Remember when prawn cocktail, a steak dinner and a Black Forest gâteau was the restaurant meal of dreams? Perhaps you snacked on SPAM on toast and Angel Delight – or maybe you opened your lunch box to find it crammed with Dairylea Lunchables and Cheestrings. Here, we look at the foods we fell in love with while growing up in Britain and Ireland.

Click or scroll through our gallery to see the weird and wonderful foods we used to eat from the 1950s to the 2000s – counting down to the most nostalgic snack of all.

We've based our ranking on the popularity of each food and on the opinions of our well-travelled (and well-fed) team. The list is unavoidably subjective.

Everyone was drinking fruit smoothies in the mid-2000s as they tried an easy way to get their five-a-day. Whether you were blending your own or buying them bottled, smoothies were big business. Today, the trend has expanded to include thicker-consistency breakfast smoothie bowls topped with fruits, nuts and seeds.

Records released by the UK government show that salmon sandwiches – made with tinned fish, of course – were a family staple in the early 1950s. John West tinned salmon has been around since 1857, but it was especially popular in the post-war years, when shoppers were still dealing with rationing.

Wobbly bowls of jelly and ice cream have been a mainstay of children’s birthday parties for decades, although they've fallen out of favour a little in recent years. Sweet jelly was served as a dessert from the 18th century onwards, but it wasn’t until the 1950s that the classic combination of jelly and ice cream started to gain traction. If you can resist eating the jelly cubes out of the packet, your jelly can be moulded into various shapes and served with any ice cream you like – but strawberry jelly and vanilla ice cream is the classic pairing.

Though they weren't a 1970s invention, salad bars are most associated with this decade – mostly because it’s when they started appearing in restaurants such as Berni Inn and Pizza Hut. Casual dining chain Harvester, which opened in 1983, is still famous for its salad bar.

Beloved by vegetarians, who appreciate their meat-free meatiness, portobello mushrooms as we know them didn't exist until the late 1980s. When natural foods were coming into fashion, this exotic-looking mushroom – which is actually just an overgrown common mushroom – was renamed, with great success.

The first energy drink to hit the British Isles, Red Bull launched in the UK in 1993 and Ireland in 1995. Known for its hefty caffeine content, it fast became a favourite among sports players, students and partygoers. It’s still the bestselling energy drink in the world; in 2022, 11.6 billion cans were sold worldwide.

Today, the idea that instant noodles could ever have been revolutionary may seem unbelievable; however, back in the 1990s, Pot Noodles really were innovative. In just a few minutes, you could have a hot snack ready to eat, plus they came in a range of flavours. The perfect student snack, the Pot Noodle was (and still is) a great choice for anyone short on cooking equipment, space or skills – or just anyone trying to save time and money. The right amount of water and a good stir before eating are both essential for the tastiest results.

Inspired by New York City's pizzerias, Irish pizza brand Goodfella's launched its frozen deep-pan pizzas in 1993, before rolling them out in the UK in 1995. In 1999, it added thin and crispy pizzas to the UK and Ireland range – and the brand is still going strong now.

The iconic jingle ‘if you like a lot of chocolate on your biscuit, join our club’ still rings in the ears of many who grew up in Britain, despite not having been in use since the 1990s. The jingle might be gone, but Clubs continue to fly off the shelves – sold under McVitie’s in the UK and Jacob’s in Ireland – destined to be packed into lunchboxes or eaten as an after-school treat. Featuring a crisp biscuit base and coated in chocolate, the two flagship flavours are mint and orange.

This cereal-milkshake hybrid launched in 1995 with a very over-the-top TV advertisement. An icon of the 1990s, Kellogg's Banana Bubbles sadly only lasted a few years before being discontinued. This decade was also the era of cereal box toys; however, this marketing idea was abandoned in the 2000s due to choking fears.

McCain introduced oven chips to the UK in 1979 with much fanfare, including a catchy advertising campaign. With no need for oil or a deep fat fryer, these crowd-pleasing chips were billed as healthier and easier to cook than ever before. Oven Chips revolutionised the chip market, and they're still going strong to this day.

Although fondue has been around for much longer in Switzerland, this DIY dish took off in Britain in a big way in the 1970s. A dinner party classic, it involves a molten pot of Gruyère and a splash of wine, served alongside pieces of bread and meat for dunking.

New York City's famous Magnolia Bakery appeared on an episode of Sex and the City in 2001, sparking a cupcake craze that reached the UK and Ireland. More and more artisan bakeries selling beautifully iced cupcakes sprang up across the country, one of the most famous being London's Hummingbird Bakery. In 2008, Google’s annual zeitgeist list included cupcakes as the fastest-growing recipe search in the UK.

Chef Delia Smith made frozen mashed potatoes famous when she included them in her 2008 book How to Cheat at Cooking. Sales of ready-prepared frozen mash doubled after the nod, as cooks throughout the UK looked for the easiest ways possible to whip up impressive recipes.

Britain and Ireland's love affair with unicorns began in the mid-2000s, when unicorn cakes started trending all over Instagram. These days, the unicorn can be found emblazoned on everything from pencil cases to T-shirts – and unicorn cakes like this one. They're still hugely popular and can be found in most supermarkets. 

No one would have dared host a children’s birthday party in the 1980s or 1990s without a packet (or two) of Party Rings. These ring-shaped biscuits, which were first sold in 1983, really look the part with their colourful feathered icing. They were the first thing guests reached for from the party buffet, and they continue to delight children everywhere – not to mention their parents and grandparents, who remember them fondly.

Smedley's was the first brand to bring frozen foods to the UK in 1937, but it wasn't until the late 1950s – when more people began to have freezers in their homes – that frozen vegetables became popular. Surprisingly, asparagus was the first frozen vegetable launched, but the ever-popular peas followed closely behind. In Ireland, popular brand Green Isle has been selling frozen veg since 1959.

A staple of packed lunches everywhere, Capri-Sun’s iconic juice pouches and tiny straws were particularly popular in the 1990s. The first flavour released was orange, but blackcurrant and tropical flavours soon followed – and today there’s also a Jungle Drink flavour, offering a mix of zingy exotic fruit juices (including pineapple and passion fruit). Not only are Capri-Sun pouches perfectly portable, but they also make excellent makeshift ice packs to keep your lunch cool.

Tomatoes that had been preserved in the sun were already prevalent in Italian cuisine. However, it wasn’t until the late 1980s that the UK and Ireland discovered their intense flavour – and fervently started adding them to pasta dishes and salads.

In the 1960s, Dutch Canadian food chemist Edward Asselbergs developed instant mashed potato flakes. Smash hit shelves in the same decade, and it quickly gained a following of time-strapped home cooks. It had a comeback in the 1970s and 1980s, thanks to adverts featuring the Smash Martians, and it remains the most famous brand of its kind in the UK. 

Many people in the UK and Ireland were first introduced to Mexican-inspired food by Old El Paso, whose sauces, crispy taco shells and fajita kits made midweek mealtimes a little easier. Mexican restaurants, and especially those serving more authentic regional Mexican cuisine, became more prevalent in the 2000s. The first Wahaca restaurant, from MasterChef winner Thomasina Miers, opened in 2007, while fast food chain Chipotle opened in 2010.

Potato alphabet shapes made up the carb element in many family meals in the 1980s and 1990s. The original Alphabites came from Birds Eye, but supermarkets have also launched their own brand versions over the years. Did any kids of the era not try to spell out their name while eating their tea?

Whether enjoyed on its own or crowned with a Cadbury Flake to make a 99, a Mr. Whippy ice cream was a childhood must on hot days at the beach or park. Mr. Whippy was set up in 1958, inspired by the soft-serve ice cream that was popular in the US, and it was originally doled out from six vans in Birmingham. Today it’s produced by Wall’s, a brand responsible for multiple other frosty childhood favourites.

These bite-size cake lollipops were invented by American baker Angie Dudley, who shared the recipe on her Bakerella blog in 2007. The cake pops went viral, with cake pop mania sweeping the US, the UK and Ireland.

The frozen ready meal craze hit Britain and Ireland in the late 1960s, with Birds Eye at the helm. The packaged dinners really rose in popularity through the 1970s and 1980s, though, reportedly thanks to rising divorce rates; savvy ready meal companies marketed their products with single men in mind.

A Chinese takeaway is a quintessential part of life for many in the UK and Ireland. Chinese people have been making the British Isles their home since the 1800s, but it wasn’t until a wave of migration from Hong Kong in the 1960s that communities really started to grow. Like other cuisines shared by immigrants, Chinese food has taken on its own identity within both the UK and Ireland, influenced both by the areas the dishes originate from and the tastes of local people.

The Fab ice lolly has remained one of the nation's favourites ever since it launched in 1967. Each Fab, which stands for fruit and berries, has three layers of strawberry, milk and chocolate, covered in hundreds and thousands sprinkles.

They’re crispy on the outside, fluffy on the inside, and you can cook in them in your toaster – and all of these factors made Birds Eye potato waffles a family favourite from the 1990s onwards. Birds Eye’s marketing focused on just how ‘waffly versatile’ they are, capable of being grilled, baked and loaded with a whole host of toppings, from baked beans to fried eggs. Parents continue to dish them out as part of easy midweek meals to this day.

These mini cupcakes topped with milk chocolate might not have been as aesthetically pleasing as the fancier versions popular at the time, but they were loved, nonetheless. The Fabulous Bakin' Boys produced other cakes such as lemon-topped cupcakes and brownies, but these were the bestseller; however, they gradually disappeared from supermarkets.

Pesto wasn’t invented in the 1980s – far from it. The recipe is likely to have evolved from an ancient Roman one, and it has been enjoyed in Italy and France since the 19th century. However, it shot to fame in the UK and Ireland in the 1980s, and it's since become a store cupboard essential for students and busy families.

Considered the epitome of glamorous dining, this indulgent main course of seafood and red meat became popular in restaurants in the 1960s. It remains popular today, and lobster tail with beef tenderloin is a particularly luxurious version of the dish.

It’s not an urban myth – Doritos really were invented at a Mexican-style restaurant in Disneyland. Already a huge success in America after being rolled out nationwide in 1966, the corn tortilla style snack launched in the UK and Ireland in 1994. There was nothing else like it available – and they sparked a taste for tortillas, remaining the market leader today.

Released in 1959, the golden Caramac bar quickly became known not only for its delicious caramel taste, but also for its distinctive red and yellow packaging. It was originally manufactured by Mackintosh, but it was later bought by global giant Nestlé. The iconic confectionery item had legions of fans, but not enough to prevent its discontinuation in 2023. Luckily for Caramac enthusiasts, it was revived for a limited time in 2024.

Available in the US since 1995, the McFlurry finally launched in the UK and Ireland in 2000. The combination of soft-serve vanilla ice cream and popular confectionery toppings proved irresistible. It's still as popular as ever, and McDonald's regularly releases new flavours.

The year 1996 saw the launch of Cheestrings, with an advertising campaign that made playing with your food acceptable. Made from real cheese, the slogan 'stringy goodness made fun' inspired a generation of kids to get their recommended daily amount of calcium.

You know Easter is approaching when stocks of Cadbury Creme Eggs start to make an appearance. Over the years, the chocolate eggs, which were first released by confectionery brand Fry's in 1963, have developed into something of a national obsession – with Cadbury asking people ‘how do you eat yours?’. There are a few options: lick the sticky fondant centre out of the chocolate shell, eat the egg whole, or try using it in a baking recipe.

Kids went crazy for Hubba Bubba bubble gum, which arrived in the UK and Ireland in the early 1980s. Hours were spent seeing who could blow the biggest bubbles – and flavours included apple, strawberry and cola.

Infamous pre-cooked pork product SPAM was created in the US in 1937 – and it became popular in 1950s Britain and Ireland as an easy dinner ingredient. Its popularity stretched through the following decade, when people especially fell for the brand's invention of SPAM fritters.

In 1998, Sunny Delight fever hit the UK. Available in two flavours – Californian Style and Florida Style – the orange juice claimed to be 'the good stuff kids go for'. The drink became the third bestselling soft drink in the UK, behind Coca-Cola and Pepsi. However, while people assumed the drink was healthy, it turned out to contain as much sugar as cola. In the 2000s, it rebranded to Sunny D and relaunched with a higher fruit content, no artificial ingredients and no added sugar.

Although pasta salads have been around since the 1960s, they were a go-to dish in the 1980s. Cheap, practical and versatile, they could be served hot or cold and could be fancy or simple depending on the variety of pasta shapes used. Tricolore pasta salad, made from three colours of spiral pasta, was a true dish of the decade.

Skittles became the must-have sweets for kids across the UK when they launched in 1974. These fruity, chewy sweets with hard shells have been a runaway success – thanks, in part, to a slew of quirky ad campaigns.

The food served in Indian restaurants in the UK and Ireland may differ greatly from authentic Indian cuisine, but it’s the first taste of South Asian food many of us had growing up. As immigrants from India, Pakistan and Bangladesh began to settle in the UK in the 1950s and 1960s, they set up restaurants selling the food they knew, but adapted it to suit local palates. British people met them halfway, though, enthusiastically trying new things and adopting (a version of) Indian food as their own.

What could be better than a pot of yogurt? A squeezy tube of yogurt, of course! Yoplait launched Frubes in 1996, and the brand remains a market leader to this day. With fun characters on the tubes and flavours including strawberry, red berries and peach, Frubes were (and still are) a school lunchbox must-have.

Smashed avocado on toast, sprinkled with chilli flakes and often topped with a poached egg, was the brunch dish of the 2000s – and it's still going strong today. The avocado craze was all over Instagram, and even actor and wellbeing guru Gwyneth Paltrow hopped on board, publishing her own avocado on toast recipe in her 2013 cookbook It's All Good. 

Domino’s was founded in Michigan in 1960 – and since then, it's become the largest pizza-delivery chain on the planet, thanks to the world’s insatiable appetite for this comforting takeaway treat. Domino's first British store opened in Luton in 1985, and now there are more than 1,200 stores across the UK and Ireland.

First launched in 1979, Discos quickly became a favourite among crisp lovers. The circular wheat snacks come in the classic flavours of salt and vinegar, prawn cocktail, and cheese and onion – perfect for anyone who likes their snacks uncomplicated. True Discos fans know that the best bit is the flavoursome dust left at the bottom of the bag when all the crisps have been polished off.

First launched in France in 1936, sparkling orange juice drink Orangina arrived in the UK in 1984. With a bell-shaped glass bottle and the slogan 'shake the bottle to wake the taste', the refreshing juice drink offered a more sophisticated alternative to other soft drinks on the market.

Bernard Matthews' processed spirals of turkey meat became the nation's most-talked about food item in 2005, following celebrity chef Jamie Oliver's TV programme Jamie's School Dinners – a show that aimed to make kids' meals healthier. High in saturated fat, salt and sugar, Twizzlers were a staple school dinner item and, despite Bernard Matthews revamping the product to make it healthier, Twizzlers soon disappeared from school canteens and supermarket shelves.

Del Monte Fruit Cocktail was particularly popular in the 1950s – tinned fruit with evaporated milk was the dessert of the decade, dished up in households across the UK and Ireland. Adverts also featured recipe ideas such as 'rainbow pudding' and 'party fruit basket' (pictured); to make it, all you needed to do was combine a tin with a ready-made sponge, some cream and a few more easy-to-find ingredients.

Probably one of the most famous brands to be born in the 1980s, Diet Coke came into our lives in 1983, followed by a caffeine-free version, Cherry Coke and Diet Cherry Coke. Diet drink sales were at their highest in 2005; however, they've been declining ever since as people increasingly opt for flavoured waters instead.

‘Once you pop, you can’t stop’ – never was a truer advertising slogan created. These addictive tubes of crisps launched in the UK and Ireland in 1991 – 24 years after hitting shelves in the US. Today, they're a global phenomenon with an incredible array of flavours, from classic Sour Cream & Onion to unusual limited editions like Pecan Pie.

KFC made it to Britain in 1965, with the first branch opening in Preston, Lancashire (the first Irish branch would follow six years later). Harry Latham, from Bristol, and his business partner Raymond Allen worked closely with KFC's Colonel Sanders to expand the franchise across the UK, with it popping up in hundreds of towns over the next decade. They were well ahead of the fast food game – McDonald's didn't arrive in Britain for another nine years.

A pack of crackers, cheese and ham, Dairylea Lunchables made preparing kids' packed lunches even easier for parents. Launched in 1998 with the slogan 'stackable and snackable', they made lunchtimes exciting for children.

Sold in bright green packets, these pickled onion crisps came out in the UK in the late 1980s (the roast beef flavour packaging was bright red). They were hugely popular because they defied inflation, costing just 10p until 2007 when the price increased, causing uproar among snack fans.

Though it had been around since the 1930s, cake mix didn't properly take off until savvy companies introduced frosting and other ready-made decorating items, making the process feel more hands-on. American cake mix brand Betty Crocker became a hit in mid-1950s Britain – and remains popular to this day.

Cashing in on the box office smash Jurassic Park, Bernard Matthews launched Turkey Dinosaurs to great success in 1993, with sales of more than two million packets every week. The company saw its annual profits treble thanks to the product.

Pop-Tarts are everything that’s good about convenience food: they're easy, tasty and they have a long shelf life. They're also, arguably, everything that’s bad: they're sugary, processed and lacking in nutrients. Kellogg’s first introduced the product in the US in 1964, but Pop-Tarts didn't reach the UK and Ireland until the early 1990s.

Bird's Angel Delight launched in 1967 – but it was the dessert of the 1970s. Mixed with milk and whisked to create a mousse-like consistency, it was first available in a strawberries and cream flavour. These days, flavours include strawberry, butterscotch, banana and chocolate.

Burger mania hit Britain in 1954 with the opening of the first Wimpy restaurant (a chain founded in Bloomington, Indiana). The burger bar in London was the first to serve a hamburger-based meal in the UK. By 1970, there were 1,000 Wimpy restaurants across 23 countries, and there are still locations in the UK today. Wimpy came to Ireland in the 1960s and 1970s, and again in the 2000s, but most have now been replaced with other chains.

Invented in 1953 for the coronation banquet of Queen Elizabeth II, coronation chicken was designed to be a dish that would suit the tastes of both foreign and British guests. The cold curried chicken recipe, often with added almonds and raisins, lives on – it was especially popular in the 1970s (and it's had something of a renaissance of late, too).

Who didn't want to find a Trio chocolate bar, consisting of a biscuit topped with toffee and smothered in thick milk chocolate, in their lunchbox? Kids loved Trio's excellent ad campaign, where cartoon character Suzy sang along to the tune of 'Day-O (The Banana Boat Song)': "Trio, Trio, I want a Trio, and I want one now."

The German brand Müller arrived in the UK in 1988, and it's been a leading yogurt brand in both the UK and Ireland for decades. The Müller Corner – sweet yogurt with an attached portion of fruit, chocolate or granola – turned what was previously considered health food into a proper treat.

Coca-Cola was invented in 1886 in Atlanta, Georgia, and it was first sold internationally in the 1920s. By the 1950s, it was hugely popular, with adverts depicting the soft drink as synonymous with pleasure. The introduction of flat-top cans and different-sized bottles served to increase its popularity in Britain, Ireland and beyond.

Buffets were a big deal in the 1970s – and at the heart of every posh spread, you were likely to find a quiche, a French dish with English roots. Rich, salty and dotted with lardons, quiche Lorraine was particularly popular.

The fusion food trend of the 1990s saw different countries' cuisines combine – with delicious results. Asian-style cooking was particularly popular, along with Indian influences. Birds Eye even jumped on the bandwagon with its chicken balti pie. That particular product didn't take off, but the trend for exploring different cuisines was here to stay.

Kellogg’s Sugar Frosted Flakes, which went on to be called Frosties in the UK and Ireland, launched in 1954. They were instantly loved by kids thanks to their ingenious marketing campaign, involving legendary mascot Tony the Tiger and his famous catchphrase, 'They're gr-r-reat!' Another cereal that's stood the test of time, Special K, launched in 1956.

Fruity, chewy and incredibly moreish, Opal Fruits sweets launched in 1960, becoming a favourite of kids across the country. The individually wrapped chews, in lemon, lime, orange and strawberry flavours, rebranded as Starburst in 1998 to match their name in the US market – and fans were delighted when their original name made a brief return in 2020.

Prawn cocktail may not be a 1960s invention, but it's certainly associated with the decade (the 1970s, too). Its origins are French, but English TV cook Fanny Cradock is largely credited with popularising the starter of cold prawns in Marie Rose sauce (a mix of mayo, ketchup, lemon juice and pepper). The dinner party favourite was (and still is) typically served on a bed of lettuce in a Martini glass.

This chilly dessert, consisting of vanilla ice cream wrapped up in a Swiss roll, was invented by Dr Ernest Velden, an immigrant from Czechia (then known as Czechoslovakia). In 1968, he set up a UK factory producing Arctic Roll – and it was a runaway success, with families enjoying the ice cream treat well into the 1970s and 1980s.

The McDonald's Happy Meal arrived in the UK in 1986, consisting of a burger, cheeseburger or Chicken McNuggets, plus small fries, a drink and a toy. Often tied into film releases, with a selection of toys to collect, the meals now offer healthier alternatives, such as milk and bags of fruit. They're just as popular today as they were in the 1980s.

Black Forest gâteau is a 1970s classic that was regularly brought out as the showstopper at the end of a dinner party. Made from layers of rich chocolate and cream, and doused in boozy Kirsch, with cherries studded throughout, it hails from Germany, where it's known as Schwarzwälder Kirschtorte.

Coco Pops, the cereal that 'turns milk chocolatey', arrived in the UK in 1960, joining Kellogg's array of other sugary breakfast offerings. Thanks to a huge advertising campaign, the cereal was (and still is) very popular, with kids begging their parents to buy them a pack.

Twix launched in the UK in 1967, and the twin shortbread biscuits – the reason for the name Twix – have been a fast favourite with snack fans ever since. They come topped with a layer of caramel and coated in chocolate, all packaged in a distinctive gold wrapper with bold red lettering.

Chef and food writer Elizabeth David revolutionised British cookery, starting with A Book Of Mediterranean Food in the 1950s. In 1963 she released Italian Cooking, including a note that lasagne was now available to buy in Italian shops and some supermarkets. Lasagne and spaghetti Bolognese became extremely popular on dinner tables across the UK and Ireland.

Generations of children grew up eating Crispy Pancakes for tea following their launch in 1958, but it was in the 1980s and early 1990s that they reached peak popularity. Flavours included chicken and mushroom, ham and cheese, and minced beef, which has since been discontinued. Findus recently revamped the brand with fancier flavours – including mozzarella – but if you ask us, they're just not the same as those original tongue-burning fillings.

In 1979, Marks & Spencer revolutionised British cooking with the introduction of the chicken Kyiv. The middle classes went wild for the breaded chicken fillet, which came filled with garlic butter, and a craze began for chilled ready meals, rather than frozen ones. The trend grew throughout the 1980s and beyond.

While Americans had been enjoying burger bars and pizza restaurants since the 1950s, the UK was a little behind, with only Wimpy and KFC. The 1970s was the decade that saw fast food really boom in Britain and Ireland. Pizza Hut launched in 1973, McDonald's arrived in 1974, and Burger King came to Britain in 1976. Ireland got its first McDonald's in 1977 but, more importantly, homegrown chain Supermac's set up shop in 1978.

The Cadbury range of chocolate has expanded to include all kinds of treats. However, as is often the case, the classics are the best. Launched in 1905, Dairy Milk has been eaten by generations of British and Irish kids, and it’s beloved worldwide, too. A simple, creamy milk chocolate, it’s difficult to resist, and a full-sized bar can disappear quickly. For the iconic bar's 200th anniversary in 2024, Cadbury brought back some classic Dairy Milk packaging, allowing people to relive the designs they grew up with – from the original 1915 design to a wrapper from 2003.

Believed to be a Scottish Indian dish (Glasgow is often billed as its place of origin, although this is disputed), chicken tikka masala is one of the more enduring dishes to have emerged from 1970s Britain. Made by marinating chunks of chicken in yogurt and spices, baking, then serving in a tomato and cream sauce, it's one of the most successful fusion dishes of all time.

This ice cream 'cake' was the dessert of the 1990s, and its slogan, 'one slice is never enough', was certainly true. Consisting of layers of vanilla ice cream and crispy, wafer-thin milk chocolate, it made a satisfying crackling sound on slicing, Viennetta was once considered a posh after-dinner option thanks to its fancy advert. 

The Irish owner of the Tayto company, Joe 'Spud' Murphy, developed flavoured crisps in the UK in the early 1950s. Sales of the crisps' initial flavours – cheese and onion, salt and vinegar, and smoky bacon – were so high that the company had to expand rapidly.

Now discover 36 old-school ingredients that are well overdue a comeback

Last updated by Laura Ellis.