Fast Food Menu Items We Wish Would Come Back

Certain fast food items are bound to stand the test of time. We can never imagine a world in which the Big Mac doesn’t exist, for example, or the Wendy’s Frosty. But in the fast-paced, super-competitive landscape of fast food, menu items come and go all the time. Some have faded into the annals of history, lost to the ages and forgotten for all eternity by all except for the most fiercely devoted, but some discontinued fast foods remain beloved by legions of fans, who hold out hope that the day will come when they’ll be able to sink their grateful teeth into them once again. 

Even though every chain has its core menu, fast food executives know that resting on their laurels is never a wise move – and their research & development team needs something to do every day, after all. This is why they’re constantly experimenting with new menu items. Taco Bell’s team, for example, is famously able to create a seemingly infinite array of new menu items based on the ingredients that the restaurants already have on hand. Other chains invest millions into new ingredients, equipment, and training for dishes that may or may not be successful. That’s why the vast majority of new menu items are tried out in small test markets before being rolled out on a wide scale: if a new dish doesn’t sell in Peoria, that’s a pretty good indicator that it’s not going to sell anywhere. But if it not only sells but gets some viral buzz, too, then there’s a chance it’ll take off nationwide. 

Fast food menu items fail for a wide variety of reasons. Some spend years on menus before being discontinued to make room for other foods. Some are introduced with great fanfare only to fail due to lack of sales, product inconsistency, or negative feedback from franchisees. Some are only available in test markets, and never really intended for wide release. Some are discontinued or reformulated because of changes in dietary trends (even though we all know that some fast foods are real calorie bombs). Regardless of the reasons for their discontinuing, we really wish that these gone-but-not-forgotten fast food menu items would come back. 

McDonald’s McDLT

The McDLT, introduced in 1984, seemed like a pretty good idea at the time: the burger was separated into two different compartments, intended to avoid the pitfalls of a soggy burger by keeping the cold components cold and the hot components hot: the patty and bottom bun were on one side, and the lettuce, tomato, pickles, cheese, sauces, and top bun were on the other side. It actually sold quite well, but it was discontinued in late 1990 because the huge quantity of styrofoam needed in its packaging was bad for the environment. 

McDonald’s Mighty Wings

McDonald’s experimented with putting fried chicken wings on its menu several times, but it simply never worked out. Dubbed Mighty Wings, they were crispy, crunchy, spicy, and undeniably tasty. They first made an appearance in 1990 and were sold at some locations until 2003, and in 2013 they were re-introduced with much fanfare. Folks unfortunately just weren’t too interested in buying wings at McDonald’s, however (and at about a dollar per wing, they were too expensive, too), and they were discontinued the following year, leaving franchisees with literally 10 million pounds of extra wings on hand. 

Burger King’s Cini-Minis

Introduced in 1998 as “the best part of the cinnamon roll in every bite,” Burger King’s Cini-Minis came in a pack of four, with frosting on the side for dunking. They were warm, gooey, delicious, and a perfect fast food dessert, but they were removed from menus less than 10 years later. 

KFC’s Double Down

Quite possibly the most infamous fast food release of all time, KFC’s Double Down was invented to go viral, and that it did. Released in 2010, it’s a fried chicken sandwich, but instead of a bun it uses two fried chicken patties, with bacon, cheese, and sauce in-between the two. It made quite a splash upon its release but was only ever intended to be a limited-time item, although it’s made a couple re-appearances since then. 

Taco Bell’s Grilled Stuft Nacho

A cult hit upon its 2013 release, Taco Bell’s Grilled Stuft Nacho folded ground beef, cheese jalapeño sauce, sour cream, and red peppers up inside a flour tortilla in the triangular shape of a tortilla chip. Marketed as “everything you love about nachos, wrapped up in a whole new way,” it was a beloved limited-time-only item that made a brief reappearance in 2015. 

Burger King’s Satisfries

Released in 2013, Burger King’s Satisfries were marketed as a healthier French fry, made using a less-porous batter that didn’t absorb as much oil during frying as traditional fries. Millions of dollars went into the creation and marketing of these fries, but in the end customers simply didn’t care: they were more expensive then BK’s regular fries, and at the end of the day, if you’re going to eat fries, you don’t really care that they’re unhealthy. They only stuck around for a little over a year. 

Taco Bell’s Waffle Taco

Taco Bell went hard into the breakfast game in 2014, and no menu item resonated with fans quite as much as the Waffle Taco. Made by wrapping a sausage patty, eggs, and cheese inside a soft waffle, it went viral and was a huge hit. It was short-lived, though, unfortunately: the dish only stuck around for about a year before the waffle was replaced by a taco-shaped biscuit. 

Burger King’s Whopperito

Burger King’s Whopperito was just what it sounds like: a cut-up burger patty, onions, lettuce, tomato, cheese, spicy cheese sauce, and pickles, all rolled up inside a flour tortilla. This Tex-Mex inspired spin on their signature burger (an obvious move into Chipotle’s turf) was a viral hit upon its 2016 release, but it didn’t make a splash from a sales standpoint and it wasn’t super-easy for employees to assemble. It only stuck around for a few months. 

Wendy’s Hot Honey Chicken Sandwich

Everything seems to be doused in hot honey these days, from pizza to fried chicken to ice cream, and in 2022 Wendy’s tried to capitalize on the sweet heat trend with their Hot Honey Chicken Sandwich, with a fried chicken breast, melted Pepper Jack cheese, three strips of Applewood smoked bacon, crispy fried pickle chips, and hot honey on a toasted bun. It caught on with fans, but was discontinued just seven months later when Wendy’s decided it didn’t want to keep hot honey on hand any longer. 

KFC’s Potato Wedges

A longtime favorite on KFC’s menu, Potato Wedges were a perfect side dish. Unfortunately, they were removed from menus in 2020, with no explanation given. They were replaced by Secret Recipe Fries, which are tossed with their signature fried chicken seasoning. 

McDonald’s Fried Apple Pies

McDonald’s still has that classic apple hand pie on their menu, but if you’ve only tried it post-1992, then you don’t know the glory that was the fried apple pie. Introduced in 1968 as their signature dessert, these pies were deep-fried until golden brown and crispy. The company started baking them instead of frying in 1992, and anyone who’s tried both will tell you that it’s just not the same. 

McDonald’s Beef Tallow French Fries

Another McDonald’s dish that just not the same, their iconic French fries were once fried in beef fat. This gave them a supremely beefy, savory, unami-rich, unctuous flavor that just can’t be replicated by the vegetable oil used today. But due to concerns about cholesterol that arose in the mid-80s, these original-recipe fries were completely phased out by 1990. 

Popeye’s Chicken Waffle Tenders

The chicken-and-waffles craze was going strong in 2013, when Popeye’s got in on the trend with Chicken Waffle Tenders, “waffle-battered” white meat chicken strips served with honey maple dipping sauce on the side. They were popular but still only stuck around for a limited time, albeit with a brief return in 2014. 

Taco Bell’s Beefy Crunch Burrito

Created to capitalize on the “Flamin’ Hot” trend of 2010, Taco Bell’s Beefy Crunch Burrito was rolled up with seasoned ground beef, rice, nacho cheese, sour cream and Flamin’ Hot Fritos. The Fritos added a spicy crunch that fans went crazy for, but it was sadly phased out in 2011. It’s made several re-appearances over the years, however, the last one as recently as the summer of 2023. 

McDonald’s Chicken Selects

Fried chicken strips are a fast food no-brainer, but over the years McDonald’s just hasn’t been able to eke their way into the fried chicken game, try as they might (see Mighty Wings, above). They introduced crispy fried chicken tenders called Chicken Selects in 1998, and they were made a permanent menu item in 2004. They also made their way into much-loved “Snack Wraps,” which rolled them up inside a flour tortilla with toppings, in 2006. They were discontinued in 2013, however, and a couple attempts to re-introduce and rebrand them (as “Buttermilk Crispy Tenders”) have also proven unsuccessful. Try as they might, these will never be up there with the most iconic fast food menu items of all time.