20 Childhood Snacks From the ’90s We Still Miss

If you grew up in the 90s, you already know your kids are missing out on a lot of things. Snacks are no exception. The whole scene of the snacks aisle back then was something that would seem completely alien today. Neon packaging and creative flavors dominated it back then. Some of them survived, but some of the most interesting snacks of the era are gone by now. 

Your kids will probably never see these in the grocery store, no matter how hard they look. They may not even believe they were real in the first place. Here are 20 snacks from the 90s that vanished from stores.

Planters PB Crisps

A peanut-shaped shell made from graham crackers and filled with creamy peanut butter. These PB Crisps got the balance of salty and sweet flavors right in a way that other products, even ones double the price, couldn’t dream of matching. Planters introduced them in 1992, and for a few glorious years, they were a lunch box staple for ’90s kids everywhere. Then, almost as quickly as they arrived, they slowly disappeared from store shelves by the mid-’90s. The love for them never really went away, either. There’s even a whole website dedicated to campaigning for their comeback, which tells you everything about the hole they left in the hearts and stomachs of ’90s kids.

Squeezit

Squeezit was a General Mills fruit drink that came in a little plastic bottle, and the whole point was right there in the name. You had to squeeze it to drink it, and for children, that was half the fun. The drinks came in names like Silly Billy Strawberry and Berry B. Wild, which made them feel more like cartoon characters than beverages. Squeezit had two partial comebacks in the early 2000s, but it has not been a regular grocery item since 2001. For most people who grew up with them, Squeezit is now one of those strange, colorful ’90s snacks that feels gone for good.

Keebler Pizzarias

Pizzarias chips were made out of real pizza dough and covered in a bold, herby cheese seasoning. They tasted just like pizza, only in crunchy chip form, which made them feel like the perfect after-school snack. These chips appeared in the early 1990s and quickly became popular with kids who wanted something more exciting than regular potato chips. They were also a crowd favorite at sleepovers, game nights, and anywhere a bowl of snacks was left on the table. Pizzarias disappeared after the Keebler company was sold later in the ’90s, and despite all the nostalgia around them, they have never made their way back to grocery stores.

Butterfinger BBs

Butterfinger BBs were little chocolate balls filled with that unique crunchy Butterfinger filling, and once you got into a bag, it was very difficult to stop. They had all the flavor of a Butterfinger bar, but in bite-sized form, which somehow made them even more addictive. They were everywhere in the ’90s, and Bart Simpson even showed up in ads for them, which only made them feel more tied to the decade. Butterfinger BBs were especially popular in movie theaters, where they became a go-to candy for much of the ’90s and early 2000s. They went out of production in 2006, and although Nestlé later introduced Butterfinger Bites, many fans felt the new version did not come close.

Sodalicious

The gummy fruit candies were first introduced by Betty Crocker in 1991 in the shape of soda mugs and soda bottles. The candy flavors included root beer and cherry cola with a sugar-coated layer imitating the appearance of the carbonation bubbles in soft drinks. The product was highly specific in its conception and enjoyed by children for almost ten years. Betty Crocker discontinued them in 1998 and has since confirmed there are no plans for a return.

Fruit String Thing

Fruit String Thing came out in 1994 and instantly felt like the kind of snack only the ’90s could have produced. It was a package of fruit-flavored strings that kids could pull apart, twist, bend, and shape before eating. That gave it an ambiguous nature, because children treated it as both a snack and a toy, which was exactly the kind of logic that defined ’90s kid food. It was colorful, sticky, silly, and fun in a way that made it stand out from ordinary fruit snacks. But in the mid-2000s, Fruit String Thing disappeared, and unlike some discontinued favorites, no one seems especially eager to bring it back.

Hi-C Ecto Cooler 

Hi-C Ecto Cooler was initially launched in 1987 in association with The Real Ghostbusters show. It came with Slimer on the package, which is one of the main reasons the drink became so popular with children. In fact, it became so beloved that it survived long after the cartoon itself ended. For a while, Coca-Cola rebranded it and kept some version of the drink around, but eventually, production was discontinued. Ecto Cooler did make a comeback in 2016 with the launch of the Ghostbusters reboot film, but that run was short-lived. Since then, Hi-C Ecto Cooler has not returned in any lasting way, leaving it as one of the most missed ’90s lunchbox drinks.

Nabisco Giggles Cookies

Giggles were round sandwich cookies with a smiling face stamped onto them and a fudge and vanilla cream filling inside. They became a lunchtime favorite for kids in the latter half of the 1980s and well into the 1990s. The smiley face gave them a touch that regular sandwich cookies just did not have. It may seem like a silly detail, but not when you consider that the main demographic was seven-year-olds. To kids, that little face made the cookies feel more fun before you even took a bite. Giggles disappeared quietly sometime in the ’90s and have not come back since, which only makes them feel more like a half-remembered childhood treasure.

Wonder Ball

The Wonder Ball, part of Nestlé’s Magic Balls line, was a hollow milk chocolate ball with a toy hidden inside. That was the whole appeal. You got candy and a surprise in the same package, which was basically kid marketing at its most powerful. In 1997, the toy was taken out of the chocolate ball because of choking hazard concerns and replaced with candy instead. After that, the product was rebranded, but even the candy-filled version was later discontinued. The whole line is now gone in any recognizable form. For kids who remember the original, though, Wonder Ball still stands out as one of those snacks that felt more exciting than it probably should have.

Jell-O Pudding Pops

Jell-O Pudding Pops were an absolute hit among kids during the summer all through the '80s and '90s. They were a staple in nearly every suburban household, and the chocolate-vanilla swirl in particular had a fan base that never really moved on. They were eventually discontinued, and while pudding pop molds make it possible to have them made at home, the original is long gone. 

Nabisco Crackups

Nabisco Crackups were triangular-shaped crackers introduced in 1993 as the first Nabisco product designed explicitly for teenagers. They came in flavors like cheddar and salsa, which were meant to feel a little bolder and cooler than the usual kid-friendly snack options. Nabisco even partnered with the film Coneheads for the promotion, which, in retrospect, may not have been the marketing masterstroke someone was hoping for. The film bombed, and the crackers followed it into obscurity without ever getting much of a second chance. For a snack that was supposed to speak directly to teens, Crackups ended up becoming one of those strange ’90s products that almost nobody talks about anymore.

Frito-Lay WOW Chips

In 1998, Frito-Lay introduced WOW chips, fat-free potato chips made with Olestra rather than vegetable oil. On paper, that probably sounded like a dream snack for the low-fat craze of the late ’90s. The issue was that Olestra was not digestible, and there were so many complaints from consumers suffering gastrointestinal side effects that warnings had to be placed on the packaging. That is not exactly the kind of selling point anyone wants attached to a bag of chips. Frito-Lay eventually rebranded them as “Light” chips and kept pushing, but the line was discontinued altogether. This is one discontinued snack that no one seems to be seriously petitioning to bring back.

Fruit Wrinkles

Fruit Wrinkles were designed to be the levelheaded choice compared to the wilder fruit snacks of the time. They were softer than jelly beans and leaned heavily on the “made with real fruit” angle that appealed to moms, while still giving kids something sweet and chewy to throw in a lunch box. There was even a TV campaign where adults acted shocked at how ugly they looked, which was a pretty daring move for a children’s snack. Somehow, that odd little angle was part of the charm. Still, Fruit Wrinkles did not make it to the 2000s, and despite some nostalgia from those who remember them, no real revival has come.

Keebler Magic Middles

These were an innovative type of shortbread cookie that had a secret center of either fudge or peanut butter. Keebler's Magic Middles were a popular snack in school cafeterias during the late '80s and early '90s. You would microwave them for ten seconds, and the filling would become creamy. They slipped off shelves without much fanfare and have never returned, which surprises people who remember them since the idea still holds up. 

Philadelphia Cheesecake Snack Bars

The Philadelphia Cream Cheese Bar was made by Kraft and packaged as individual bars in the refrigerated area, specifically targeted at parents who wanted an authentic dessert but didn't want the hassle of making one. They were creamy, surprisingly satisfying, with nothing else in the refrigerated area matching their particular niche. They were discontinued without any official announcement from Kraft. They haven’t brought them back despite popular demand.

Lunchables Taco Bell Edition

During the '90s, Lunchables partnered with Taco Bell and made trays that had either soft taco shells or small round tortilla chips, seasoned beef, shredded cheese, hot sauce, candy, and a drink. This made kids feel like they were getting fast food out of their lunchboxes, a very specific kind of power that just can’t be found in today's Lunchables offerings. The partnership ended, and nothing in the current lineup comes close to filling that spot.

Crunch Tators

The Frito-Lay chips called Crunch Tators were large, heavily seasoned potato chips that came in exotic flavors like Mighty Mesquite and Jazzy Junior Cheddar. The chips had a high crunch-per-chip ratio that regular chips couldn't match. They achieved an odd pop culture immortality when they were featured in the movie “Home Alone” in 1990. The chips are gone. Frito-Lay has never brought them back, but the “Home Alone” cameo has kept them alive ever since.

Fruitopia

Fruitopia was introduced by Coca-Cola back in 1994 as a collection of fruit juices whose names played up the mystical tone of the nineties: “Strawberry Passion Awareness,” “Citrus Consciousness,” “Lemonade Love and Hope.” For the majority of the mid-nineties, they could be found in almost any vending machine in schools. That one Simpsons reference has etched their place in popular culture forever. Coca-Cola stopped making them as it consolidated its drink lineup. Fruitopia has been gone from American shelves for well over two decades.

Nabisco Orchard Crisps

In 1993, Nabisco came up with Orchard Crisps. They were sweet, low-fat crackers that came in banana and walnut as well as apple and cinnamon flavors. Food critics found them impressive, but they still disappeared from the market after a year. They barely had time to make it into a school lunchbox.

Hostess TMNT Pudding Pies

Hostess and the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles paired up for a limited 20-week promotional run. The “vanilla puddin' power” had a green-tinted shell and vanilla pudding filling. The turtle-shaped shell was one of its highlights, and the whole thing was peak 90s. Kids bought into it wholeheartedly. Even though the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles remained culturally relevant for decades, the pudding pie didn’t, disappearing from shelves shortly after release and never returning even after several TMNT reboots.