Part of getting older is complaining about how things are now compared with how they used to be. Maybe it’s from looking through a nostalgia-tinted lens. Maybe people just get grumpier as they age. Or maybe some things, like our favorite foods, actually changed for the worse.
Restaurants we love over-expand. Snacks we used to crave change their recipes. The people who made our favorite foods aren’t around anymore. Whatever the case may be – some things just don’t taste as good as they used to.
KFC
From Redditor u/Graceland1979:
KFC has gone WAY downhill in the past 25 years.
From Redditor u/0r0B0t0:
I was craving a Big Crunch and it was garbage. I kept trying and eventually had a good one at a mall food court because they actually made it fresh. The stand alone KFC made stuff in advance and left it under the heat lamp.
Pizza Hut
From Redditor u/Sweaty_Space_3693:
That personal pan pizza and the pan supreme pizza was sooooo amazing. I wanted my friend to take me to the Hut last week. He said no. I thought it was just him. I have not had Pizza Hut in forever. They used to have a good salad and pizza buffet too. I liked the dessert pizzas. And the cheese sticks there were the best. Fluffy and mealy and cheesy and soft and crunchy. Dang. I need a hug now.
From Redditor u/chromify:
Came here to comment this. Pan pizza was a family regular in my childhood. And now not only is it worse, it costs more money.
Cheez Balls
From Redditor u/phillymjs:
Planters Cheez Balls. Those things were like the food of the gods when I was a kid in the ’80s. When they brought them back for a while a few years ago I bought a few cans, only to find out they tasted like disappointment. You really can’t go home again.
Hot Pockets
From Redditor u/No_Way_Outs:
Hot Pockets. Were they ever good? I used to think so. Not now.
Tim Hortons Donuts
From Redditor u/Greensparow:
Tim Hortons donuts; they used to be the bomb when they were made in store, then restaurant brands bought them and decided it was better (cheaper) to make them in a factory and ship them to stores to have them heated and topped.
…I miss old time Hortons, I refuse to go there now.
From Redditor u/thatguytony:
They got rid of some of the best donuts too. Walnut crunch. Cherry sticks. Dutchie. They just have too much on their menu now too: 20 different sandwiches, uber-processed donuts of the month.
Corn Pops
From Redditor u/ministarfallen:
Corn Pops ever since they got rid of the foil bag.
Peaches
From Redditor u/llcucf80:
Peaches. I’ve commented on this many times but the last several years the peach crop has sucked. I haven’t had a good, juicy, non-mealy peach in a long time. IDK what’s going on with the peach farms and trees but they’re just not as good.
From Redditor u/muerta:
We got a mature peach tree when we got our current house. They are amazing. I didn’t realize how much store bought peaches actually suck. Plant your own tree or look on neighborhood sites late summer to see if anyone has one with excess they want to share.
Vegetables
From Redditor u/th30be:
Every single vegetable. Now, I am not saying that vegetables taste bad. It’s just a lot of them don’t taste as good anymore. Farming prioritizes size, shape, and color more than taste currently.
Chipotle
From Redditor u/burntcheeselol:
Just Chipotle food in general. Used to be great, don’t like it as much.
From Redditor u/SwitcherooU:
God, I’d give anything to go back to 2004 and have Chipotle again. It just isn’t the same anymore.
Butterfinger
From Redditor u/abarrelofmankeys:
Butterfingers are super gross now, bought one out of a vending machine and thought it was bad, googled it to find a bunch of people complaining about it. How do you screw up so bad? It’s probably cheaper, but I’d think you’d lose enough sales to counter that. I won’t buy one again for sure.
Family Recipes
From Redditor u/carolebaskinshusband:
My grandma’s cooking. She left me her recipes when she passed but I still can’t recreate her magic.
Oreos
From Redditor u/JachaelMickson:
Oreo cookies don’t taste as good to me for some reason.
From Redditor u/ltgenspartan:
I’ve been an Oreo-holic for so many years, and you’re definitely right. I get one bag and they taste normal-ish (not as good as they were even only a few years ago), but I get another bag and they taste really off, almost chemical-like in a way. I normally get Double Stuf, and they’re not putting as much creme as they used to, and the normal versions seem like how the thin creme ones used to be. And that’s in addition to putting a couple less per row in each bag now.