The Quintessential ’90s Dessert, Viennetta Ice Cream Cakes, Returns to Stores After 30 Years

Everything old is new again, nostalgia sells, and the elder millennials of the world have risen through corporate ranks to positions of power, allowing them to bring back the greatest hits of their childhood. That’s why we’ve had Gilmore Girls and Saved by the Bell return to television, plus the Fresh Prince reunion and the Princess Bride table read. On the food side, there’s been the return of Dunkaroos and now, the big news of the week from the freezer aisle: Good Humor is bringing back Viennetta ice cream cakes. 

For those who didn’t grow up in the Atari era, Viennetta was a cake-shaped ice cream treat, made by Breyer’s (which is owned by Unilever, as is Good Humor, hence the connection), and it was, to our tiny, pre-internet kid brains, the fanciest thing on the planet. Wavy layers of ice cream and chocolate that cracked at the touch of a fork come all piped and molded into an elegant frozen dessert just big enough to feel like a celebration, yet small enough to be reasonable for a single family. As elusive and special as the king size candy bar on Halloween, it was the quintessential fine-dining dessert for the chicken nugget set. Truly, no childhood sleepover was ever cooler than if you got to eat your slices of Viennetta in front of TGIF or SNICK.

Now, after almost a 30-year absence, the treat will be coming back. Unilever announced its return on Monday this week — although it should be noted, it’s just the single vanilla flavor that is making a comeback. Other intriguing additions to the Unilever frozen slate include Klondike Wake Me Up Coffee Donuts, which somehow work the breakfast combination of donuts and coffee into a frozen dessert, and double red velvet-flavored Magnum ice cream.