6 Discontinued Starbucks Bakery Items That Deserved To Stay

Once upon a time, Starbucks had some real bangers in the bakery case. So much so, in fact, that the internet has a lot to say about it. One Reddit thread has former and current Starbucks employees (which are internally called partners) mourning the loss of fallen food items. Us long-time Starby customers are saddened just as much.

Sure, today's bakery case still offers a decent mix of regular and rotating treats, like the chocolate chip cookie, which has thankfully been a mainstay and earned the top spot in our recent Starbucks pastry ranking. But the question begs to be asked: Why did some of these baked goods have to go in the first place when they were so beloved? Apparently, the company removes bakery items for a variety of reasons, including supply chain issues, production costs, and lack of sales.

Still, we saw what happened last year when Starbucks discontinued its iconic double chocolate brownie, reportedly due to poor sales. The backlash from devastated customers was so strong the brownie eventually returned. That means there could be some hope for items on this list to be brought back from the Starbucks bakery graveyard. Until then, we'll have to settle for reminiscing about the good times we had with these baked goods.

With almond croissants and almond croissant-inspired creations having a major viral moment on social media right now, the powers that be at Starbucks are probably kicking themselves for discontinuing this one. And judging by the hundreds of distraught comments across the internet, it certainly wasn't because the pastry was unpopular. In fact, several Reddit threads were created when it officially got axed years ago.

The caption of a Reddit post stated, "It was the best part of my morning. If it's been discontinued my life will never be the same." A commenter replied, "Partner here. I'm genuinely devastated. This news caused me to cry and have a fight with my fiancé when he ate the one I had in the fridge from my last close." Some commenters even admitted calling and complaining to corporate, but clearly corporate didn't budge.

In a different Reddit post, another Starbucks partner wrote, "Crazy. My store sells a zillion of these a day." One commenter speculated the decision may have come down to low profit margins, as the pastry's price may not have reflected the cost of its premium ingredients, including almonds and frangipane (the almond-based filling). Considering the devoted fan following this flaky pastry amassed, you'd think the company would have explored ways to keep it around while improving margins. (As an alternative, Costco offers tasty almond croissants seasonally.)

Anybody who's ever had a Starbucks old fashioned donut (whether plain or chocolate with glaze) would probably admit it was a fairly average cake donut, yet the old fashioned donut managed to stick around for 20 years. Not because it was a longtime bestseller, but because it served as a familiar favorite among the more artisan-inspired offerings in the bakery case.

When the donut first appeared at Starbucks in 2005, they were actually produced by a booming Seattle donut shop, Top Pot Doughnuts — a partnership reportedly sought out by the Starbucks founder, Howard Schultz. Shortly after the partnership ended in 2011, Starbucks acquired La Boulange Bakery, which presumably began making the old fashioned donuts instead (more on that in a bit).

We said goodbye to the bakery case fixture in 2025, probably due to an overpriced, "meh"-tasting donut having low sales. At least, that's the impression left by Starbucks partners and customers on Reddit. One partner said, "Good. We never sell those such a waste. In 5 stores I been we sell maybe 1 a week." Another commenter shared, "Tbh the Starbucks donuts were just meh. And overpriced for sure, but that's all part of the experience, right?" There's always Little Debbie's new chocolate old fashioned donuts.

Introduced in 2013 following Starbucks' acquisition of the legendary San Francisco bakery La Boulange, the morning bun combined the flaky, buttery layers we love about croissants with the swirled shape of a cinnamon roll along with a sprinkling of coarse sugar on top which caramelized once heated. Does that sound like something deserving of being discontinued? Not at all. Yet the pastry got the axe in 2021. Across the internet, customers mourned the morning bun's departure, with one TikTok creator pleading for Starbucks to bring it back for those — like herself — who were traumatized by it being discontinued.

Over on Reddit, a post titled "Day 1147 of wishing the morning bun was back TT" drew comments from customers saying things like, "I would jump off of a mountain to eat one of these again." Or another, "Reminiscing about the morning bun and then found this post. RIP morning bun. You will be missed."

However, according to comments from Starbucks partners on another Reddit thread, the morning bun actually wasn't a strong seller. One partner explained, "I have worked at 5 stores in almost 8 years and the morning bun has never been a top seller." Another put it more bluntly, "They rarely sold, they were a loss leader and thus deserving of the cut." For those looking to fill their morning bun void, you can always get creative with puff pastry or go to Costco, which sells morning buns for under $10. (In fact, these are said to be even better than Starbucks' version.)

The toffee almond bar takes us back to the early- to mid-2000s. This blondie-like treat featured a rich almond flavor and was packed with chunks of toffee, dark chocolate, and white chocolate. It's frequently mentioned on forums, blogs, social media, and other corners of the internet as one of Starbucks' most-missed bakery items, with hardly anyone chiming in to disagree about its greatness.

Perhaps more telling is the sheer number of toffee almond bar copycat recipes online. On Instagram, one recipe developer's recent recreation was flooded with overjoyed comments like, "If you crack the code on the toffee almond bar, you will go down in history as the best who ever lived. I have been searching forever for a good copycat; it was my FAVORITE!" Another user wrote, "I've tried to find a copycat recipe so many times and never have found it! It was my go-to for so long when I was in like high school!"

There aren't any online sources confirming — or even speculating — why this baked good had to leave. However, several commenters from that same copycat recipe on Instagram as well as on a Reddit thread claimed the toffee almond bar is still available at some Barnes & Noble Cafés, which license the Starbucks brand and many of its recipes.

Starbucks' green siren logo suddenly looked like the Grinch when the company discontinued the cranberry orange scone from its holiday lineup. Not to be confused with the cranberry orange bliss bar, the cranberry orange scone was a classic, buttery scone studded with dried cranberries and orange zest which was finished with a sweet orange glaze. It had been a recurring seasonal favorite since the early 2000s, although it's unclear when (or why) it was discontinued. Online discussions about it being discontinued began surfacing around 2020, meaning this baked good got chopped before Starbucks stopped selling bananas (which no one even noticed).

The cranberry orange scone's quiet disappearance may have been part of a larger shift, considering Starbucks has since discontinued nearly all of its iconic scones. That includes the year-round blueberry scone and full-sized vanilla bean scone along with seasonal favorites like the pumpkin and maple scone. The petite vanilla bean scone is the lone survivor. While there's no shortage of scone-related outrage across social media, much like with the toffee almond bar, there is some consolation for those hoping to relive the nostalgia with countless copycat recipes of the cranberry orange scone available online as well as recreations of other Starbucks scone flavors that are still sorely missed.

For those of us lucky enough to experience Bantam Bagels' bite-sized bagel dough balls stuffed with cream cheese, we have Lori Greiner from "Shark Tank" to thank. In 2014, Bantam Bagels appeared on the show, where Greiner invested $275,000 for an 11% stake in the company. A few years later, a partnership with Starbucks was born, bringing the mini stuffed bagels to over 8,500 Starbucks locations.

The bagels were offered in several flavors, including classic plain stuffed with whipped cream cheese, everything stuffed with vegetable cream cheese, and cinnamon nutmeg stuffed with maple butter cream cheese. Unfortunately, the beloved bakery snack was discontinued in 2022 despite Bantam Bagels being acquired by T. Marzetti Company in 2018.

Starbucks stopped selling these bagels before the company went completely under due to supply chain challenges during the pandemic which made it difficult to maintain the product's availability. It was without a doubt a favorite among Starbucks customers. In a Reddit thread from 2020, fans shared their appreciation for the product, noting that while they could no longer get them at Starbucks, Bantam Bagels could still be found in grocery stores. Sadly, that option has also disappeared.