BIJOU-REVIEW: Stacy’s Pita Chips – Limited Edition Simply Cocoa

Rating: ©©©-3/4 chips  (notable)

Are you a fan of cocoa flavored things?  What about crunchy pita chips?  Well, what if we told you that Stacy’s Pita Chips has decided to put the two together?  How does that sound…?

Yeah, the combination does not feel very natural or organic to us either.  Cocoa, and pita chips, hmmm….Limited Edition sounds about right.

Surprisingly enough we have actually tried more than a dozen different Chocolate / Cocoa flavored crunchy snacks over the years.  Some have actually been quite deliciously impressive, while others have been downright disgusting.

Stacy’s new Simply Cocoa Pita Chips all into the upper tier of those cocoa snacks.  They really aren’t half bad.

A hefty dusting of ultra dark brown cocoa powder liberally coated each and everyone of the pita chips.

We really appreciated how the cocoa chips were not overly sweet, and obviously Stacy did not feel it necessary to sugar them up for us.

As always, these are our thoughts. Agree or disagree, make sure to let us know.

Chips discovered at Jewel Osco; Westchester, Illinois

Stacy’s Snacks Official Website

Chip Ratings Scale:

(1/4 increments)

© – return to sender

©© – tolerable

©©© – notable

©©©© – lip-smacking

©©©©© – “A” list

REVIEW: Popchips Potato Ridges – Cheddar & Sour Cream

Rating: ©©©©-1/2 chips  (lip-smacking)

Popchips – love’em or hate’em – there is simply no denying that they have come a long way from being a futuristic like, popped potato chip concept, to a major staple in the vast majority of chip aisles anywhere in the USA, as well as abroad.

We have tried quite a few Popchips over the years, and while we aren’t hugest fans of them in general, we have crunched across a few gems along the way.  Well……with Popchips latest, we are more than pleased to report that Potato Ridges with Cheddar & Sour Cream seasoning can easily be included among this shortlist of gems.  Heck, it may be fair to say that they are even at the top of it!

First of all, lets discuss Popchips new line of Potato Ridges.  The Ridges take Popchips into a tasty terrain that we have never encountered with their chips before – SubstantionalPotatofulLand.  We have always thought of Popchips as light, and airy, and crispy, but these Ridges are hearty, sturdy, crunchy, and packed with lots of potato flavor!  We really like’em.  Same standard shape as traditional potato Popchips, only now those potato Popchips a little bit thick (we think), and they have ridges in them (duh!).

As for the cheddar & sour cream seasoning, well, Popchips knocks it out of the park!  Ultra tangy sharp cheddar cheese mingles with fatty rich sour cream, and makes a beautiful flavor baby!  The more we ate of the chips the more we were reminded of Ruffles Cheddar & Sour Cream chips, which is very much a compliment.  This seasoning, this flavor combination, was meant, no, was destined to be enjoyed with potatoes, we can’t say it any more plain and simple than that!

In conclusion, if you take nothing more than following two points away from this review, we will be satisfied (and, so will you if you run out and gran yourself some of these!  First of all, these new Popchips Ridges are so tasty that they made our Top 5 Sour Cream & Cheddar chips of all time.  There you have it.  Enough said.  But, probably even more important than that is that they Popchips are deliciously satisfying, and we don’t mean that they are satisfying for being Popchips, we mean that they are DELICIOUSLY SATISFYING for being chips!

As always, these are our thoughts, we would love to hear what you think.  Agree or disagree, let us know.

Chips discovered at Jewel Osco; Clarendon Hills, Illinois

Popchips Official Website

Chip Ratings Scale:

(1/4 increments)

© – return to sender

©© – tolerable

©©© – notable

©©©© – lip-smacking

©©©©© – “A” list

BIJOU-REVIEW: Lay’s – Flavor Swap – Smoked Gouda & Chive Potato Chips

Rating: ©©©© chips (lip-smacking)

One Stays.  One Goes.

Hang onto?  Or, let go?

Two shall enter.  One shall leave.

Alright, you probably get the picture….

That’s right friends, it is that time again.  Lay’s has fried up an all new Potato Chip Promotion – FLAVOR SWAP.  Basically Lay’s is pitting 4 totally brand new flavors up against 4 current market flavors.  In turn, we the consumers vote to save our favorite flavors – either the new, or the old.  Swap, or save.

Lay’s new Smoked Gouda & Chive are going head to head against Lay’s Sour Cream & Cheddar flavor.  That’s a tough match up, against a classic and time tested flavor!

These are really good chips.  Not extraordinary good, but really good.

The Smoked Gouda & Chive seasoning is simple, smooth and pretty accurate.

Just about every other potato chip we actually tasted a hint of smoke.  The cheesy Gouda aspect tasted mild, a little nutty, a little salty, and all smooth.  And lastly the chives added just enough onion punch to cut some of the cheese.  If you love gouda, or heck, ever cheese, you will like these chips.

So, the question is would we SWAP these new chips for the classic Cheddar & Sour Cream?  Well, we have said elsewhere that we would want to keep SAVE the originals, but the more we have thought about it, we would actually change our decision.  SWAP them up*!!

*Honestly, part of our change of heart, and ultimate decision to SWAP them, is due to the fact that Frito Lay’s will forever offer their fantastic Sour Cream & Cheddar flavor on their Ruffles chips!!

And for those of you who aren’t familiar with Lay’s Flavor Swap, here’s the rest of the battles looks like this:

What do you guys think?  Tried any of the new ones?  Or, perhaps there’s one or more of the old flavors that you really want to stay?  Or, perhaps go?

As always, these are our thoughts, we would love to hear what you think. Agree or disagree, let us know.

Chips discovered at Walmart; Villa Park, Illinois

Voting ends March 21st, so make sure you go to the link below, and let Lay’s know which flavors should STAY, and which should GO!!

Lay’s Flavor Swap

Chip Ratings Scale:

(1/4 increments)

© – return to sender

©© – tolerable

©©© – notable

©©©© – lip-smacking

©©©©© – “A” list

REVIEW: Tostitos Cantina – Chipotle Thins

Rating: ©©©© chips  (lip-smacking)

According to the world wide web, a Cantina is “a type of bar popular in Italy, Mexico, and Spain.”  And, we were thinking that since we, along with Tostitos, are located in North America, and certainly since we’re discussing corn tortilla chips, it would be safe to assume that Tostitos is referring to the kind of Cantina located in Mexico.  So, once again, according to the world wide web:

In rural Mexico, a cantina traditionally is a kind of bar frequented by males for drinking alcohol and eating botanas (appetizers). Some cantinas are also known for being places where people gather to play dominoes, cards or other table games. Cantinas can often be distinguished by signs that expressly prohibit entrance to women and minors…. Some of the traditional restrictions on entry to cantinas are beginning to fade away. However, in many areas it is still viewed as scandalous for proper ladies to be seen visiting a genuine cantina.

Well, although cantinas “can often be distinguished by signs that expressly prohibit entrance to women and minors,” we’re going to assume that Tostitos Cantinas’ deliciously, thin cut, crispy yellow corn tortilla chips are supposed to be shared and enjoyed by everyone!

Truth be told, these are surprisingly tasty chips, that quite frankly we weren’t expecting to like nearly as much as we did.  The chips themselves are ultra thin cut, yet still sturdy, and delivering a extra crispy crunch. They almost deliver that fresh out of the fryer, still a bit greasy, Mexican restaurant (or Cantina) tortilla chip quality. In other words, tortilla chips that have actually been made from corn tortillas.

As for the Chipotle seasoning, it is not too shabby.  A good mixture of slightly spicy, and even more so, smoky chipotle chile seasoning.  Combine that with a generous amount of salt, and some of the usual seasoning compadres (ie. garlic and onion), and you’ve got some chips that we would more than gladly enjoy with a tall cerveza!

As always, these are our thoughts, we would love to hear what you think. Agree or disagree, let us know.

Chips purchased at Target; Willowbrook, Illinois

Tostitos Official Website

Chip Ratings Scale:

(1/4 increments)

© – return to sender

©© – tolerable

©©© – notable

©©©© – lip-smacking

©©©©© – “A” list

REVIEW: Doritos Mix – Cheese Explosion

Rating: ©©© chips  (notable)

4 FLAVORS & 4 SHAPES!!  Yes, but in the end, no lip-smacking 4©©©©’s rating from us!

You know what this bag sort of looks like?  It reminds us of a block buster movie poster, or maybe even more like a rock star concert poster.  – One Night Only! Doritos Mix presents Cheese Explosion.  Starring the one and only Nacho Cheese tortilla chips, Jumpin’ Jack Cheese rolled tortillas, Spicy Nacho triangle holes and everyone’s favorite Four Cheese twists!!  Sorry, but if we would have known any better, we would have just waited for the DVD, or the CD to be released rather than waste our dough on the big cheesy show…

If this combination looks familiar to any of you, well, that would be because Frito Lay has done something similar to this mix at least three times that we can recall.  You have to admit that they sort of seem like Frito Lay’s Munchies Mix, and they actually even more closely resemble Sabrita’s Party Mix Favoritas.  But, in our opinion, probably the best way to think of this new mix would be do describe it as the Doritos variation of Cheetos Mix-Ups.  In other words, a snack mix that is supposedly a Doritos mix, but really Doritos only one of the four shapes resembles what we all know and think of as Doritos tortilla chips.  So, let’s break down our 4 shapes and flavors:

1. Traditional Doritos triangular corn tortilla chips – Nacho Cheese flavor.  Really, what do we have to say about these?  If you aren’t familiar with these, you aren’t living.  Probably worth noting that the chips are standard size, not shrunken at all to better fit into the mix.
2. Doritos Dinamita or Rollitos rolled corn tortilla chips – Jumpin’ Jack Cheese flavor.  Although the back of the bag simply refers to these as rolled corn tortillas, Doritos has had a couple of different lines with this popular rolled corn shape.  As for the Jumpin’ Jack Cheese seasoning, well Doritos has done this flavor before as well.   This cheese seasoning is quite tasty.  Salty, peppery bit, tangy – yummy.
3. 3D triangle – Triforce like corn chip – Spicy Nacho flavor.  This shape is not totally unlike Doritos relatively recent JACKED 3D chips.   Full of fried corn flavor, with a nice crunch and mouth texture.  Spicy Nacho seasoning is Doritos long standing spicy variation of their classic Nacho Cheese.  Again, if you haven’t tried those chips either, you aren’t living.
4. Lastly are Doritos twisted corn chips – Four Cheese flavor.  We thought that this shape looked familiar and it does appear that Frito Lays haWQ3WEDGVC VCGXs put this corn shape out two times before, with two different names – Sabritas Turbos, and Fritos Twists.  We aren’t the biggest fan of this shape.  A little too hard and crunchy, almost dangerous to our teeth and gums.  We recall the Four Cheese seasoning from back in the 90’s, but pretty sure that it has not been offered any time recently in the U.S.  Cheesy.

We always love seeing any new Doritos on the market, and we do appreciate the variant textures of the unique shapes included in the Doritos Mix; but in the end it simply it simply does not work for us.  There is no cohesiveness to this odd group of shapes.  The snacks work rather individually, but try throwing all four pieces into your mouth at once, and tell us your tongue tongue and chompers aren’t confused!!  We will be sticking with the original versions for all that are available!

Well, there you have it.  Anyone else out there tried them yet?  Thoughts?  As always we would love to hear what you think.  Agree or disagree.  Let us know.

Chips discovered at Walmart; Countryside, Illinois

Doritos Official Website

Chip Ratings Scale:

(1/4 increments)

© – return to sender

©© – tolerable

©©© – notable

©©©© – lip-smacking

©©©©© – “A” list

BIJOU-REVIEW: Smartfood – Spicy Jalapeño Ranch Popcorn

Rating: ©©©-1/2 chips  (notable)

Smartfood specializes in popcorn, and other corn based products.  We have tried a few of these corn products, and for the most part we are impressed with Smartfood.

The newest addition to the Smartfood family is Spicy Jalapeño Ranch Popcorn.  The very large, and very green, bags are certainly hard to miss on the grocery store snack aisle shelves.

That unmissable large green bag contained plump, and toothsome white popcorn kernels.  The full bodied popcorn, exuded a light and crispy crunch.

The popcorn is heavily seasoned with a creamy white powder containing plenty of green specks.

The seasoning was very nice at first.  Popcorn coated in a salty, garlicky, creamy ranch dusting, that included just enough spicy vegetal jalapeño notes to let you know that it was there.

But, after crunching a handful of handfuls we felt like this particular seasoning was a bit much for popcorn to handle.  A bit overwhelming.  Like we were just eating crunchy seasoning on it’s own.  The popcorn was unable to shine through.

As always, these are our thoughts, we would love to hear what you think.  Agree or disagree, let us know.

Popcorn discovered at Jewel Osco; Clarendon Hills, Illinois

Smartfood Official Website

Chip Ratings Scale:

(1/4 increments)

©© – tolerable

©©© – notable

©©©© – lip-smacking

©©©©© – “A” list

REVIEW: Lay’s – Flavor Swap – Fiery Roasted Habanero Potato Chips

Rating: ©©©©-1/4 chips (lip-smacking)

Well, now that Lay’s 2015 ‘Do Us a Flavor’ contest has officially ended….?!?  That’s right, how many of you out there actually heard who the most recent contest’s flavor winner was?  Us neither.  But apparently the winner was Hailey Green of Noblesville, Indiana with her Southern Biscuits and Gravy Potato Chips.  Congrats Hailey!

Which of course means that it is time for an all new Lay’s Potato Chip Promotion, or as we like to call it an LPCP.  What does Lay’s have cooking in 2016?  Well, for starters, some Fiery Roasted Habanero flavored potato chips, that’s what!!  And they are apparently a part of Lay’s new Flavor Swap.  No, this is not some far fetched potato chip dating sort of thing, it is Lay’s pitting 4 totally brand new flavors up against 4 existing flavors that they currently offer on the market.  We, the consumers, in turn vote to save our favorite flavors – either the new, or the old.  As Lay’s says “One Stays. One Goes.”  Not quite sure if this could get any more dramatic?  Oh wait, maybe instead of clicking on which flavor we like best, Lay’s could have a small pile of roses that we can give to those flavors we want to stick around a while longer…. Moving on.

So far we have only spotted the Fiery Roasted Habanero flavor on our local store shelves (but we’ll be honest and tell you that this is also the flavor we were most excited to try). The rest of the line-up looks like this:

What do you guys think?  Tried any of the new ones by chance?  Or, perhaps there’s one or more of the old flavors that you really want to stay, or go?  All four new flavors sound pretty darn interesting to us!

As for the Fiery Roasted Habanero flavored chips, well these are pretty darn delicious. First, a sweet tomato-red pepper-citrus tang assertively says hello to your taste buds.  Which is then quickly followed by a fragrant splash of every flavors best wing men buddies garlic and onion.  We’re not too sure if we actually taste any real habanero chili flavor, maybe just the slightest touch of that greatest of great chili peppers, way, way back in the darkest corner of our palettes. That being said, we do see that Lay’s did in fact use real habanero in their seasoning blend, and we can also confirm that when you eat a lot of these chips (and we’re guessing that you will, because they are delicious), you will feel a very decent amount of spicy heat build up in your mouth, and on your tongue.  Not an overwhelming level of heat, but certainly an undeniable and impressive level when we think of these being Lay’s.  But, the fact of the matter is that we do not taste very much habanero, and we really wish that we could taste more!

The potato chips tasted very potato-ful.  Much more potato-ful than we typically taste from Lay’s potato chips.  We’re not sure if this specific seasoning blend simply highlights layers of potato flavor that we can’t typically do not taste on a Lay’s potato chip, or if Lay’s has opted for better quality potatoes; either way, these chips had a soft and crispy crunch, with loads of tasty potato flavor!

So, there you have it, these chips are delicious, taste very little like habanero, but do bring a decent level of heat along with them. Let’s do America a flavor and get rid of Flamin’ Hot, and #VoteFieryHabanero!!

As always, these are our thoughts, we would love to hear what you think. Agree or disagree, let us know.

Chips discovered at Walmart; Villa Park, Illinois

Voting ends March 21st, so make sure you go to the link below, and let Lay’s know which flavors should STAY, and which should GO!!

Lay’s Flavor Swap

Chip Ratings Scale:

(1/4 increments)

© – return to sender

©© – tolerable

©©© – notable

©©©© – lip-smacking

©©©©© – “A” list