10 Once-Popular Sandwiches That Vanished From Menus Everywhere
Remember the good old days when your favorite sandwich was always waiting for you at your go-to restaurant?
Sadly, many beloved sandwiches have disappeared from menus, leaving hungry fans heartbroken.
Some vanished because tastes changed, while others just couldn’t compete with newer options.
Let’s take a delicious trip down memory lane and revisit these forgotten classics that once ruled the lunch hour.
1. Coronation Chicken Sandwich
Born from Queen Elizabeth II’s coronation celebration in 1953, this British beauty mixed cold chicken with curry powder, mayo, and apricots. The sweet-and-savory combo sounds weird but tasted amazing.
Tea rooms across England served it for decades before it slowly faded away. Now you’ll mostly find it at fancy events or in grandma’s recipe box, not your local café.
2. Olive Loaf Sandwich
Picture a mystery meat loaf packed with green olives – yeah, that was olive loaf. Deli counters in the ’60s and ’70s couldn’t slice it fast enough for sandwich lovers.
Kids thought it looked like polka-dotted bologna, and honestly, they weren’t wrong. As America’s taste buds matured beyond processed meats, olive loaf quietly disappeared from most grocery stores.
3. Oyster Club Sandwich
Fancy restaurants once featured this luxurious twist on the classic club, swapping chicken for plump fried oysters. Bacon, lettuce, and tomato joined the party between three layers of toasted bread.
Rising oyster prices and changing seafood preferences eventually pushed this delicacy off most menus. Today, you’d need to visit a specialty seafood joint to taste this forgotten treasure.
4. Burger King Whaler
Before the Big Fish came along, Burger King had the Whaler – a crispy fish sandwich that competed directly with McDonald’s Filet-O-Fish. It featured a bigger fish patty and extra tartar sauce.
The name didn’t age well as environmental concerns about whaling grew in the ’90s. BK quietly renamed and reformulated it, and the original Whaler swam away forever.
5. Burger King Steak Sandwich
Way back when, BK served an actual steak sandwich – not a burger, but a flame-broiled beef steak on a hoagie roll. Onions and steak sauce completed this hearty offering.
It couldn’t compete with the simplicity and popularity of their burgers, though. Plus, convincing people that fast-food steak was legit proved tougher than grilling it, so it vanished without much fanfare.
6. KFC Double Down
Remember when KFC said “forget bread” and used two fried chicken fillets as the bun? The Double Down became an instant internet sensation when it launched in 2010.
Bacon and cheese sandwiched between chicken breasts was gloriously excessive.
It pops back on menus occasionally as a limited-time stunt, but the original run ended as people’s arteries collectively begged for mercy.
7. McRib
Wait, the McRib isn’t permanently gone – it’s just playing hard to get! McDonald’s brings it back seasonally, creating cult-like frenzy whenever it appears.
Originally launched in 1981, it vanished from permanent menus by 2005. Now it’s the Beyoncé of sandwiches, dropping surprise comebacks that send fans into social media meltdowns.
8. Sandwich Loaf
Imagine a cake made entirely of sandwiches, frosted with cream cheese. That’s the sandwich loaf – a terrifying/amazing 1950s party staple that looked fancy but tasted confusing.
Layers of bread held egg salad, ham salad, or whatever leftovers needed using. Decorated with olives and pimentos, it screamed “retro potluck.”
Thankfully, this Frankenstein creation stayed in the past where it belongs.
9. Dagwood Sandwich
Named after the comic strip character famous for midnight snacking, the Dagwood was an absurdly tall sandwich stacked with everything but the kitchen sink. Delis competed to build the biggest version.
As portion sizes became more reasonable and health-conscious, these towering monsters mostly disappeared, though some old-school delis still attempt the challenge.
10. Arby’s Roast Beef and Swiss Sandwich
Wait, Arby’s still has roast beef! But their original Roast Beef and Swiss on a specific sesame seed bun tasted different back in the day – thicker beef, better cheese, more memorable.
Menu reformulations and cost-cutting changed the formula over decades. Old-school Arby’s fans insist the current version just isn’t the same, making the original a nostalgic memory rather than current reality.
