Thank you to all the photo contributors! If you’re out shopping and see an interesting new product on the shelf, snap a picture of it, and send us an email (theimpulsivebuy@gmail.com) with where you found it and “Spotted” in the subject line. Or reply to us (@theimpulsivebuy) on Twitter with the photo, where you spotted it, and the hashtag #spotted. If you do so, you might see your picture in our next Spotted on Shelves post.
Also, if you want to send in photos and are wondering if we’ve already covered something or if the product is old, don’t worry about it. Let us worry about it.
If you’ve seen the product, help out your fellow readers by letting them know in the comments what city and store you found it in.
To determine whether you’ll love Lay’s Sea Salt & Vinegar Poppables, you have to ask yourself three simple questions.
Do you like salt and vinegar potato chips?
Do you enjoy the crispy texture of Lay’s Poppables?
If it was discontinued, would you send a tear-jerking email to Frito-Lay about how there’s now a hole in your heart that could only be filled with Lay’s Salt & Vinegar Poppables?
If you said “yes” to all three questions, I now pronounce you husband and life snack or wife and life snack. You may now eat your life snack.
Well, actually, if you said “yes” to the first two questions, then you’ll probably end up enjoying this salty and tangy version of the airy potato snack. It has the same flavor you’d taste with Lay’s original and Kettle Cooked Salt & Vinegar Potato Chips, and the same satisfying crispiness as all the other Lay’s Poppables.
It’s exactly what I expected, and I LOVED them.
Yes, past tense.
That deep affection from eating the first few handfuls blinded me from realizing something disheartening about Poppables — there’s not much of it in the bag.
When I mindlessly eat regular or Kettle Cooked salt and vinegar potato chips, which happens more often than I’d like to admit, I can look into the bag after munching for a while and see that I’ve put a noticeable dent into what’s there. But there’s still a lot left.
With these Poppables, I did the same mindless eating, and when I checked to see how much was left, I was shocked that three-fourths of the bag was gone.
I guess I never paid attention to how much is stuffed inside. A regular bag of Kettle Cooked has eight ounces, and standard Lay’s has 7.75. Poppables has just five.
So that made me ask myself, “How much do I like Poppables’ crispiness?” Is it enough for me to overlook the fact that I can get more salty and tangy munching satisfaction with its crunchier chip cousins?
I took a hard look at myself in a mirror and thought I didn’t truly LOVE Lay’s Sea Salt & Vinegar Poppables. I really like them, and I’d take them over any other Poppables variety, but if they ever go away, I won’t be writing a sad email to Frito-Lay. I’ll move on and chomp Lay’s Kettle Cooked Salt & Vinegar Potato Chips.
Purchased Price: $5.89* Size: 5 oz. bag Purchased at: Times Supermarket Rating: 7 out of 10 Nutrition Facts: (about 28 pieces) 140 calories, 8 grams of fat, 1 gram of saturated fat, 0 grams of trans fat, 0 milligrams of cholesterol, 220 milligrams of sodium, 16 grams of carbohydrates, less than 1 gram of fiber, less than 1 gram of sugar, and 0 grams of protein.
*Because I live on a rock in the middle of the Pacific Ocean, things are a bit pricier here. You’ll probably pay less than I did.
(Spotted by Rachel C at Target and Amanda Y at Walmart.)
Thank you to all the photo contributors! If you’re out shopping and see an interesting new product on the shelf, snap a picture of it, and send us an email (theimpulsivebuy@gmail.com) with where you found it and “Spotted” in the subject line. Or reply to us (@theimpulsivebuy) on Twitter with the photo, where you spotted it, and the hashtag #spotted. If you do so, you might see your picture in our next Spotted on Shelves post.
Also, if you want to send in photos and are wondering if we’ve already covered something or if the product is old, don’t worry about it. Let us worry about it.
If you’ve seen the product, help out your fellow readers by letting them know in the comments what city and store you found it in.
The Cheesecake Factory at Home Original Ice CreamThe Cheesecake Factory at Home Birthday Cake Ice CreamThe Cheesecake Factory at Home Salted Caramel Ice CreamThe Cheesecake Factory at Home Strawberry Ice CreamThe Cheesecake Factory at Home Key Lime Ice CreamThe Cheesecake Factory at Home Cookies & Cream Ice CreamThe Cheesecake Factory at Home Chocolate Ice Cream
With so many choices, it’s like picking something from The Cheesecake Factory menu. (Spotted by Rachel C at Harmons and Jim R at Safeway.)
Thank you to all the photo contributors! If you’re out shopping and see an interesting new product on the shelf, snap a picture of it, and send us an email (theimpulsivebuy@gmail.com) with where you found it and “Spotted” in the subject line. Or reply to us (@theimpulsivebuy) on Twitter with the photo, where you spotted it, and the hashtag #spotted. If you do so, you might see your picture in our next Spotted on Shelves post.
Also, if you want to send in photos and are wondering if we’ve already covered something or if the product is old, don’t worry about it. Let us worry about it.
If you’ve seen the product, help out your fellow readers by letting them know in the comments what city and store you found it in.
Playing video games and writing have similarities.
Both involve a deep focus while staring into a screen and mashing multiple buttons in quick succession. Gaming and writing also include throwing across the room in frustration the thing that has the buttons.
Wait…that’s only me?
Last year, Mountain Dew rolled out Mtn Dew Amp Game Fuel to help gamers with alertness and accuracy. This year, the brand is offering Mtn Dew Amp Game Fuel Zero, a zero sugar, zero calorie, and zero carb version of the caffeinated drink. I’m not a gamer, but I am a writer, and since I made the argument they’re alike and I love caffeine, I believe I’m qualified to review them.
There are two flavors, Watermelon and Raspberry Lemonade, and both come in cans with the same resealable tab as the original Mtn Dew Amp Game Fuel. Sorry, I’ve just been told I’m legally required to use their full names — Charged Watermelon Shock and Charged Raspberry Lemonade.
If you’re going to choose just one, might I suggest the latter over the former, unless you REALLY love artificial watermelon flavor. I mean, it’s a perfectly fine flavor, it’s not as sweet as candy, and it smells better than Charged Raspberry Lemonade, but it’s not the flavor I’d drink again.
That honor goes to, obviously since it’s the only other flavor I’m writing about in this review, Charged Raspberry Lemonade. Although, for some reason, my taste buds and brain occasionally think they’re drinking a raspberry iced tea. Maybe it’s because the berry flavor reminds me of the Lipton Brisk Raspberry and the lemon flavor, which doesn’t really pop that much, makes me think of lemon iced tea. Well, whatever it tastes like – raspberry lemonade or raspberry iced tea – I prefer it over the watermelon one.
In order to make this zero sugar, zero calorie, and zero carb version, an artificial sweetener arsenal of sucralose, aspartame, and acesulfame potassium is used. It’s noticeable in the watermelon one, but significantly less so with the other one.
Both flavors provide 90 milligrams of sweet caffeine, which isn’t a lot in today’s world that has energy drinks of the same size that offer over 200 milligrams. But I found myself getting a boost from them. Your results may vary.
Both Mtn Dew Amp Game Fuel Zero flavors are decent zero sugar energy drinks, but, unlike gaming and writing, it’s hard to equally compare them with the recent zero sugar energy drinks from Monster and Rockstar. Those tickle my taste buds with better flavors that don’t really taste like they’re sugar free, plus they have more caffeine.
Purchased Price: $1.79 each Size: 16 fl. oz. cans Purchased at: Target Rating: 6 out of 10 (Charged Watermelon Shock), 7 out of 10 (Charged Raspberry Lemonade) Nutrition Facts: (1 can) 0 calories, 0 grams of fat, 75 milligrams of sodium, 0 grams of carbohydrates, 0 grams of sugar, 0 grams of protein, 20% vitamin A, 40% niacin, 40% vitamin B6, and 40% pantothenic acid.
Here are some interesting new products found on store shelves by your fellow readers. If you’ve tried any of the products, share your thoughts about them in the comments.
Kellogg’s Club Minis Mix Berry Almond
(Spotted by Kelly S at Food Lion.)
Dove Midnight Fudge Cookie Silky Smooth Bar
(Spotted by Robbie at H-E-B.)
Annie’s Create-A-Bunny Bunny Fruit Snacks
(Spotted by Sarah R at Whole Foods.)
Entenmann’s Chocolate Chip Cookie
(Spotted by Sarah D at Dillons.)
88 Acres The Seed Co. Dark Chocolate Brownie Protein Bar88 Acres The Seed Co. Banana Bread Protein Bar
Trü Frü Frozen Raspberries in White & Dark ChocolateTrü Frü Blueberries in White & Dark ChocolateTrü Frü Cherries in White & Dark Chocolate
(Spotted by Sarah R at Sprouts.)
Justin’s Dark Chocolate Crispy Peanut Butter Cups
(Spotted by Sarah R at Whole Foods.)
If you’re out shopping and see an interesting new product on the shelf, snap a picture of it, and send us an email (theimpulsivebuy@gmail.com) with where you found it and “Spotted” in the subject line. Or reply to us (@theimpulsivebuy) on Twitter with the photo, where you spotted it, and the hashtag #spotted. If you’ve tried the product, share your thoughts about it in the comments.
Also, if you want to send in photos and are wondering if we’ve already covered something or if the product is old, don’t worry about it. Let us worry about it.
