22 Old School Cereals That Deserve A Revival

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Cereals are a popular breakfast food in the United States that most people (if not everyone) has had at least once, whether as a child or veering into adulthood. After all, it's a simple meal that's been fortified with the nutrition you need to get your day started — and in many instances, it tastes delicious. While popular today, the oldest breakfast cereal in the world was barely edible and had to be soaked in milk to make it palatable. Of course, not all historical cereals were inedible. What about those nostalgic old school cereals that we grew up with?

There have been many cereals that came and went, discontinued after a short (or occasionally lengthy) stay on our grocery store shelves. While we were happy to see some cereals go, there are many we wish we could have back. With that in mind, here are 22 old school cereals that deserve a revival — and we hope the companies who made them one day fulfill that wish.

Magic Puffs is an old school cereal introduced in 1974 by the cereal giant also responsible for creating Olive Garden – General Mills. The box described the contents as "crunchy frosted cereal puffs," and featured a pink and yellow magic hat as the mascot.

The cereal most notably contained magic tricks inside that were suitable for all ages, which is such a fun prize idea — there were five for you to collect. We'd love to see this cereal get a revival with the same magic trick prizes. After all, we still need to finish collecting all five and we can't do that if the cereal is discontinued.

Banana Frosted Flakes were around during the 1980s and contained real bits of banana on each flake. Like all other frosted flakes, they were promoted by Tony the Tiger as being "grrrreat" — and based on what Reddit users have to say, that was a factual statement.

"Banana Frosted Flakes were the best," one nostalgic user posted. "I ate this cereal every morning before school until it was discontinued." We think bananas and cereal just go together, so we'd love to see this unique frosted flakes flavor make a comeback! Plus, we want to try adding these as an upgrade to our pancake mix to see if the end result resembles banana pancakes. 

What could be better than combining donuts and cereal for breakfast? Not much, and that's exactly what Cap'n Crunch did in the early 2000s. The Oops! Choco Donuts cereal consisted of small crunchy donut shapes dotted with brightly colored sprinkles, and it tasted as delicious as you thought it would.

This writer, in particular, has fond memories of begging her mother for this box of cereal. When she finally relented, I was greeted with the sugary, chocolatey goodness I'd been hoping for — and I'd love to be able to experience that deliciousness again.

Cupcake Pebbles featured small pale cereal flakes dotted with tiny colorful dots resembling sprinkles. As the name suggests, it was meant to taste like cupcakes.

People want Cupcake Pebbles back so badly that there's even a petition for it that's garnered nearly 700 verified signatures as of this writing. Someone on Reddit claims that their childhood died when they discontinued this cereal, and others state Cupcake Pebbles was "eat-a-whole-box worthy." With dedication like that, there are zero doubts that a revival is totally necessary. We also think that these would be an especially great addition to the ultimate homemade ice cream sandwich. 

Strawberry Shortcake Cereal was launched by General Mills in 1981, with a box that described it as a "strawberry flavor frosted corn cereal." Unfortunately, the cereal had a short life and was discontinued in 1985.

The cereal was meant to taste like strawberries, and one Facebook user states that it was "one of the most delicious cereals of the '80s." That same user claims that the strawberry treat was as good as a five-star dessert, and that's the kind of experience we'd like to have.

Oreo O's first hit the shelves in 1997 and were discontinued in 2007. They did actually receive a revival in 2017, but it was short-lived and Post, Oreo's manufacturer, opted to instead support a different cookie-based cereal.

Like the name suggests, Oreo O's featured small O-shaped cereal bites that were packed with the taste of Oreo cookies. A second revival is overdue because having cookies for breakfast is exactly the kind of thing we need and want in our lives.

Blueberry Muffin Toasters were put out by Malt-O-Meal and they were so sure of the quality of their product that the bag said "love it or it's FREE!" Now that's an excellent endorsement. And, this cereal did get a very brief one-month revival in 2020, but that wasn't nearly long enough for most people.

This writer is one of those people who wasn't able to get their hands on a bag during the one-month revival in 2020. When I used to eat these, they tasted just like blueberry muffins to me, only with the addition of ice cold milk. It's a winning combination I'd love to have again.

Kellogg's Atlantis: The Lost Empire Cereal was based on the movie of the same name. It featured an Atlantean alphabet on chocolate triangles that only appeared when milk was poured over them. These were paired with your standard circular grain bits.

One Reddit user claims they remember the cereal tasted really good and that the "letters looked so dope." Personally, we love the hidden alphabet idea and the nostalgia that comes with the early 2000s movie, so we'd love to see a revival.

Sprinkle Spangles were puffed stars decorated with little colorful dots, which were meant to be the sprinkles. According to the General Mill's website, the cereal, launched in 1993, was "so popular... that it has become one of our most requested cereals to bring back."

When the cereal tastes like mouthwatering sugar cookies dunked in ice cold milk, there's no wonder why so many people are vying for its revival. Strangely, the cereal managed to gain this popularity despite only gracing store shelves for a year.

Rocky Road Cereal featured dehydrated chocolate-covered marshmallows alongside vanilla and chocolate puffs — a combination meant to emulate Rocky Road Ice Cream. Plus, with every three boxes you bought, you could redeem the UPC codes for a free mini piano that would grant countless hours of musical fun.

One Reddit user says they "still crave the little chocolate covered marshmallows almost 30 years later," and lamented about the discontinuation. Personally, we want the cereal to come back and with the original mini pianos inside — the whole package deserves a revival.

Dino Pebbles hit the shelves in 1990 and featured neon dinosaur marshmallows alongside sweetened rice bits. Like many of the other Pebbles cereals, these featured The Flintstones as their mascots — which just fits the prehistoric theme here anyways.

On Instagram, countless people have been demanding the cereal come back — some people even offering to buy 100 or more boxes just to make this dream a reality. With such a dedicated fan base, we know these deserve a revival so we can try some for ourselves.

If you ever wondered what it would be like to eat 50, 60, 70, or more cinnamon buns for breakfast, this cereal from Kellogg's answers the question. Introduced in 1991, Cinnamon Mini Buns featured small cinnamon bun shapes that were covered in a cinnamon swirl — and they nailed the taste. Is there any question why we'd want something like that to get a revival?

Even better were the prizes inside. In 1991, you'd receive cassettes with your cereal. In 1994, you'd receive miniature comic books that included fan favorites like Superman. It goes without saying that we'd like the revival to include cereal prizes in that same vein.

Hidden Treasures is a General Mills cereal that was available from 1993 to 1995. It contained sweetened corn pillows that either hid a mystery or didn't, and you had to go on a treasure hunt while eating them. That treasure hunt would lead you to some sweetened corn pillows that had fruity flavored fillings.

People on Reddit say this cereal was very good, and one even goes so far as to say they were obsessed with it when they were a child. Although the idea of fruit juice and milk is an odd one, we'd love a chance to try the strange combination for ourselves.

Smurf Berry Crunch was a 1980s product featuring blue and red cereal meant to resemble the Smurf berries from the hit television show "The Smurfs." Some people say the fruity taste was similar to a snow cone, and the box described it as "fruity sweetened corn, oat, and wheat cereal."

One Facebook user said this cereal had such a strong, sweet smell that it "imprinted on my olfactory system." They went on to add, "In a world where many cereals were copies of each other, I'm surprised this isn't still around in some form." With an endorsement like that, we need a revival to happen yesterday so we can taste and smell it for ourselves!

Hitting the shelves in 1987, Ice Cream Cones was a cute play on everyone's favorite dessert. And, General Mills obviously knew their target audience because what kid doesn't want to eat ice cream for breakfast? Available flavors included vanilla, chocolate, and chocolate chip.

Inside each box were two types of cereal pieces — a small puffed ball meant to resemble an ice cream scoop and a triangular one meant to represent a sugar cone. You could even play with them and add the little balls of ice cream atop the cones because everything was three-dimensional. We'd like a revival because we want to enjoy ice cream for breakfast, too.

Peanut Butter Toast Crunch was brought to you by the same people who made the beloved Cinnamon Toast Crunch. But, in a post about the cereal on The Poor Couple's Food Guide, one person stated that this cereal was actually better because even when it got soggy, it continued to taste like peanut butter — a trait they said the cinnamon variety did not share.

Personally, this writer is a big fan of peanut butter cereals and would love to see a revival on that basis alone. And an endorsement from a Reddit user who claims this was "the best cereal ever invented, taken from us too soon," only further supports the need for a comeback.

S'mores Crunch is another cereal brought to you by the industry-leading General Mills. Launched in 1982, the cereal contained cinnamon-flavored pieces with chocolate and marshmallows meant to resemble the campfire favorite S'mores.

The cereal was discontinued in 1988, only to be brought back for a short period of time during the 1990s. Unfortunately, it was once again pulled from shelves and some were left with such a craving that they regularly emailed General Mills asking for them to bring the cereal back.

This unique cereal of the 1990s paired Betty Crocker baked goods with General Mills — and honestly, you'd think that would be such a winning combination that it would never be discontinued. Unfortunately, that obviously wasn't the case.

This cereal tasted like a sweet cinnamon baked good, as the name suggests. Cinnamon and brown sugar were baked onto every piece, and some flakes had little bits of icing drizzled on them. We want Betty Crocker to bake breakfast for us by the spoonful every day, so a revival is way past due.

Cap'n Crunch's Mystery Volcano Crunch was a limited edition item that had a run back in 2000. According to the box, this cereal was a fruit-flavored corn and oat variety. The big mystery? Each box contained a free pack of "lava rocks" that you could pour into your bowl. Then, they'd pop, fizzle, and change the color of your milk.

"Lava rocks" were just pop rocks by another name. But, we don't hate the idea of eating fun popping candy for breakfast — we just need a revival of this unique cereal to make it happen.

You might be familiar with Apple Jacks, and this Kellogg's cereal is a mix-up of that. Cinnamon Jacks were X-shaped puffed cereals coated in cinnamon and brown sugar that were introduced in 2013 — and they were just as delicious as they sound.

People on Reddit have lamented the loss of Kellogg's Cinnamon Jacks. One person said it was their favorite cereal and they'd eat whole boxes of it. We'd like a chance to eat whole boxes of the cinnamon goodness, too — hence why we need these to hit shelves again.

Cookie Crisp Brownie is a cereal that was released by Nestle and is in the same family of cereals as the original Cookie Crisp. Little square pieces were meant to look and taste like brownies. According to one reviewer on the blog Grocery Gems, "the brownie flavor is very similar to the original Cookie Crisp but just slightly more chocolatey." 

Why the idea of having brownies and milk for breakfast didn't take off, we have no idea. But, we'd love to see a revival so we can try it for ourselves.

Jack'O'Lantern Apple Jacks were a limited edition Halloween item in 2001 that was created of green and pale O-shapes and orange pumpkins. Essentially, the O-shaped bits tasted just like your standard Apple Jacks. But, the cute orange pumpkin faces were cinnamon-y and tasted like mini sugar cookies.

We don't see any reason these couldn't be revived at least for Halloween each year. Between the delicious taste and those adorable pumpkins, we need to get ourselves a bowl as soon as possible.