10 Discontinued Culver's Menu Items You'll Probably Never Eat Again

Culver's has discontinued countless menu items over the span of 40-plus years. While it's mostly known for its signature ButterBurgers and extensive selection of frozen custard flavors, it also has a wide range of chicken and seafood options, along with vegetarian options. In fact, the chain offers more variety than many, including limited-time-only items, which, unfortunately, can be a good or bad thing. The upside is that you may never get bored, as there's always something new to try. The downside is having to continuously watch your favorite items disappear into the ether.

With such an expansive menu, just imagine how many people have walked into Culver's, only to find their go-to missing in action. Some discontinued menu items, like the Pepper Grinder Pub Burger, get a second shot, though it's worth pointing out that Culver's waited almost 10 years before bringing it back. Others, however, inspire fans to make Reddit threads, Facebook posts, and petitions to demand their return. If you're a long-time fan of Culver's, you're probably used to its revolving door of menu items and might recall some of these discontinued items you'll probably never eat again.

A shocking number of frozen custard flavors have disappeared from Culver's menu over the years. Even more surprising is that, at one point, it offered over 50. Fans can still experience new flavors via the chain's Flavor of the Day, which varies from city to city. That said, of all the discontinued flavors that pop up in online comment sections, one name you're bound to see is Orange Creamsicle; these creamsicles were a popular frozen treat that usually combined vanilla ice cream with an orange-sherbert-flavored outer later.

"I lived for this flavor a few years ago. Think of those orange push-popsicles but creamier," said someone on Reddit. In the same thread, a supposed employee alleged that the flavor was discontinued due to a change in suppliers. Meanwhile, on another Reddit thread, the Orange Creamsicle popped up again, with someone saying, "Basically every one of my favorite flavors has been discontinued." To underscore how popular it was, people consistently bring it up on Reddit threads that cover all discontinued Culver's menu items, not just frozen custard flavors.

Sweet potato fries landed on the Culver's menu in 2011 as a limited-time premium side. They were such a hit that Culver's decided to bring them back annually. A 2020 Facebook post, however, was their last known sighting. Culver's doesn't rank very high on our list of worst-to-best fast food fries but considering how much people talk about the sweet potato fries, those must've been a different experience altogether. One person conducted a Facebook survey to see how many people wanted sweet potato fries as a year-round option, and there are still quite a few fans.

It's unclear why Culver's decided to completely phase out sweet potato fries, especially after bringing them back for nearly 10 years straight. "[We] no longer have seasonal sweet potato fries, which I would [dip] in marshmallow sauce, very sad," said a Reddit user on a thread about favorite discontinued Culver's menu items. An alleged employee offered Redditors some insight into why they were removed, saying, "It puts too much stress on the fry cook and fryers thus making production slow down. So, since they only sold it for a limited time anyways they found no use for it."

The Philly Ribeye Steak goes all the way back to the 1990s. Due to how old it is, there isn't much information online about it, but there is a commercial floating around from 1998. The sandwich featured thin slices of ribeye steak, grilled onions, and melted cheese on a sub roll. In the commercial, a voice actor says, "Finally, a steak sandwich good enough to be Culver's," so it's fairly likely that the sandwich had been in the works for a while.

Considering that people still talk about it, it must've been one for the books. "As long as they were not overcooked, these were fantastic, especially with some chipotle sauce or the like," said a former employee on Reddit. "I loved making this on my breaks and chopping it up, mixing a pack of hot sauce and steak sauce into it, with shredded cheese," said another person who preferred a personal touch. Somebody else chimed in with fond memories of the sandwich, too, saying, "I was around when my store discontinued this. Shame, it was a good sandwich." And that pretty much sums up the general consensus. 

The spiritual successor to the Philly Ribeye Steak sandwich arrived sometime around the early 2010s. There were two iterations: the Shaved Prime Rib and the Prime Rib and Mushroom Melt. Both rib sandwiches were discontinued around 2019, but the one people can't seem to let go of is the Shaved Prime Rib. Its removal upset fans so much that we found complaints from 2022 on a Culver's Facebook post from 2010. "Why did they remove it? It was the best," lamented more than one comment. Another person denounced the chain completely, saying, "Bring it back! Haven't been to Culver's since it went away."

Someone else who was clearly missing the sandwich went on a futile 6-month search to find a similar sandwich. The backlash even made its way over to Reddit, with one employee saying, "Prime rib was delicious especially with some of the LTO sauces we've had over the years." They'd drizzle it with the chain's limited-time-only A.1. pepper mayonnaise sauce. To top it off, another person offered an even better suggestion, saying, "Go true OG and find the Philly Steak Sandwich build guide!"

There isn't much information available about Culver's Old Fashioned sodas, and so little, in fact, that one wonders if they even existed. According to employees, though, they definitely were a real thing, but closer to a secret menu item than an actual option. "This was my favorite little-known menu item when I was a manager about 15 years ago," said a former employee on Reddit, who then proceeded to share the original recipe. It's apparently made with soda water and a scoop of vanilla custard lightly blended with the syrup or fruit of your choice.

Since Old Fashioned sodas were never an official menu item, they technically were never discontinued. Employees still have all of the necessary ingredients to make them, though sadly, nowadays you'd be hard-pressed to find one who's heard of it, let alone who remembers the recipe. "I asked someone who's worked for Culver's since old-fashioned sodas were a thing and they didn't remember," said another employee on Reddit. To be fair, though, it seems that you get different answers depending on who you ask, because someone on another thread claimed that "You can still ask for the Old Fashioned Soda. The recipe is still available." Of course, that doesn't exactly make it official either.

Along with a wide range of frozen custard flavors, Culver's has an impressive sauce selection. From vinegary and tomato-forward to creamy and spicy, there's something for everyone, including limited-time flavors. The one discontinued flavor that customers find unforgettable is the Sweet and Sour sauce. Whether or not it was a limited-time-only sauce is unclear, but a post by Culver's on X confirms that it was pulled from the lineup in 2010. The reason given? It apparently wasn't moving enough units, so it was discontinued to make space for more popular flavors.

It's harder to justify that based on the number of fans who say they miss it, though. One person who was clearly still shaken up by its removal waited two years to respond to the post, saying, "So disappointed they got rid of the sweet and sour," which was followed by a string of similar complaints. Over on Reddit, someone said, "Disappointed that they're discontinuing it as it's one of the only lower-calorie sauces for tenders," meaning that it was also allegedly better for you. A few comments down, another person finally asked the question everyone was probably wondering: "Should I start a petition to get our sweet and sour sauce back?"

The last time customers could get their hands on Culver's Turkey Sourdough BLT was around 2009. It'd been a permanent menu item since at least 2003, but the reason for its removal is unclear. Due to its age, we couldn't even find a picture of it to show you how it looked. That said, based on employees and the famous acronym BLT, we can safely assume it featured grilled turkey, bacon, lettuce, and tomato on sourdough bread.

On a Reddit thread about retired Culver's menu items you'd like to see return, the Turkey BLT came up just as much as the fan-favorite fried chicken. "They used to have a turkey sourdough BLT forever ago that was so good!" said one person. Keep in mind that we're nearly 20 years removed from when the Turkey Sourdough BLT was available, which says a lot about its quality. The name popped up six times on a different Reddit thread, with one person commenting, "The turkey sourdough sandwich was a favorite of mine."

In a 2019 post on X, in response to a now-deleted customer complaint, Culver's confirmed the discontinuation of this healthy side item. Suffice it to say, people were not pleased. "Totally been under a rock for a while but just found out about the green beans. Can we reverse that decision? I mean, it's why I go," said one person in response to the bad news. On a Reddit thread about favorite discontinued menu items, the original poster was surprised to see someone mention green beans, saying, "I wasn't expecting anybody to say the green beans," but they weren't the only green bean supporters in the comments section.

Two people shouted out the green beans on another Reddit thread, and, in the "I Love Culver's" Facebook group, the green beans nearly beat out broccoli in an unofficial head-to-head comparison. If the love for green beans proves anything, it's that Culver's doesn't skimp on quality, even when it comes to their side items.

Fried chicken hasn't been on Culver's menu for around 10 years, but for some reason, fans treat it like the holy grail of discontinued menu items. It was apparently phased out because it required an additional 15 minutes to make and took up an entire fryer. But despite its age, people still request it. On a recent Reddit thread titled "Nostalgia Post: Bone-In Fried Chicken," someone said, "My dad and family [are] still talking about missing Culver's fried chicken." In fact, you'll find no shortage of Reddit threads, Facebook posts, and diatribes about Culver's discontinued fried chicken.

On another thread about discontinued gems, someone said, "Culver's Fried Chicken was always my favorite and made fresh to order. My family would call ahead and come pick it up." Over on Facebook, members of the "I love Culver's" group commiserated over the removal of fried chicken, with one person saying, "Since the chicken has been gone I've been gone." While its removal makes sense from an operational standpoint, considering how much people still talk about it, Culver's may want to consider opening up a fried chicken chain. 

The Pepper Grinder Pub Burger was released in 2015 as a limited-time-only option. It came on the heels of the Colby Jack Pub Burger, which at the time was Culver's most successful LTO burger ever, and it featured fresh, never frozen Midwest-raised beef, Swiss and cheddar cheeses, bacon, and four-pepper mayo served on an artisan bun. Despite the success of its predecessor, the limited-time window for the Pepper Grinder Pub Burger eventually closed, and it disappeared. It remained a distant, delicious memory for eight long years before Culver's randomly decided to reintroduce it in 2023, but still for a limited time only.

The burger resurfaced again in 2025 on an everything bun, but only at select locations, before disappearing yet again. "Pepper grinder Burger is off the chain. Make it Permanent!" read the title of a Reddit thread from the same year, which received a flood of support. "Just had a pepper grinder pub burger. It's delicious! I hope it doesn't disappear," begged someone on Facebook. People clearly love this burger but considering the time span between when Culver's first introduced it and when it was re-released, who knows if you'll get to eat it again.