Vote to Save your Fave Flav of Lays!

Hey that rhymes! Save, Fave, Flav! According to the Facebook page of Frito-Lay, there are three new flavors of Lays Potato Chips for you to try! When I find them I WILL review them, but until then here is what you are looking for:

Cheesy Garlic Bread - Sounds pretty good! I’m calling this one as the winner before the voting is even done. Cheese and garlic would be a pretty good chip combination, in my not so humble opinion.

Chicken and Waffles - In a perfect world, this would win. This one if executed well could be good, but I can already bet the syrup waffle taste is going to overpower this one.

Sriracha - This sweet and spicy sauce will work pretty well on this chip. Will this dark horse flavor come out on top? I have seen chips trending in a more bold, intensive flavor direction (see the Ruffles MAX and Doritos JACKED versions of those snacks for additional evidence). Who knows?

This I DO know. I can’t wait to try these out! If you find them, let me know where you did and how they taste. Happy snacking!

Snyder of Berlin Classic Buffalo Wing Kettle Cooked Potato Chips

Hi there. Remember me? I used to review snacks before the holidays made this less of a priority. Well, here I am again. I’ll try not be gone so long next time.

So regular readers (any of you left? heh heh… hmmmm) know that I am a big fan of spicy potato chips, so when I was traveling to Virginia recently I stopped into a Sheetz gas station and looked over these chips that I overlooked before. Why not give them a try? They might be my new favorite potato chip!

Well, they aren’t my new favorite, but they are very good. I think I am getting to the point where I like kettle cooked potato chips more than I like regular potato chips,with the possible exception of Barbecue Lays potato chips, which I could eat by the bag or crush and snort up my nose. These have a very good flavor. The first chip I had was generically spicy and kind of bland, but the second chip brought that buffalo wing flavor I was looking for, and every chip after that just built onto that taste. In my opinion (and the handy dandy “Heat-o-meter” on the bag backs me up), these are somewhere safely between mild and hot, though I’d personally place them on the milder side. Perhaps the heat-o-meter needs an adjustment.

You can probably find these at any convenience store that sells Snyder products. Give ‘em a whirl. Happy snacking!

Fair Food Week! Review: Spiral Spud

Spiral Spuds are great! You know how much I like chips, so it is no big surprise that I am a spiral spud fan. These are pretty much fresh potato chips cooked to order. Add on a little seasoning (such as salt) and they are even better!

I won’t claim to understand the specific method that allows the spiral spud vendor to take a regular potato and cut it in such a way that it fries up into a golden-brown mountain of chips. I assume it involves slicing a potato in a spiral (hence the name), then frying it up in hot oil until a delicious snack emerges. Writing it like that, it doesn’t seem very complicated at all, and I guess that I do understand the process. Still, this isn’t exactly a ‘make it yourself at home’ snack, at least for me. 

Spiral spuds are relatively cheap ($3.00 for a whole bunch at my local fair) and surprisingly filling. However, they aren’t without their flaws. There are some sections of the spiral spud that don’t really crisp up during the frying process, and instead end up more like a soft, oily potato bite. Not very appetizing to be sure. But a particularly good batch will put you in mind of the house chips that you can get at fine BBQ establishments such as Famous Dave’s or Montgomery Inn.

These are one of my favorite fair foods, and are a clear winner if you like potato chips as much as I do. Don’t pass up this delicious fair food snack. Happy snacking!

Review: Herr’s Baby Back Ribs Potato Chips

I love snacks. If I didn’t, I wouldn’t have a snack blog. I also love barbecue potato chips. You can tell by looking up ‘BBQ’ on my snack blog.

You know what else I love? Barbecue. Pulled pork. Brisket. Wings. It’s all good. But my favorite item? Ribs. My favorite ribs have to be those from Montgomery Inn in Ohio, but the ribs from Chili’s will do in a pinch.

Having said all that (or written all that…whatever) I was pleased to discover this chip from Herr’s. I don’t know how long it has been out, but it was new to me, so I thought I would try it.

My experience with Herr’s snacks has been mixed. I have enjoyed their potato chips in the past, such as their Fireman’s BBQ Chicken potato chips, but I hated their Cheesy Bacon Ranch Snack Friez. Thus, I was skeptical before I tried these. But I could not resist the siren song of new barbecue potato chips!

The chips don’t really look like they have much flavor, do they? Just your typical looking chip. But after tasting them, I was pleasantly surprised. They have a really good flavor — a nice barbecue flavor. Even better, they actually do kind of taste like barbecue ribs. I don’t really detect any ‘pork’ flavor or things like that. Instead, the barbecue flavor is reminiscent of the barbecue sauce typically placed on ribs.

Overall, these were quite tasty, and I’d recommend them. Happy snacking!

Review: Ruffles Ultimate Kickin’ Jalapeno Ranch Potato Chips

I have previously reviewed the Ruffles Ultimate Sweet Smokin’ BBQ Potato Chips, so I was excited to give these a shot when I came across them. I am a big fan of jalapeno peppers, and my thought was the ranch would provide a nice “cool-off” balance to the heat from those peppers.

Here is a close-up of what the actual chips look like. Check out those ridges! You could lose a small child in there!

Honestly, I was concerned when I first opened the bag. The smell is not exactly pleasant. Have you ever smelled a lightning bug? It almost smells like that when you open the bag. The flavor of the chip is unexpected, too. It is definitely kickin’ (the chip brings the heat pretty strong), but I wouldn’t describe the flavor as jalapeno. Just “random hot spice” taste. There is definitely ranch flavor, as it tastes like the chip has already been dipped in a ranch sauce.

Overall, I would recommend the BBQ version over this one, unless you really like ranch. Then again, I love Cool Ranch Doritos much more than these. I am curious to see how these taste with the Ultimate Smokehouse Bacon dip advertised on the bag. This might be a case where the chip needs a dip to be successful. If you have tried these with the dip, let me know your thoughts. Happy snacking!

Review: Snyder of Berlin Sweet n’ Sassy BBQ Potato Chips

It’s official: I have WAY more reviews of BBQ related snacks than anything else at the time of this writing. I guess that means I really, REALLY like BBQ. Or barbecue. Or bar-b-q. Whatever.

I have been a fan of Snyder chips for years, but I have always had their regular barbecue chips. When I saw this sweet and sassy variety at the Sheetz near Wheeling, WV I snatched it up. Sweet I understand. There is a picture of a spoon pouring copious amounts of sugar into the chip, so I knew these would be sweet (hopefully not as sweet as Grippos *shudder*). But what makes a potato chip sassy? Is it a pert, insolent chip with a hand on one hip, shaking it’s finger at you and giving you an attitude? Or is it just being saucy? I had to find out.

I was a little put off by the pink bag, but it did the job of getting my attention. Let’s take a gander at the chips themselves:

Nothing special at first glance. I tasted the chip, and was met with the very familiar taste of Snyder’s BBQ chips. It is sweeter than their standard BBQ chips, but not by much. It is also a little less hot than their standard BBQ chips, but again, not by much. In a blind BBQ chip taste test, I would be hard-pressed to tell the difference. No discernible sass from these chips, in my opinion.

Give these a shot and let me know what you think. Happy snacking!

Review: Grippo’s Bar-B-Q Potato Chips

As I have previously stated, I am a big fan of barbecue potato chips. I recently came across this brand of potoato chips at a local barbecue restaurant. I had never heard of Grippo’s brand of chips before, but my friends had heard of it and explained it to me. Apparently, they are a ‘cheap’ brand of potato chips. Now, I don’t have anything against the cheaper snack manufacturers. They fill a niche, and there are times when their snacks are just as good as the ‘big boys’.

I also liked the way that the bag looks. Check out the little Grippo’s boy chef. He’s carrying a bag of Grippo’s Bar-B-Q chips, with a little Grippo’s boy chef, and so on ad inifinitum.

I was a sucker for the ‘infinity’ comic book covers when I was a kid. Thus, I was quite excited and looking forward to trying these chips. Having never heard of this brand, I did a little research. Apparently, these snacks are quite popular! There is a Facebook group “Grippos BBQ Chips are Incredible!” that, as of this writing, has 25,268 likes. This guy on YouTube (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lDNi7BbUxzg) absolutely loves them, and appears to even get a little emotional when eating them. My excitement grew! “A new BBQ chip!” I thought to myself. “How have I never heard of these?” I asked myself. Myself had no response.

Well, after trying them, I can agree with the Facebook group. Grippo’s Bar-B-Q chips are incredible. Incredibly BAD.

The first issue I ran into was when comparing the bag of chips I got from the restaurant with the bag my brother got. My bag was considerably lighter. I actually weighed them on a kitchen scale, and my bag was 20 grams less. That’s approximately .7 ounces for us Americans. This doesn’t seem like much, but these were 1 oz bag of chips. Where’s the quality control, Grippo’s?

Back to the review. I opened the bag, and poured the chips into a container. The chips looked…different.

See all them spices? My first thought was that “these will have a strong BBQ flavor…can’t wait to try them”. So I tried one. Man, was it SWEET. Too sweet. I know that some BBQ sauces are sweet. That’s fine. But this was McDonald’s sweet tea sweet. Hummingbird feeder sweet. Cinnamon Toast Crunch sweet.

Their sweetness was bad enough. They were also greasy. The chips actually had a softer consistency than other potato chips you might be familiar with because the grease softened the chip. Add that consistency to the super-sweet flavoring, and you have a bad combination and a bad chip.

I was incredibly disappointed in these chips. Maybe I built them up too much in my head. Maybe I expected too much. Maybe these chips are just “not for me”, since so many other people like them. If you like sugary chips, so sugary you can see the sugar crystals on the chips, then try these. Otherwise, AVOID THESE CHIPS.

Review: Ruffles Smokehouse Style BBQ Flavored Potato Chips

Ruffles is continuing to mix things up by offering more exotic flavors than the traditional plain, barbecue, and sour cream and cheddar. I recently tried the Loaded Bacon & Cheddar Potato Skins flavored potato chips, and I was impressed.

But my favorite potato chip flavor is barbecue. It has been my favorite ever since I used 35 cents of my lunch money to buy a small bag of barbecue potato chips every week at lunch. I’ve enjoyed snacking for many, many years! So, I was eager to try these chips.

They have a good dusting of flavor on the chip. There is a distinct smell of barbecue (I wouldn’t say it smelled like barbecue ribs, necessarily…just barbecue).

Don’t those look good enough to eat? I thought so, and so I did. Well, they taste like barbecue potato chips. I was surprised that they tasted pretty much like the Lay’s Barbecue potato chips. Maybe they were ‘smokier’, but not exceedingly so. There was no heat to speak of either. And they certainly didn’t taste like ribs, although that is probably for the best. Still and all, I’d recommend these if you enjoy a good barbecue potato chip. Happy snacking!

Review: Ruffles Ultimate Sweet & Smokin’ BBQ Potato Chips

Not to be outdone by their cousin Doritos Jacked, Ruffles has introduced an “ultimate” variety of their potato chip. What makes it ultimate? I’m glad you asked!

These chips are a little thicker than their regular variety of Ruffles, and their ridges are much more pronounced. This makes them ideal for dipping. However, I didn’t have any dip handy, so I guess I have something to look forward to.

These are some delicious chips! There is a sweetness there, but not too sweet, and the smoky barbecue flavor is great. They even have a decent aftertaste. I brought these to a birthday party recently, and the bag was gobbled up in record time. If you are a fan of BBQ chips, I recommend you give these a taste. Happy snacking!

Review: Herr’s Fireman’s BBQ Chicken Potato Chips

Chicken is my favorite protein, and BBQ Chicken is one of my favorite types of chicken. So when I saw this bag of Herr’s chips which promised not just BBQ Chicken but Fireman’s BBQ Chicken, I had to check it out. I’m not sure why the word “Fireman’s” was added to the title, though. Is this snack really prepared exclusively by Firemen? Are Firemen really good at barbecuing chicken? These are the questions that keep me up at night.

Here is a description of this chip straight from the bag:

A roadside grill or your local firehouse, there’s no mistaking the deliciously inviting smell of a Chicken BBQ!

Who doesn’t love the right off the grill smoky flavor of succulent barbecued chicken? Herr’s Fireman’s BBQ Chicken Potato Chips capture this authentic great taste with a special blend of herbs, spices and a touch of tangy marinade.

These chips have a really good taste. Herr’s is known for their emphasis on strong and spicy flavors, and this chip has a strong but welcome BBQ taste. You can taste the chicken, but you can taste more of the BBQ than anything else. But that works for me! If you are ever in the mid-Atlantic region and get a chance, these chips offer a BBQ for your mouth, without the propane or charcoal!

What is your favorite Herr’s chip?