going to suggest nutty nostalgia as they were selling jars that were as close as you can get to the real thing but it looks like they shut down last year."

Bursting with flavor: Fruitopia's fruity splash!Photo Credit: Coca-Cola Canada Marketing

6. Fruitopia

It depends on how badly you're missing this treat, because the only thing between you and drinking a Fruitopia is the Canadian border. One person remembers them being an experience to drink, "Fruitopia was a vibe, drinking one felt like being part of a dance party in the forest probably because of the marketing." Someone else shares about how they had to hunt down change to get their fix at school, "They had them in my high school cafeteria vending machine. I would run down there every day during my study hall (I had to scrounge my house for change daily) and I’d get the strawberry one. All that corn syrup and artificial strawberries."

7. Shock Tarts

If you were a kid in the '90s, your mouth is probably already puckering at the thought of Shock Tarts, the candy that basically took extra sour Sweet Tarts and Sprees and mixed them together to make a candy baby. For a while, people were able to still buy them under a different name, but someone shares that this is no longer the case, "In 2021 I found them. They rebranded to “sweet tart sours.” Exactly the same 100%, life complete etc…. and then a couple years ago they went and changed the recipe to be more like a sour spree and RUINED THEM. I’m still mad about it."

Choco Taco: Indulge in a classic sweet treat!Photo Credit: Joey Rozier/Flickr

8. Choco Taco

These tasty taco ice cream treats were available from 1983 to 2022, and people are still upset about them going away. Maybe because it was around for so long, its existence was taken for granted until Unilever pulled the plug. People would pay lots of money to get their hands on one now. One person grabbed every Choco Taco they could according to this commenter, "The day it got announced that choco tacos were being discontinued, my Saint of a husband went to the local convenience store and bought me every last one. I put them in the deep freeze and got to enjoy them for another year.

9. Peanut Butter Twix

Forget choosing the left or right bar. Some people would eat both bars simultaneously if they could have a Peanut Butter Twix one more time. Someone with a flair for dramatics begs, "Peanut butter Twix. Please bring them back so I have a reason to go on," while another says, "I used to eat these almost every day on my break at work. I miss them sooo much."

10. Bubble Jug

It's not a jug full of bubble mix, but a tiny jug filled with little pieces of bubble gum. This commenter's description is spot on, writing, "Bubble Jug. It sounds gross, but it was so good. 'Take some sh***y bubblegum and shred it into tiny chiclet pieces. Coat it all in mysterious pink powder that tastes like plastic happiness, and market it in a tiny pink jug so kids can just pour it straight into their mouths.'" According to others, Bubble Jug is making a comeback at stores like 5 Below and Dollar Tree.

11. King Vitamin Cereal

"I seriously miss King Vitamin cereal. Kaboom, too!" someone shares before another person chimes in writing, "King V was a staple in our house in the 90s. My sister and I recently found it again and tried it together and lemme tell you, either it's framed by nostalgia or that cereal always tasted like barf and our immature taste buds didn't know it yet."

12. Sizzlean

A replacement for bacon that contained multiple different types of meat. Did it taste as good as people remember it tasting? Based on the way it looks, one person has doubts, revealing, "ngl, that looks bad." Others were quick to jump to the meat product's defense, with someone sharing, "I loved sizzlean. My friend's parents called me it for years because I spent the night and when they asked what I wanted for breakfast I said what I always ate on the weekends: Sizzlean."