'Looked like it was dropped in gravel': 6 much-missed sweet treats that have been discontinued

• They satisfied our sugar cravings during the 60s, 70s, 80s and 90s
• But these once-popular sweet treats have all sadly been discontinued
• Some fans would give anything to bring them back

If you have a sweet tooth, the chances are you had a soft spot for at least one of these much-missed sugar-laden treats.

They were all popular in their day, during the 60s, 70s, 80s and 90s, but have sadly been discontinued.

They include one short-lived snack that would burn the roof off your mouth but fans said was worth it, a ‘tooth collector’ bar that ‘looked like it was dropped in gravel’, and a penny chocolate described as ‘the best’.

How many of these do you remember?

Lyons Cup Cakes

Lyons Cup Cakes came in a variety of flavours, with the most popular being chocolate, lemon and orange, and they had scalloped foil cases.

For many people, they are the ultimate nostalgic snack, made by the company once famous for its iconic Lyons Corner House tea shops, found on high streets across the UK.

Fans loved the soft sponge and the generous layer of icing, which one person recalled ‘would melt in your mouth’.

Some people took the icing off the top to savour after eating the sponge cupcake, before licking the case clean.

One person recalled: “I always used to try to peel off the entire silver wrapper without breaking the scalloped edge. It was hard work but it made the joy of the cupcake last longer.”

Lyons Cup Cakes were discontinued sometime after Lyons was broken up in the late 80s and early 90s, with the cakes division being sold to RHM.

Similar cupcakes are available today, but fans of the original will tell you that modern imitations pale in comparison.

Terry’s Spartan chocolates

If you’re not a fan of soft centres, these would have been the chocolates for you.

The hard-centred chocolate selection box was launched in 1921 and remained popular for many years before eventually being discontinued in around 2005.

It was a grown-up alternative to soft centres, with the box featuring a photo of some ancient ruins.

One person called them ‘my favourite chocolates ever’, another asked ‘why ever did they stop making them?’, and a third person said: “These were my mum’s absolute favourite. I have inherited her dislike of soft centres too.”

Explaining why they were eventually scrapped, another person recalled: “I worked in a sweet shop back in the 70s and unfortunately poor Spartan chocolates just didn't sell. They got left on the shelf. Maybe, at that time, the customers simply didn't like hard centres.”

Pot Sweet

This was a short-lived attempt by Golden Wonder to create a dessert version of its popular Pot Noodle snacks.

You simply added water and sprinkled over the crumbly topping to get an instant dessert.

Pot Sweet came in four flavours, including apple and blackberry crumble.

The risque advert, featuring a butler going crazy at a posh dinner party, warned how the taste ‘can drive anyone potty’.

But those who remember it say the real danger was scalding the roof of your mouth if you tried to eat it too soon.

Despite its short lifespan, many people would love to see Pot Sweet desserts make a comeback.

One person wrote: “I absolutely loved these. I have no idea why no one does something like them anymore.”

Another said: “What a blast from the past... volcanic sweet lava and lovely sweet crumble. Even the McDonald’s apple pie had nothing on this... diabetes in a pot.”

Week-End chocolates

Mackintosh’s Week-End chocolate assortment box was particularly popular in the 60s, 70s and 80s.

The contents included chocolate coconut, fruit jelly, chocolate cherry cup, chocolate cracknell and lime candy.

They weren’t just for the weekend, of course, but the advertising slogan memorably stated: “You’ve got all weekend to make up your mind.”

The Week-End box was first discontinued in 2007, before being briefly revived, and was scrapped again in 2019.

Toffee Logs and Nutty Logs

These small chocolates in the shape of a log are like the Marmite of the confectionery world.

While many people loved them, other people hated them with a passion.

They came in two forms, with either a hard toffee centre or a hazelnut filling.

People recalled being able to buy them for 1p in the 60s, and 2p in the 70s, and some told how they would fill a whole paper bag with the chocolates.

One person called them ‘the best’, another remembered how they were ‘lush’, and a third said ‘I loved them’.

But others said they hated the ‘horrible cheap chocolate’.

One person joked of the Toffee Logs: “I remember them well with every dental filling I have.”

Desperate Dan Bars

If there was one thing Desperate Dan, hero of The Dandy comic, loved even more than cow pie, it was his own Desperate Dan Bar.

It wasn’t just fans of The Dandy who agreed either. Lots of people have fond memories of the popular chewy bar advertised as a ‘Mighty Fine Chew’.

The Desperate Dan Bar belonged to the family of bars known as the ‘tooth collectors’, also including Wham bars.

It was orange with crunchy black sugar crystals, leading one wag to remark how it ‘looked like it was dropped in gravel’.

One fan called it ‘pure heaven’, while another said ‘my teeth are one edge at the mention of Dan bars’.

A third wrote: “Desperate Dan Bars were the best thing ever. I can't believe nobody had the sense or emotional intelligence to bring them back.”

For more sweet nostalgia, check out our look back at popular treats you might remember by a different name.