Fast-Food Chains and Their Menus Barely Resemble Those of the Past — And This Viral Post Reveals How Stark the Difference Is

As the inflation-triggered competition for value between big brands heats up, nostalgia for fast-food restaurants — and their affordable prices — is high. One X account takes us back to a simpler time of extreme color schemes, flamboyant designs and low prices.

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X account Time Capsule Tales is publishing photos of fast food icons like Taco Bell , Burger King, Pizza Hut , McDonald's and others in their 1970s, '80s and '90s glory.

The nostalgic pics include a Burger King that was found " fully intact " behind a wall at a long-closed shopping mall in Wilmington, Delaware, in 2022.

One highlight is the circa 1970s-'80s Taco Bell menu, which explains in great detail what a taco and a burrito are, complete with a sound-it-out, phonetic pronunciation of each food — "Tah-co" and "Buh-ree-toh."

The menu is from when the brand called its Pintos and Cheese refried beans by a different name — Frijoles (Fre-ho-les) and still served the now-extinct Enchirito, which made a brief comeback last year.

Then, there are the prices. One retro Taco Bell menu from 1984 shows how inexpensive it used to be to eat fast food. The prices for drinks — $.45 for a small Pepsi compared to $2.29 today for the same beverage — are immediately noticeable. But it's the Combo Burrito Meal for $1.19 that really stands out. Taco Bell's least expensive combo is the value-inspired temporary $5.99 combo , with prices for combo meals rising from there to the $11.29 price point for the 2 Chicken Chalupa Supreme Combo.