13 Discontinued Dairy Queen Menu Items We Wish Would Come Back

Few fast food chains evoke such a strong sense of childhood nostalgia as Dairy Queen. Founded in Joliet, Illinois, in 1940, Dairy Queens have been slinging Dilly Bars, Peanut Buster Parfaits, and Stackburgers since long before many of us were born. According to Rick Antonson's book, "Route 66 Still Kicks," the chain's founders chose the name Dairy Queen because they considered its soft-serve ice cream product to be "a queen among dairy products and the epitome of freshness and wholesomeness." Over 80 years later, the world seems to agree. The franchise's footprint has expanded exponentially over the years, and today, there are over 7,700 stores in countries ranging from Canada and Kuwait to Panama.

Dairy Queen has introduced its customers to countless smash hits over the years, and many fan favorites have stood the test of time and remain on the menu to this day. However, like any longstanding chain restaurant, plenty of other products have been removed from shelves — often with little to no warning or explanation — leaving fans confused and bummed out.

While some items can be ordered from a "secret menu" if stores have the ingredients, others appear to be gone for good (unless you happen upon a location in Moorhead, Minnesota, a store that regularly sells old-school DQ creations and keeps certain vintage novelties in stock). From the good to the bad to the downright ugly (looking at you, DQ Breeze), here are some discontinued Dairy Queen items that probably won't make a return to menus anytime soon.

Cookies and ice cream are the GOATs of the dessert world, and combining them is a move of simple genius. Sandwiching a slab of ice cream between two cookies has become a pretty common phenomenon in the world of ice cream-forward treats, so it should come as no surprise that Dairy Queen has its own version of this decadent creation. The basic DQ sandwich (vanilla soft serve ice cream squashed between two chocolate wafers) can still be found on menus, but once upon a time, the franchise took the ice cream sandwich to the next level in the form of the DQ Chipper sandwich.

The Chipper sandwich consisted of a layer of DQ's signature vanilla soft serve tucked between two sizable M&M cookies, the edge of which was then rolled in chocolate chips for a satisfying chocolatey "crust." That combo of chewy M&M cookies, velvety soft serve, and chocolate chips was a holy trifecta that delivered otherworldly flavor and mouthfeel. The Chipper sandwich graced Dairy Queen's menu for over 30 years, but was unfortunately pulled from rotation in 2016.

To date, there haven't been any whispers of a reappearance of the Chipper on DQ menus. However, you may be able to score one of these frosty treats at the Dairy Queen in Moorhead, Minnesota, a long-standing franchise whose owners take a bit of a Wild West approach and offer an assortment of long-lost treats.

Wet walnuts may not be as popular today as they once were (the unappetizing name could have a little something to do with that), but this sugary, nut-studded topping is easily one of the best sauces to pair with desserts like ice cream. Wet walnuts are made by combining oven-roasted walnuts or walnut pieces with syrup, leading to a sticky, crunchy, toasty, saccharine confection. You won't find them at most ice cream shops nowadays, but Dairy Queen did feature wet walnuts on its menus once upon a time.

There's value in keeping things simple, but candidly, DQ's current sundae topping options of hot fudge, chocolate, caramel, and strawberry could use some sprucing up. Many ice cream lovers enjoy the crunch of chopped nuts on their soft serve, and wet walnuts are an ideal one-two punch of texture and flavor. It's unclear exactly why wet walnuts were unceremoniously yanked from DQ's stores, but comments on one Reddit post lamenting the loss of this fan-favorite, sticky-and-sweet garnish suggest that both the rising cost of walnuts and a lack of popularity may be to blame.

Since their introduction in 1985, Dairy Queen's Blizzards have arguably reigned supreme as the franchise's best-loved frozen treat. The soft-serve wizards at DQ have invented and released countless Blizzard variations throughout the years, ranging from simple faves like Oreo and cookie dough to outrageous, Frankenstein-like concoctions like the grasshopper mousse pie (cool mint, graham pie crumbles, and chocolate chunks). Some Blizzards have stood the test of time, while others have fallen by the wayside, either due to a lack of popularity or because certain flavors were created as limited-time releases in the first place.

Anytime a menu item disappears, there's bound to be a disappointed fan out there somewhere, but DQ has put the kibosh on quite a few Blizzards that were insanely popular. The Sour Patch Kids Blizzard was weirdly beloved, the M&M's peanut butter monster cookie Blizzard was a smash hit, and the Oreo Brownie Earthquake Blizzard had a fan base rivaling that of the Beatles. All is not lost, however — some discontinued Dairy Queen Blizzard flavors make short reappearances on DQ's menus or can be ordered as secret menu items if a given store has the ingredients.

In addition to Blizzards, there are a number of other "officially discontinued" items on this list that can still be whipped up if the store you're visiting carries the necessary mix-ins, toppings, or other ingredients. Case in point: Dairy Queen's vintage Dixie Belle Sundae. Thought to have cropped up on DQ menus in the 1950s, there's no confirmed recipe for the Dixie Belle Sundae floating around in cyberspace, but it most likely consisted of DQ's soft serve topped with hot fudge, butterscotch, and pecans. However, some recipes have also swapped caramel for butterscotch, which sounds just as delightful to us.

The ingredients are pretty simple — locations that carry hot fudge sundaes will, of course, have hot fudge around. While butterscotch may be hit or miss (butterscotch dipped cones may crop up as a limited-time offering at some stores), swapping in caramel does the trick just as well. Pecans are a wild card, but it's not uncommon for a franchise to have them on hand as a special offering. Dying to try this refreshing retro treat but can't find a DQ that carries pecans in your area? Sneak 'em into your purse or backpack and thank us later.

There's something innately comforting about digging into a pile of vanilla ice cream atop a slice of piping-hot rhubarb pie, or a scoop of butter pecan ice cream slowly melting into a warm, freshly baked brownie. The experience of two drastically opposing temperatures in one bite is a delight. In the mid-2010s, Dairy Queen briefly experimented with selling hot snacks and dessert with a line dubbed DQ Bakes!. Its Hot Desserts à la Mode selection included a triple chocolate brownie, a fudge-stuffed chocolate chip cookie, and a delectable apple tart. All were served warm with a hearty scoop of soft serve on the side.

Each hot dessert had its perks, but the apple tart took the cake — or perhaps, the pie. It consisted of a buttery pie crust loaded with pureed tart Granny Smith apples, brown sugar, and some rolled oats for a bit of crunch topped off with a drizzle of caramel and, of course, vanilla soft serve. Unfortunately, none of DQ's Desserts à la Mode remain on the menu today. While there's no telling whether the apple tart will make a comeback, never say never. Fast food franchises revive discontinued menu items all the time, and Dairy Queen is no exception.

In the '90s and early '00s, frozen yogurt was all the rage. A generation raised on meat and potatoes was getting sharper with its nutrition knowledge, and savvy restaurants and chains began marketing fro-yo as a healthier alternative to ice cream. Frozen yogurt is often packed with sugar or artificial sweeteners and emulsifying agents, but it's generally a lot lower in fat and calories than ice cream, and it may even pack a probiotic punch — thus, the fro-yo era was born. 

In the case of Dairy Queen, this meant unveiling a frozen yogurt alternative to the ever-popular Blizzard dubbed the DQ Breeze. A 1991 advertisement for the DQ Breeze in The Jersey Journal states that the dessert was made with non-fat and cholesterol-free frozen yogurt, presumably with the customer's choice of mix-ins. In theory, it's not the worst idea — swapping fro-yo for the Blizzard's traditional soft serve certainly cut back on fat and calories. However, the Breeze turned out to be a spectacular failure for Dairy Queen, and although it remained in stores for over a decade, sales were so poor that significant quantities of frozen yogurt would reportedly go bad before being used.

Oreos and brownie-related products both take up some significant real estate on Dairy Queen's menu. With treats like the Brownie and Oreo Cupfection and the Oreo Brookie Blizzard, it's easy to get an Oreo and brownie fix. Once upon a time, there was another option: the Oreo Brownie Earthquake. The Earthquake contained just a few simple ingredients: vanilla soft serve buried under copious quantities of fudgy brownies and crumbled Oreo cookies, topped with lava-like hot fudge. It had nearly the same ingredients of the Brownie and Oreo Cupfection of today (which adds marshmallow topping), but something about it was inexplicably special.

Dairy Queen never gave a reason for discontinuing the Oreo Brownie Earthquake sundae, and considering its ingredients are ubiquitous across the franchise's products, there genuinely doesn't seem to be any sound logic for its removal. Fans of the soft serve treat still reminisce about it, creating copycat recipes on TikTok and commiserating on DQ nostalgia Reddit threads. Because brownies, Oreos, and hot fudge are available at most stores, it's likely available as a secret menu item, but there's no telling if or when this creamy, chocolatey delight will ever reappear as an official DQ offering.

There are endless types of barbecue sauce, but if you like yours on the sugary side, there's no sauce like Kansas City's. Typically made with a tomato base and molasses or brown sugar, Kansas City barbecue sauce is uniquely sweet and pairs beautifully with a variety of smoked meats. You won't find anything barbecue-related on Dairy Queen's menu these days, but the chain briefly dabbled in the 'cue world when it released a Kansas City barbecue pork sandwich in 2017 as an extension of its DQ Bakes! line.

The sandwich came on a thick, pretzel-style bun and was loaded with melt-in-your-mouth pulled pork, crispy onions, pickles for a little tang in each bite, and it was smothered in a sugary-sweet Kansas City-style sauce. Barbecue zealots may be skeptical about the quality of a sandwich from a fast food chain (especially one known for frozen desserts), but Dairy Queen's customers were impressed.

At the time, YouTube reviewer JoeysWorldTour raved, "The bun is soft, it's beautiful, it's thick. They weren't afraid to put on the sauce ... The fresh onions gives it crunch, and like I said, the moistness of the pulled pork is like fresh — like out of this world." Unfortunately, for reasons unknown, the Kansas City barbecue pork sandwich's life on the DQ menu was a short one, and it was pulled from stores around 2019.

The Dilly Bar has been a DQ staple since the franchise's early days. While it wasn't on the menu at the very first Dairy Queen, which was founded in 1940, the Dilly Bar has been winning DQ customers over since 1955. The classic Dilly Bar is retro simplicity on a stick — a circular slab of vanilla soft serve frozen on a Popsicle stick and coated in chocolate. Dilly Bars are currently available with chocolate, cherry, and butterscotch coatings (all encasing plain vanilla soft serve), and are sold prepackaged, so there's no opportunity to experiment with different ice cream or coating flavors.

However, for a spell, DQ dazzled customers with the Mint Dilly Bar, a serving of mint soft serve (rather than the standard vanilla) enrobed in dark chocolate on a popsicle stick. Mint ice cream is one of those love-it-or-loathe-it foods, but the people who love it generally really love it, so fans were pretty ticked off when the Mint Dilly Bar was tossed. If you're curious about this minty-fresh, chocolatey treat, you may be able to purchase a six-pack of Mint Dilly Bars at the Dairy Queen in Moorhead, Minnesota. Select locations have also brought it back sporadically as a limited-time release, so mint ice cream lovers should keep their eyes peeled.

Funnel cakes are made by squeezing dough through a funnel or other tubing directly into hot oil, resulting in a twisty, deep-fried concoction with an irresistibly crispy, golden coating encasing heavenly fluffy innards. The "cakes" are then topped off with sweet additions like powdered sugar, chopped fruit, or flavored syrups. One doesn't often see funnel cakes outside of festivals, state fairs, and other special events, but in 2016, Dairy Queen broke the mold by offering funnel cakes at select locations.

Given that DQ is primarily a soft-serve joint, the chain put its own special twist on the classic dessert with Funnel Cake à la Mode, which was released as part of the DQ Bakes! collection. The confection consisted of a classic funnel cake base sprinkled with powdered sugar, topped with a hearty scoop of DQ's signature soft serve, and finished off with the customer's pick of fudge, strawberry, or caramel topping. As is the case with many discontinued Dairy Queen items, the reasoning for the removal of funnel cakes from the franchise's stores is murky — perhaps the DQ Bakes! line is simply cursed? We're crossing our fingers that these bad boys make a triumphant return to the menu at some point!

A frozen banana dipped in chocolate and served on a stick, perhaps rolled in graham cracker crumbles or sprinkled with chopped nuts, is a delicious treat that allows us to enjoy dessert while sneaking in some fiber and potassium on the down-low. Creamy and naturally sweet with just a hint of tang, bananas are a wonderful pairing for sweet chocolate, and freezing everything together takes the combo to the next level. The dessert is colloquially referred to as a "monkey tail"; a fitting moniker, considering both monkeys' association with bananas and the fact that the treat somewhat resembles a monkey's tail.

Dairy Queen sold Monkey Tails on its official menu in the early days. While the exact timeline is unclear, the frozen, chocolate-covered tidbits were official DQ menu items from the late 1960s through at least the '80s, and given their long run, one can assume the treat was a solid seller. Monkey Tails haven't been officially offered at most Dairy Queen locations for many years, but these frosty goodies are easy enough to make at home.

That said, it's possible to try the official DQ version of a Monkey Tail if you're willing to venture north — along with several other novelty items, these discontinued treats are still sold at the charmingly rebellious Dairy Queen in Moorhead, Minnesota.

With an ever-calorie-conscious public slowly turning on bread, wraps experienced some time in the limelight in the early to mid-2010s. Fast food chains, grocery stores, gas stations, and full-service restaurants were serving up wrap versions of popular sandwiches everywhere you looked, and the handy, grab-and-go meals were a huge hit. Always keeping up with the trends, the launch of the DQ Bakes! line in 2015 originally included three snack melts along with the oven-baked desserts and hot sandwiches: chicken bacon BBQ, chicken quesadilla, and buffalo chicken.

The buffalo chicken snack melt was made with chicken strips, a lightly spicy buffalo sauce, cheddar cheese, and cooling ranch dressing all stuffed inside a tortilla and heated in the oven. It was a respectable portion and delivered a strong flavor, especially considering the price (less than $3 at the time). Fans liked the buffalo sauce's flavor and decent portion size — one customer was even impressed that DQ prepared the sandwiches in-house rather than just reheating them from frozen. Regrettably, Dairy Queen's buffalo chicken snack melt shared the same fate as many of its brethren in the DQ Bakes! line, and is no longer found on menus.

Remember the pure, unbridled joy of sipping on a root beer float as a kid on a hot summer day? Well, years ago, Dairy Queen took the classic float to the next level with old-fashioned sodas. Now, traditional floats involve simply pouring root beer (or your soda of choice) over a scoop of ice cream. And while there doesn't seem to be an exact recipe for DQ's old-fashioned sodas floating around, comments on Reddit suggest they involved standard soda water, flavored syrups (chocolate, strawberry, or pineapple), soft serve ice cream, and a dollop of whipped cream to top it all off.

While old-fashioned sodas haven't graced Dairy Queen's official menus in decades, the chain still features fountain sodas. If you don't mind potentially confusing the cashier, then, you can order a chocolate soda as a secret menu item at Dairy Queen – provided the store has the necessary ingredients. You'll want to order chocolate soft serve in a cup with chocolate syrup, then have the cup filled with soda water; ask for it to be stirred lightly, before finishing with whipped cream. You can try experimenting with different combinations of sodas, soft serve flavors, and syrups, as well, if old-fashioned sodas are your jam.