Author: Vin

REVIEW: McDonald’s Grand McExtreme Bacon Burger

Vin 9 Comments

McDonald s Grand McExtreme Bacon Burger

If you’re like me, you’ve fallen down many a rabbit hole of International McDonald’s menu items. I’ve clicked through listicle after annoying listicle just yearning for the day America embraces the weirdness that the rest of the world gets to bask in daily.

Good thing for us, McDonald’s has introduced a new “Worldwide Favorites” menu. What say we go for a little trip across the pond?

McDonald s Grand McExtreme Bacon Burger Box

The Grand McExtreme Bacon Burger comes courtesy of Spain and consists of a Quarter Pounder, Applewood Bacon, McBacon Sauce, slivered onions, and two slices of Gouda.

Quick questions – I thought Gouda was a Dutch cheese? Is it a staple of Spaniard diets? Is McDonald’s making stuff up?!

McDonald s Grand McExtreme Bacon Burger Cheese

Anyway, the Gouda and McBacon Sauce were the ingredients I was most excited about. I’ve never had either on a fast food burger. I assumed they were what made this burger so extreme. So McExtreme!

The Gouda was mild, but there was just enough of that creamy, smoky flavor you’d want. It meshed really well. There are so many overpowering cheeses that could have ruined everything, so no matter where Gouda derives from, it was the right choice for this particular burger.

McDonald s Grand McExtreme Bacon Burger Toppings

I’d take McBacon Sauce over ketchup on literally every burger going forward. It’s equal parts smoky, tangy, and well, bacon-y. It’s too bad they screwed me with only a small dollop. Every burger I buy is swimming in sauce. The one time I’d actually like that, I get a dab.

The rest of the ingredients were retreads, although I’ll say that not having a Quarter Pounder in a while really made me feel like I was eating a premium hamburger – at least by McDonald’s standards.

Applewood Bacon has become a can’t miss topping, so no complaints there.

The onions didn’t add much, so I ended up scraping most of them off. They should’ve used crispy fried onions.

I wondered why they didn’t do anything fancy with the sesame seed bun, but I got a nice fresh one at least.

McDonald s Grand McExtreme Bacon Burger Bite

The most impressive thing about this burger was how clean it somehow was. The box was initially oily and gross (I guess that was from the bacon? Maybe some Gouda run-off?), but the burger as a whole was shockingly easy to eat. That was likely exclusive to my experience, but nothing fell off the burger, and I didn’t even need a napkin, which is unheard of. I imagine that’s how Europeans like their burgers.

All in all, this was a creative, tasty burger, which is great because, besides the Stroopwafel McFlurry, the other Worldwide Favorites are boring. Cheese fries? Mozzarella chicken sandwich? Meh. What makes mozzarella Canadian? McDonald’s is just randomly assigning cheeses to countries!

Despite the mystery grease, the Grand McExtreme is one of the better fast food burgers I’ve had in ages. Is it distinctly Spanish? I couldn’t tell ya, but no matter what, Me encanta! (This is Google Spanish for “I’m Loving it,” so blame them if it’s wrong.)

Purchased Price: $6.60
Size: N/A
Rating: 8 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: 750 calories, 47 grams of fat, 18 grams of saturated fat, 145 milligrams of cholesterol, 1310 milligrams of sodium, 38 grams of carbohydrates, 2 grams of fiber, 8 grams of sugar, and 43 grams of protein.

REVIEW: Chocolate Peanut Butter Corn Pops (2019)

Vin

Kellogg s Chocolate Peanut Butter Corn Pops Cereal

What are Chocolate Peanut Butter Corn Pops?

An expansion of the Corn Pops line of cereals that first hit shelves in the simpler days of 2007 but somehow didn’t catch on.

How are they?

Well, do you like Corn Pops? How about Reese’s Puffs? Ever had the urge to mix them together?

Here ya go, well, kinda.

Kellogg s Chocolate Peanut Butter Corn Pops Cereal Dry

The texture is distinctly Corn Pops. Each piece is caked in a clingy chocolate peanut butter powder that reminds me a bit of the sugar on the sweet “Muddy Buddy” Chex Mixes.

These smell and taste just like Reese’s Puffs – briefly. As that fades, I start to taste old school Corn Pops. Just hearing that, you’d think Chocolate Peanut Butter Pops were an all-time great, but I have to admit, I’m a tad disappointed in the overall flavor.

They start as Reese’s and end as Corn Pops but only get to about 75% of each’s best. This is a very good bowl of cereal, it’s just not as elite as I had hoped.

Is there anything else you need to know?

Kellogg s Chocolate Peanut Butter Corn Pops Cereal Spooned

These Pops stay impressively crisp in milk. I’m almost suspicious of how it’s possible. There’s gotta be some freaky preservative using dark magic.

I can’t recall the last bowl of cereal I had where the pieces weren’t even close to soggy by the last bite. The powder remains the entire time as well, so don’t expect much cereal milk runoff.

Conclusion:

Kellogg s Chocolate Peanut Butter Corn Pops Cereal with Regular CP

I love Corn Pops. They’re not my ultimate “end boss” favorite, but I’d be satisfied if they were my desert island cereal.

These come up a bit short of my expectations, but I’ll still destroy the box, and I imagine most people will be happy. I’m hoping these do well this go around, because I need some new Corn Pops flavor in my life. *insert famous Corn Pops slogan here*

Purchased Price: $3.99
Size: 10.5 oz
Purchased at: Shop Rite
Rating: 7 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: (1 cup) 160 calories, 4.5 grams of fat, 1 gram of saturated fat, 0 grams of trans fat, 190 milligrams of sodium, 29 grams of carbohydrates, less than 1 gram of fiber, 12 grams of sugar, and 2 grams of protein.

REVIEW: Red Bull Summer Edition Beach Breeze

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Red Bull Summer Edition Beach Breeze

What is Red Bull Summer Edition Beach Breeze?

It’s a Red Bull. Thanks for reading the review, enjoy your summer folks!

How is it?

Ok, I’ll elaborate more, but Beach Breeze is unmistakably Red Bull.

It tastes like a sour Red Bull with an added coconut finish. The sour aspect is probably supposed to ape a fruit flavor, so I’d guess they were going for unripe pineapple?

Red Bull Summer Edition Beach Breeze Glass

If you’ve ever wondered what Red Bull’s attempt at a Pina Colada might taste like, this may be as close as you’ll get – a sour Red Bull with a fragrant artificial coconut aftertaste.

Is there anything else you need to know?

Red Bull Summer Edition Beach Breeze Ingredients List

I could be wrong about the pineapple. There’s no fruit listed in the chemical – pardon me, ingredient list. Perhaps I just tasted the “glycerol ester of wood rosin.” Mmm! It’s not officially summer until I’ve had some “glycerol ester of wood rosin.”

Red Bull Summer Edition Beach Breeze Alka Seltzer

And with that sarcastically said, we don’t need fake dyes in our energy drinks, but Beach Breeze’s color is super disappointing. This is a nitpick, but I poured this into one of my “fancy” beer glasses, expecting a cool light blue color and got what looked like the aftermath of a dissolved Alka-Seltzer tablet.

Conclusion:

I love Pina Colada, and coconut especially. The last thing I drank from the aforementioned beer glass was a delicious coconut stout. The coconut here is cheap and artificial. The pineapple is essentially an educated guess, and it’s a little too sour to really stick out amongst the handful of Red Bull flavors you’ll find next to this in the fridge. For example, I tried the Sugar Free Pear flavor a few days later, and it was much better.

In fairness, Beach Breeze gave me a little pep in my step. I didn’t sprout wings, and it didn’t “vitalize my body and mind,” but it was still kinda refreshing despite the “meh” flavor.

Purchased Price: $2.59
Size: 12 fl. oz.
Purchased at: Shop Rite
Rating: 4 out of 10
Nutrition Facts:: (1 Can) 160 calories, 0 grams of fat, 125 milligrams of sodium, 40 grams of carbohydrates, 38 grams of sugar, less than 1 gram of protein, 140% niacin, 120% vitamin B12, 365% vitamin B6, 70% pantothenic acid, and 114 milligrams of caffeine.

REVIEW: Wendy’s S’Awesome Bacon Chicken Sandwich

Vin 3 Comments

Wendy s S Awesome Bacon Chicken Sandwich

Folks, you may have saw some sauces, but you ain’t NEVER saw a sauce like S’awesome Sauce!

Or perhaps you have, it’s not exactly new. Wendy’s has been hyping the condiment up for a few years now by tossing it on burgers and even adding it to its lineup of dipping sauces.

So, while I’ve tried it with some chicken tenders, I’ve never tried it on a chicken sandwich until now.

The options for the S’awesome Bacon Chicken Sandwich were Grilled, Homestyle or Spicy. Usually, I’m a Spicy Chicken guy, but I didn’t wanna risk that interference with the “S’awesome Sauce experience,” which I’m now considering calling my opposite of “s’awesome” garage band. We play horrendous ska.

I decided to go neutral and ordered Homestyle. Ya know, “Homestyle,” just like Mom never made.

Look, if you like Wendy’s standard fare, this sandwich is for you.

Wendy s S Awesome Bacon Chicken Sandwich S auce

S’awesome Sauce is a legit tasty condiment. It’s a tangy concoction that lands somewhere between ketchup and BBQ on the sauce spectrum, and it has a nice little bit of kick. I don’t get much “smoke” as it’s advertised, but the bacon may have stepped on that element.

Wendy s S Awesome Bacon Chicken Sandwich Bacon

Wendy’s has always done chicken right, and it’s one of the few fast food joints that usually gives you a nice crisp strip of bacon (at least in my experiences), so you can bank on the proteins being on point. As a bonus, they use the Applewood Smoked Bacon, so that always gives a sandwich a bit more flavor and prestige.

The Muenster Cheese was surprisingly my favorite part as I don’t think any other cheese would have complemented this as well. American, Cheddar, or something like Pepper jack would have clashed. The right cheese choice goes a long way.

They call the bun, “premium,” but it’s just glossy? That bugged me a bit. If you’re gonna promote a new, pretty expensive sandwich that is basically a bunch of standard menu items cobbled together, at least offer it on a specialty bun.

Wendy s S Awesome Bacon Chicken Sandwich Half

Which brings me to my ultimate unfair disappointment with this sandwich; it reminds me juuuust enough of the Pretzel Pub Chicken Sandwich from a few years ago despite the different sauce. That’s on the Wendy’s Mount Rushmore, and I miss it dearly. I wish the chain still had the pretzel buns because it would have been great on the S’awesome Bacon Chicken.

I gotta reiterate – this is a pretty expensive fast food meal, but when something is on the “Made to Crave” menu, I guess that’s expected. What was I gonna do, NOT get fries and a drink? I didn’t do the math, but I feel like ordering a Homestyle chicken sandwich with bacon and asking for some S’awesome sauce may cut your bill by a dollar or two. Don’t quote me on that probably made-up “menu hack.”

I’d say this is definitely worth a buy, but I can’t help thinking the previously released S’awesome Bacon Cheeseburger may have been better overall.

Purchased Price: $9.91 for a small meal
Size: N/A
Rating: 7 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: 670 calories, 39 grams of fat, 34 grams of saturated fat, 110 milligrams of cholesterol, 1520 milligrams of sodium, 54 grams of carbohydrates, 3 grams of fiber, 8 grams of sugar, and 38 grams of protein.

REVIEW: Dr Pepper Dark Berry

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Dr Pepper Dark Berry

What is Dr Pepper Dark Berry?

Dr Pepper’s 23 flavors has added another – the ominous “Dark Berry,” which is inspired by the upcoming independent arthouse film, “Spider-man: Far From Home.”

WARNING – This review contains SPOILERS!

Relax, one guy who hasn’t seen Avengers: Endgame yet, I’m just reviewing a soda.

How is it?

To me, it smells like Dr Pepper with a drop of Robitussin – a mix of everyone’s two favorite syrups, corn and cough.

Dr Pepper Dark Berry in Glass

I had a hard time even deciding if it tasted more than just a sweeter regular Dr Pepper, but the linger of the “fruit” additive started to take over. It was definitely “berry,” but which?

The answer, while not in the ingredients, can be easily found online, I just wanted to guess first.

I locked in on possibly blueberry…and black cherry?

SPOILER ALERT – Spider-man kills Than…Relax, that one guy, I’m just messing with you.

The titular “dark berries” are blackberry, black currant, and black cherry.

I hate to be swayed, but it made perfect sense. I realized it tasted like three-parts Dr Pepper mixed with one-part Cherry Coke, or like one of those old-timey Boylan’s style Black Cherry sodas you always see in Jewish Delis and trendy bagel joints.

So, while it’s not really that “far from” regular Dr Pepper’s normal flavor, it’s still worth a few sips.

Is there anything else you need to know?

Dr Pepper Dark Berry Ticket Deal

While I’ve seen some Spidey characters (particularly Mysterio for obvious reasons) popping up on promotional cans, I managed to buy the lamest bottle ever. Although, there is a movie ticket deal on the label, so that’s kinda cool.

Conclusion:

Dark Berry is the Andrew Garfield of Dr Pepper flavor variants. It’s still pretty good, but probably too saccharine, and will ultimately be forgotten. There have been superior Spider-men and Dr Peppers.

I look forward to Mr. Pibb’s collaboration with DC.

Purchased Price: $1.99
Size: 20 fl. oz.
Purchased at: Walmart
Rating: 7 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: (1 Bottle) 260 calories, 0 grams of fat, 95 milligrams of sodium, 71 grams of carbohydrates, 70 grams of sugar, and less than 0 grams of protein.