Opinion: 3 Chain Restaurants That Used To Be Way Better

Now I know it’s human nature for our opinions to change as we get older. The things we want and look forward to at the end of the day vary depending on a handful of experiences. However, doesn’t it seem like some stuff was just way better as kids? Fast food joints were the favorite go-to after a sporting event. Was there just something about feeling like you were rewarded with a treat you didn’t get every night that made it seem like it was so much better than it was? Looking back on it, there are a few places that have fallen off or never evolved with the times and should be avoided at all costs:

Pizza Hut

I don’t want to insult their marketing department, but everyone “out-pizza’s the Hut”. Yes, even those $5 specials at Little Caesars have come a long way to bounce Pizza Hut as your quick and family-friendly offering. Pizza Hut used to be great as a kid. You used to get free pizza if you read so many books each summer. The buffet was on point. After winning in Little League everyone would meet up at the Pizza Hut.

Too bad the nostalgia didn’t last. Mass-market pizza will never be the same thing as a traditional pizzeria and we’re okay with that. The problem is, Pizza Hut tried to push quick-service pizza at traditional pizzeria prices. You can have mediocre pizza at a great price or great pizza at a higher price. There is no in-between. I can’t remember the last time I heard someone say they were craving a Pizza Hut pizza let alone walked into one of their restaurants. And don’t get me started on their chicken wings.

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Taco Bell

Remember when you used to go into a Taco Bell restaurant and feed your whole family with a $20 bill? Yeah, those days are long gone, but that’s not exclusive to Taco Bell. The problem is the value that used to be associated with the brand is gone too. A chicken quesadilla used to be $2.99 and you would be able to taste actual chicken in it. The last time I went to Taco Bell it was $5.99 and when I opened it up more than 1/3 of it was empty!

Don’t bother reaching out or calling the number. After posting about it, someone from Taco Bell reached out to say “DM us so we can fix this” and never responded from that point out. For the price you pay these days and the quality of food, you might as well just skip Taco Bell and head to Moe’s or Chipotle and get a better variety of food.

McDonald’s

This was a go-to as a kid. The Happy Meals with the toys. The burgers were flavorful. Heck Mcdonald’s would have an offering with a variety of different sandwiches, a great Value Menu, and the best ice cream sundae for cheap. Now you can’t go into McDonald’s and get an ice cream, their machines never work. They had all-day breakfast and then took it away. On top of that, they keep getting rid of the good menu items, bringing them back, and getting rid of them again, and now no one knows what’s going on with the McRib, Snack Wrap, or Steak/Egg/Cheese bagel sandwich (always sub for the round egg).

The burgers are generic and plain these days. Unlike Wendy’s and Burger King, they have no specialty burgers. They’re offerings are just the same thing they’ve been pushing for years. McDonald’s feels like their restaurants haven’t changed since they were first introduced with the exception of going to the bland grey color scheme.

Have these restaurants really lost their touch or were things just better back then?