If These Foods Feel Fancy to You, You’re a ’70s or ’80s Kid

As a child, it’s possible that you felt somewhat elegant when donning specific designer brands, be it the Polo pony or alligator symbol. Likewise, certain foods may have given you a similar sense of sophistication. These could have been special delicacies at home, dishes you noticed in another family’s household, or even delectable treats you saw on TV and longed to savor.

Marketing “Fancy”: “Pardon Me, Do You Have Any Grey Poupon?”

Food manufacturers skillfully marketed their ordinary products by making them appear sophisticated through attractive labeling and advertising tactics. For instance, they may show upper-class individuals savoring the food or, as in the case of Grey Poupon mustard, suggest it’s enjoyed from the backseat of a limousine, which seems rather unusual.

It’s possible that the cuisine transported you to an enchanting location, often in Europe, where the people were naturally refined. As a child, it seemed plausible to you that well-off children savored International Coffees after school and indulged in delightful baguettes with Nutella – a concept that felt logical at the time.

However, let’s not overlook this point: What truly made you feel the most sophisticated wasn’t about exploring Europe or secretly indulging in gourmet food in the backseat of your luxury car. Instead, it was the essence of maturity that gave you a sense of elegance. This could be as simple as sipping juice from a wine glass or following an evening meal with a mint (they were never appealing), but mimicking the grace and poise of your parents and worldly-traveled Uncle Pete at their social gatherings was as sophisticated as it gets.

If You Grew Up in the ’70s and ’80s, These Foods Were Super Fancy

Babybel Cheese

Unwrapping cheese encased in wax felt like unpacking a small surprise each time. Plus, it was fun to balance a portion of the wax round on your nose, acting as if you were a high-class jester. Despite their affordability back then, they remain anything but budget options today.

Sociables Crackers

Growing up, any cracker other than Ritz or saltines seemed quite sophisticated to me. They were reserved for those “special” occasions, and their intricate shapes only added to their sophistication. As a rule, you weren’t allowed to indulge in these without something fancy on top.

Welch’s Grape Juice

There was an undeniable charm or unique quality to Welch’s that we couldn’t quite put our fingers on. Perhaps it was the potency? We could only consume it when diluted with water or a touch of ginger ale, which somehow elevated its sophistication. It almost cried out for presentation in a wine glass, because this was essentially adult-level juice for children. (The white grape juice version, on the other hand, wasn’t fancy at all.)

Häagen-Dazs

A sure sign that something was fancy is if you couldn’t pronounce it.

Ferrero Rocher Chocolates

These treats, wrapped in golden foil, exuded an elegance comparable to high-end fashion attire. Gifting such delightful items was reserved for special individuals. Despite being available at your typical corner pharmacy, they surpassed ordinary candies.

The golden-foil wrapped sweets had a sophisticated appearance, fitting only for significant recipients. Even though you could buy them at the neighborhood drugstore, these treats were not commonplace candies.

Guylian Seashell Chocolates

These were extraordinary; I didn’t taste one until adulthood. The name “Guylian” seemed as if it could only be whispered by a mermaid surfacing from the sea.

Milano Cookies From Pepperidge Farm

The discovery that the cookie bag held just 15 pieces triggered an immediate feeling of scarcity, making them valuable treasures. It seemed as though living on Pepperidge Farm might have meant leisurely strolling through green pastures, enjoying one exquisite Milano at a time.

Viennetta Frozen Dessert

The star attraction among all frozen treats: Viennetta. Whenever Viennetta made an appearance, you could sense that a unique and memorable event was unfolding, and being present was truly a privilege. The sound of chocolate breaking as your fork sliced through its delicate layers? Simply enchanting.

The pièce de résistance in the realm of frozen sweets: Viennetta. As Viennetta graced the room, it was evident that a one-of-a-kind gathering was taking place, and being invited was an honor indeed. The crisp snap of chocolate as your fork pierced its delicate layers? Nothing short of mesmerizing.

Pirouettes

You had no idea what these wafer tubes were, but they sure looked European.

Velveeta Shells & Cheese

opting for powdered cheese seems rather unwelcome; Velveeta Shells & Cheese is a far superior choice as it arrives with the sauce already prepared – luxuriously creamy and instantly ready to savor. It’s an epitome of refined convenience. After tasting that, the thought of consuming the powdered variety seems rather primitive.

Toblerone Chocolate

If someone handed me one of these decadent, chocolaty triangle pastries, it would seem as though they had recently come back from a luxurious ski trip in the Swiss Alps.

General Mills International Coffee

According to marketing claims, it seemed as though only well-connected expats within the upper echelons of European society were allowed to savor these canned coffees, with refined names such as Viennese Coffee and French Coffee (which, upon reflection, simply means “coffee from Vienna or France”).

Bigelow Teas

At my friend’s grandma’s place, I recall vividly when she presented a beautiful assortment of teas and invited me to choose one. Initially, I thought, “I’m just nine years old,” but it turned out these weren’t ordinary supermarket brands. Instead, they were top-notch, luxury teas.

At my friend’s grandmother’s house, I remember distinctly when she displayed a lovely collection of teas and asked me to pick one. At first, I thought, “I’m only nine,” but it soon became clear that these weren’t the regular store-bought brands. Instead, they were premium, high-class teas.

After Dinner Chocolate Mint Wafers

Indulging in just one mint chocolate candy after dinner seemed quite luxurious. Just one, I swore. Usually, if I found them particularly delightful, I’d secretly take a few more and hide them away – but most of the time, they had a taste reminiscent of toothpaste, albeit fancy toothpaste.

Grey Poupon

As a film enthusiast, I must confess, there’s nothing quite like the opulence of Grey Poupon, a condiment that was the epitome of luxury and sophistication. It wasn’t just something you asked for; it was a symbol of wealth, a request only made from the comfort of a sleek limousine, ideally when one wanted to exude an air of affluence. And boy, did they pull it off! What a brilliant marketing strategy!

Fancy Ice

Consider this for a moment: When you find a house with an automatic ice dispenser in the refrigerator, there’s a good chance that they also have a cleverly concealed garbage bin. The ice cubes were perfectly formed, remarkably similar to the ice you get at McDonald’s at home. On the other hand, if someone actually purchased bagged ice, it was of high quality, as clear and pristine as mountain water, and undoubtedly elegant.

Real Maple Syrup (Like, From an Actual Tree)

You were aware that genuine maple syrup typically comes packaged in a leaf-shaped glass bottle or perhaps a tin adorned with a picturesque Vermont or Maine landscape, never in one of those plastic squeeze bottles like the synthetic syrup you disliked so much. To put it bluntly, you undeniably favored that counterfeit version.

Freshly Squeezed Orange Juice

In my childhood, drinking juice from a canned concentrate was common. However, a glass of freshly-squeezed orange juice felt like a brief escape to a sunny Florida beach.

’80s Foods We Wish They Still Made

Bonkers

In the 1980s, this gooey fruit-flavored confection was ubiquitous in stores. It gained notoriety for its peculiar advertisements, where a frumpy glasses-wearing woman debunked misconceptions about Bonkers (it’s not gum!) as giant fruits rained down on her family members. This show was quite bizarre – and so is the fact that despite being popular throughout the decade, Bonkers lost a significant portion of their market share just a few years later, leading to production cessation entirely. The most common flavors of Bonkers were grape, strawberry, and my favorite, watermelon, which cleverly utilized the candy’s two-tone design, with a green exterior and a chewy red center.

C-3PO’s

For those who grew up as early enthusiasts of “Star Wars”, it’s likely you recognize this breakfast item. C-3PO characters were part of the merchandise line tied to “Return of the Jedi” and were a hit during the mid-1980s. While the cereal itself wasn’t particularly extraordinary – its oat, wheat, and corn pieces resembled two squashed Cheerios with no connection to “Star Wars” – it was the boxes that truly captivated us. The backs of the boxes showcased cut-out masks of popular characters, which kids adored wearing rather than consuming the cereal. As a result, these cereals often remained untouched for months in kitchen pantries all over the galaxy.

Disney Pops

At Disney Parks and retailers globally, Mickey Mouse Ice Cream bars continue to be cherished as timeless delights. However, during the 1980s, Disney also offered ice pops in stores, which are quite different from ice cream bars. These fruit-flavored popsicles were available in grape, cherry, and orange flavors and were shaped like Mickey, Donald, or Goofy. It’s a mystery to me why they stopped selling them, but there is still great demand for Disney and popsicles! I’d go to great lengths for a grape-flavored Donald popsicle today.

Ecto Cooler

In the world of movie-related food products, Ecto Cooler stands out above the rest. This citrus-flavored, neon green drink, somewhat similar to juice, was launched in the late 80’s as a way to cash in on the success of the Ghostbusters cartoon series. Despite the show being canceled and the movies stopping production, Hi-C continued manufacturing Ecto Cooler well into the early 2000’s. In recent times, it has made a comeback, primarily around the releases of new Ghostbusters films or sequels. The demand for Ecto Cooler remains so high that when it reappears, it’s not unusual to find people reselling bottles of this sweet drink for tens or even hundreds of dollars. Now, that’s truly terrifying!

Five Alive

Regarding citrus-based drinks, if you’re not fond of drinks linked to “Ghostbusters”, another option is Five Alive. Named after the five juices within it (orange, grapefruit, tangerine, lemon, and lime), this drink was popular but discontinued in America during the 1990s. However, it’s said to still be available in Canada. If you happen to visit our northern neighbors, could you pick up a carton for me? I’d love to have a Five Alive right now.

Fruit Corners Fruit Bars

In the 1980s, the launch of Fruit Roll-Ups ignited a fruit snack craze that lasted throughout the decade. Fruit Corners, the original producers, along with their rivals, were all eager to cash in on the seemingly healthy children’s junk food trend, as the name “fruit” made these treats appear harmless. I was among those who tasted every imitation of Roll-Ups during that era, and my personal favorite, which I have been trying to find a match for ever since, was Fruit Corners Fruit Bars. These snacks combined the essence of Roll-Ups with the shape of a granola bar. The initial flavors offered were strawberry, cherry, grape, and orange-pineapple. If you know the feeling of searching for a replacement for the cherried Fruit Bars for decades, then you understand me. Today, You’Sustained Apple and Cherry bars can be found in various stores, and they come pretty close to capturing the cherry flavor I have been seeking for years.

Fruit Wrinkles

If Roll-Ups were excessively flat and Fruit Bars too geometric in shape, there was also an option called Fruit Wrinkles, resembling jelly beans. These commercials highlighted the fact that they had more fruit content and less sugar than similar products available. Additionally, they boasted about their ‘wrinkled’ texture.

As fruit snacks started to adopt intricate shapes, reminiscent of popular children’s media, basic options like the Fruit Wrinkles gradually lost appeal and eventually phased out from the market not long after.

Giggles

These days, Oreos dominate the sandwich cookie market, virtually monopolizing a significant portion of the snack aisle with their vast array of flavors. The turning point for me was when Sour Patch Kids Oreos were introduced. In contrast, the 1980s saw a more varied sandwich cookie market. One of the notable competitors was Giggles, which resembled Oreos but contained both chocolate and vanilla cream filling, as well as a smiley face cookie (available in vanilla or chocolate versions). Surprisingly, given that Oreos release around 60 new flavors each week, it’s quite surprising they haven’t introduced one with vanilla and chocolate creme. truthfully, the idea of such a flavor combination is quite appealing.

Hostess Pudding Pies

Hostess continues to dominate the snack food market, renowned for their variety of Twinkies, Ding Dongs, Ho Hos, and other individually packaged cakes and sweets. Despite this, their Fruit Pies are still available, but it’s challenging to find their once popular pudding pies, which were extremely popular in the ’80s, offered in Vanilla or Chocolate flavors.

They were incredibly delicious, so who cares?).

Jell-O Pudding Pops

In the 1980s, there was an unusual fascination with pudding. Was it because other desserts were scarce? Regardless of the cause, pudding was ubiquitous. It was available in cups, pies, and even popsicle form as Jell-O’s Pudding Pops. The company spent a fortune promoting these treats, offering flavors like vanilla, chocolate, and swirl. Bill Cosby was often seen in their commercials (and yes, he has aged well). In a single year, Jell-O sold $100 million worth of Pudding Pops, but eventually, the trend died down and the product line was discontinued.

Kudos

Do you recall the popular snack known as Kudos bars from the 1980s? These granola bars were among the most sought-after on the market, initially available in flavors like Chocolate Chip, Nutty Fudge, and Peanut Butter. Manufactured by Mars, they were a unique blend of organic and healthy granola bar textures with hints of candy bar sweetness. They tasted wonderful, and credit is due to their creators for coming up with such a delicious treat. Production continued until the 2010s when, unfortunately, they were ultimately discontinued.

Mr. T Cereal

In the 1980s, Mr. T was one of the most prominent and enigmatic figures in pop culture, with his roles in “Rocky III” and “The A-Team,” and his distinctive appearance consisting of a mohawk, denim, and copious amounts of gold chains. This popularity among children eventually led to an unusual animated television series featuring Mr. T as a gymnastics coach who teamed up with his trainees to solve mysteries.

Mr. T from the show was featured on the packaging of a highly popular cereal produced by Quaker, sold between 1984 and 1993. The cereal pieces were shaped like Ts and were made from corn and oats. (Additionally, the cereal played a significant role in the opening sequence of Tim Burton’s “Pee-wee’s Big Adventure,” ensuring its enduring popularity.)

O’Grady’s Chips

In the 1980s potato chip rivalry, O’Grady’s was unfortunately swept away. This brand boasted a “thicker cut” of potatoes and a more robust cheese flavor, although the term “heartier” might be subjective. Devoted fans still rave about their Au Gratin chips, claiming they were unbeatable in taste and cheesiness compared to similar options available today.

Peanut Butter Boppers

This Reddit user describes the charm of this snack item quite succinctly: “Boppers are like combining the best aspects of granola bars, but without the bothersome granola. As a peanut butter enthusiast, I still yearn for Boppers to this very day.” Indeed, that crunchy peanut butter-filled log is sorely missed. It would be great if they made a comeback, though their original manufacturer, Nature Valley, provides a recipe on their website for those who wish to make their own in the interim.

Product 19

In the ’80s and ’90s, a cereal known as Product 19, characterized by its distinctive red packaging and mysterious moniker (it’s unclear why it was called this, with the most common theory being that it was the 19th recipe attempted by Kellogg’s), was a regular sight in grocery store cereal aisles. In an attempt to market it, Kellogg’s boasted that it had more vitamin nutrition than any other cereal, but consumers would never know this from taste. If there was ever a time when people bought cereal based on the belief that it offered a healthy breakfast, those days are long past now, and Product 19 was discontinued permanently in 2016.

Quackers

For many decades, kids have savored the crispy, cheesy taste of Pepperidge Farm’s Goldfish crackers. In an attempt to rival this product in the 1980s, Nabisco introduced Quackers. As their name implies, they resembled ducks rather than fish, and had a similar cheese flavor. Interestingly, they also offered a sour cream and onion variant, which turned out to be quite tasty. Unfortunately, by the late 1980s, Quackers disappeared from the market, leaving Goldfish to swim alone once more.

Slice

Pepsi periodically launches a new lemon-lime soda to challenge Sprite from Coke and other competitors. Currently, they are selling Starry, but before that they offered Sierra Mist, which replaced Slice (originally a substitute for Teem). A few years following its debut, Slice introduced additional flavors such as Mandarin Orange and Apple (a flavor I believe is underrepresented in the soda market).

Initially, Pepsi emphasized that Slice contained 10% fruit juice, positioning it as a more natural choice compared to other lemon-lime sodas. This strategy was effective for some time, but they later altered the drink’s composition and significantly reduced the juice content. Despite these changes, Slice survived into the 1990s by experimenting with packaging designs and taglines, before Sierra Mist eventually replaced it in Pepsi’s product lineup during the early 2000s.

Sunkist Fun Fruits

Surprisingly, you might think we’ve exhausted our trip down memory lane with defunct fruit snack ideas, but let me take you back to Sunkist Fun Fruits. They were remarkably like Wrinkles in their dimensions and appearance, and they offered cherry, orange, strawberry, and grape flavors. Contrary to belief, these weren’t produced by Sunkist themselves, but by Leaf Confections, who acquired the right to use the Sunkist brand to lend an air of genuine, juicy freshness to their product. Nowadays, Sunkist Fruit Snacks are manufactured by General Mills.

Tato Skins

In the 1980s, only one potato chip stood out from the crowd – Keebler’s Tato Skins. They were unique because they used whole potatoes with skins for a taste that resembled baked potatoes. The flavors offered included Original, Sour Cream & Chives, Cheddar & Bacon, and Bar-B-Que. While there is a product on the market today that bears a resemblance (TGI Fridays Potato Skins Snacks), loyal fans of the original Tato Skins claim they can’t compare to the authentic taste of the past.

WWF Superstars of Wrestling Bars

In the 1980s, when Hulk Hogan and other WWF wrestlers were creating havoc on TV screens, it was an opportune moment to cash in on the wrestling craze among kids with a branded food item – the WWF Superstars Ice Cream Bars. These frosty treats consisted of vanilla ice cream enclosed between a vanilla cookie and a chocolate layer, with the top cookie adorned with images of popular wrestlers such as “Macho Man” Randy Savage and “Million Dollar Man” Ted DiBiase.

Though these ice cream bars were created to capitalize on the temporary fad of wrestling on Saturday morning TV during Hulk Hogan’s peak, they were genuinely delicious, and production continued even after the WWF’s popularity had waned in the early 1990s. Nostalgia for these treats sparked a brief revival in 2020 when Good Humor introduced the conceptually similar “WWE Super Stars,” featuring modern wrestlers like John Cena and Roman Reigns on vanilla ice cream sandwiches (unfortunately, they were not popsicles). They tasted good, but didn’t stay on store shelves as long as their predecessors did.

2025-04-12 00:26