Apple Crumble Crowned the Nation’s Favourite – But Is the Great British Trifle at Risk of Extinction?
Brits are mad for pudding – especially apple crumble – but the nation’s nostalgic favourites like trifle are disappearing from restaurant menus and risk extinction in their traditional form, according to new research from Creams Café.
Apple crumble (29%) has been crowned the UK’s greatest nostalgic pudding of all time, followed by apple pie (22%). Trifle still ranks strongly (20%), sitting alongside rice pudding (20%) and jam roly poly (18%) in the top five.
Yet despite its popularity, trifle is rarely spotted when dining out. Over half of Brits (54%) either never recall seeing a trifle on a menu or can’t remember the last time they did.
Include those who last saw one more than a year ago and the figure jumps to two-thirds (67%) – making trifle one of Britain’s most endangered puddings.
Generational differences are clear: over-55s overwhelmingly prefer apple crumble (31%), while younger Brits aged 18–34 are fuelling a revival of jelly and ice cream (24%) as their nostalgic top pud.
But while six in ten (59%) say traditional desserts still trump modern fancy ones, more than a third (37%) believe they need a revamp to stay relevant.
With restaurants failing to keep classics on menus, Creams Café – the UK’s largest dessert parlour – is stepping in to rescue them. With its new range reimagining retro favourites for a modern twist,
The strategy has proved successful. Creams revealed its new Oreo Trifle Treat is currently its best-seller, alongside strong sales of the Pineapple Caramel Trifle Treat and Jelly & Ice Cream Sundae.
It comes as over half of Brits (57%) say they crave nostalgic comfort food – with Gen Z showing the biggest cravings (67%).
Part of this trend may be thanks to TikTok, with 43 per cent saying it is responsible for the surge in popularity for modern takes on retro puds – with a third (33%) crediting younger generations for fuelling the revival.
“We couldn’t believe that despite demand for modern takes on retro desserts, almost nowhere serves them,” said Everett Fieldgate, CEO at Creams. “Trifle, in particular, seems to have been wiped off menus – which is why we’ve brought it back with a modern twist that’s already become our top-selling product this summer
“The rest of the range is performing strongly too – we’ve taken the flavours we grew up with and remixed them to tempt a new generation, while giving long-time pudding fans something to get excited about.”
Creams Café has even launched a petition to give trifle protected status, warning that without action, many of Britain’s beloved desserts could vanish from menus altogether.
Alongside the Pineapple Caramel Trifle Treat, Oreo Trifle Treat and Jelly & Ice Cream Sundae, Creams’ retro line-up also includes sticky toffee pudding, banoffee hot pocket, black forest hot pocket, lemon meringue “cheesecakundae,” caramel apple crumble pie, and a chocolate cake & meringue doughnut.
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