My favorite store-bought snacks as a kid were Dunkaroos and Oreo O’s. A couple years ago I came across a small row of Dunkaroos in the cookie and cracker aisle at Walmart. Shocked, I had to buy a box. I had heard that Canada still had the product, but I don’t know how or why they randomly ended up at the store I was in. I was so excited to have a box in my possession. When I peeled up the plastic to access the treat, the smell hit me. It was just as yummy as I remembered, with the cinnamon graham cookies, and the best part, the vanilla frosting with rainbow sprinkles. The flavor combo is such a distinct memory of my childhood. I have never spotted Dunkaroos anywhere since that day though.
So, while I have had Dunkaroos in my life somewhat recently (and, albeit, very briefly), it has been over a decade since I have had the delicious taste of my other favorite childhood snack food item, Oreos O’s. True Oreo O’s fans know that the cereal has been available in South Korea for many years (and super fans may have even managed to get their hands on a box), but the majority of us haven’t had the cereal since it went off the American grocery shelves in 2007.
1998 Oreo O’s box and a box of Dunkaroos
I was pretty devastated at the time when I realized their departure from grocery shelves, because they were reliably my favorite. Not only are Oreo O’s a delicious snack as a cereal with milk, but they are also quite tasty just simply out of the box. I wasn’t really allowed, or super interested, in most of the really “sugary” cereals back then, but my mom would let me get Oreo O’s every so often because she knew how much I loved them and that I would actually eat it all.
When Oreo O’s were announced to return, I was truly both shocked and completely thrilled. It seemed like a long time coming (and the box even states “the highly anticipated return”). I couldn’t wait to see if they were still as good as the kid-version of me thought they were, and also prayed they wouldn’t be a let down.
The cereal is only available a Walmart for the first three months, so it should be in other stores sometime in September. I made a trip to Walmart, hoping they would be in store, and was greeted with a huge display outside of the cereal aisle. I power walked over to get my hands on one!
For those unfamiliar, the cereal is “Oreo cookie bits and a crème coating” combined to create a crunchy and chocolaty bite.
Price: $3.98
Box: Firstly, the box is huge, which is a plus if you are a fan who has waited a long time for it. If you just want to try it though and aren’t sure if you will like it, the large box size might be a deterrent. Once the cereal is available in more stores though, it will probably come in a smaller size. Between my mom and I though, we have already made it through an entire box. The design on the box is a bit different than the original, and focuses on the “return” as well as Oreo fun facts, but it still contains the spirit of the original.
Smell: The smell is just what I remember. For me it is very distinct memory of the chocolatey sweetness, with a hint of cream. They don’t smell quite the same as opening a box of Oreo cookies, but do create a very distinct cookies and cream waft.
Look/shape: The “O” shape of the cereal is a bumpy circle with little white specks throughout. They have a dusty charcoal color straight out of the box, but once milk is poured on them they turn more of dark black like the wafer cookie of an Oreo.
Taste: The taste is chocolatey, but not the type of chocolate you would find in other cereals like Cocoa Pebbles or Cocoa Puffs. Your milk will not turn into chocolate milk with this, (just filled with sweet little bits of cookies and cream!). It is perfectly crunchy (not too hard and not too crumbly), and the little specks of cream bring the flavor together with a touch of extra sweetness. It doesn’t get super soggy right away when milk is added, which is also a plus. It tastes like a crunchy Oreo cookie, without being too dense. I always prefer the cookie of an Oreo to the cream, and this cereal has more of the taste of the cookie than loads of cream. Altogether, the taste is delicious and memorable! Even my mom, who doesn’t remember ever having tried the cereal, really enjoyed these.
Overall, the return of Oreo O’s is exactly what I was wishing for, and tasted just like I remembered. Before I finished up my first box, I grabbed another while they were still readily available. When I got my second box at Walmart, the large display of them was gone and there were only three boxes remaining on a shelf in the normal cereal aisle. I hope this is a sign that they are successful. I am keeping my second box safe and unopened for a while just in case they become hard to find. I hope these continue to stick around for a while, so I don’t have to start a stockpile of these and wait another 10 years for them to return. Now, where are the Dunkaroos?
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