This Vintage KFC Dinner Came With A Dessert You Won't Find Today

Ever-changing menus are as much a part of fast food as drive-thru windows, combo meals, and clever slogans. As beloved items come and go, they bring about a certain nostalgia for those who remember them fondly. KFC has undergone its fair share of changes over the years, but at the heart of its menu — you know, aside from those famous 11 herbs and spices — are family-style meals. Back in the day, those same family-style KFC meals once came with a 10-inch lemon pie.

At some unspecified point in the late 1960s or early '70s, KFC (then known as Kentucky Fried Chicken) offered family-sized meals for just $4.80, which equates to a little over $40 in 2026. According to a vintage advertisement floating around online (which limited the deal to the greater Atlanta area), that meal featured the family-sized lemon pie alongside familiar favorites like chicken, mashed potatoes, gravy, coleslaw, and rolls. While all the savory items remain staples of the KFC menu, the lemon pie is not.

Today, a single cake (not pie) on the current menu costs $5.49, but back in the '70s, KFC offered both turnovers and pie for as little as $0.25 and $0.30, respectively. By the mid-'90s, the Mega Meal, another family combo, included a family-size double chocolate chip cake. And, if we're talking KFC items that deserve a revival, the Little Bucket Parfaits were on the menu for decades before being discontinued in 2012.

The KFC lemon pie may be gone, but the memories haven't faded. "Those small and large cream pies were some of the best I ever tasted," noted one fan on Facebook. An alleged former employee on the same post describes making fresh whipped cream in huge mixers to top the sweet desserts. In some places, the pies were evidently so popular that they consistently sold out — if any were left, employees recall eagerly scooping them up to take home.

KFC's family meal with a whole pie promotion didn't stop at just lemon either. There were even times when KFC offered a week-long promotion of a free cherry pie with the purchase of a bucket or a barrel of chicken, all in honor of George Washington's birthday. That aside, decision makers at the chain seem to have taken note of customers' particular fondness for sweet, tangy lemon desserts.

In some markets, KFC offers a lemon cake as a dessert option alongside chocolate chip cake. Additionally, in the heyday of the Little Bucket Parfait, lemon was one of the three flavors offered. While the lemon pie is a thing of the chain's past, plenty of classic offerings and famous KFC side dishes have stood the test of time. Chicken, mashed potatoes and gravy, coleslaw, and rolls are still firmly part of KFC's menu.