The Old-School 'Luxury' Lunch Meat '70s Kids Packed For School

When you think of a luxurious lunch, a long, leisurely meal in a restaurant probably comes to mind. Maybe there's steak, seafood, or even a multi-course feast. You likely aren't thinking of lunch meat sandwiches, although in the 1970s, the word "luxury" was applied to one particular cold cut: Oscar Mayer's Luxury Loaf.

Luxury Loaf was advertised as a premium lunch meat from Oscar Mayer and was once one of its staple products. Luxury Loaf was dark reddish-pink with a mosaic of deli meat and fat, and the rectangular shape made the slices ideal for sandwiches. Though it's unclear exactly what it was made up of, the name gave it a touch of opulence. When discussing the luxurious processed meat, one Reddit user said, "That must have been for really special occasions!"

Luxury Loaf isn't the only one of Oscar Mayer's old-school deli meats that has since fallen out of fashion; it shares that honor with Picnic Loaf, Old-Fashioned Loaf, Luncheon Meat, and other nebulously named products. Today, Oscar Mayer sells plant-based hot dogs and many other processed deli meats but no Luxury Loaf.

While Oscar Mayer's Luxury Loaf has fallen from its place as the deluxe option in the brand's selection, you can, if you're curious, still taste a version today. While this particular Luxury Loaf was an American lunch item, its origins actually came from Germany. Luxury Loaf was a version of a centuries-old Bavarian traditional meatloaf called leberkäse. The name translates to "liver cheese," though liver doesn't always make it into the blend, which can also include pork, beef, bacon, lamb, or other game meats. There are specialty butchers, grocers, and delis that sell many different versions of luxury loaf or leberkäse. If you're looking for a challenge, you can even try making leberkäse at home.

Once you've got your hands on some modern-day luxury loaf, the most classic way to enjoy it is in a sandwich. You can make the sandwich with a simple hard roll, mustard, pickles, and a hot slice of leberkäse, which is a traditional Bavarian preparation known as leberkässemmel. On the other hand, if you want to embrace luxury loaf's time as a lunchbox staple, you can go old-school and serve it between fluffy slices of white bread with chips, an apple, and your favorite cookie on the side.