Fruit Riot Sour Patch Kids Sour Pineapple Tropical Mix Review

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Fruit Riot Sour Patch Kids Sour Pineapple Tropical Mix Pouch

Fruit Riot has never caused a riot in my house because, well, I’ve never invited any of its products into my place. I’ve known about Fruit Riot products for years, ever since the original version debuted, but never made room in my freezer for the pouches of sour-coated frozen fruit. All it took for me to finally open my freezer door to welcome a bag of Fruit Riot was a collaboration with Sour Patch Kids.

Before you question whether gummy candy freezes well, know that this Fruit Riot Sour Patch Kids Sour Pineapple Tropical Mix is freshly frozen pineapple with a Sour Patch Kids-inspired sour coating. So, no gummy candy shaped like kids were harmed in making this product.

Fruit Riot Sour Patch Kids Sour Pineapple Tropical Mix the different sizes of fruit

It appears the sugary, sour layer aims to replicate the flavors of Redberry, Orange, and Grape. However, the pouch mostly contained yellow-colored pieces, which made me wonder if they were lemon-flavored rather than orange. The next most plentiful were the Redberry chunks, and trailing far behind with only four purple bits was Grape.

It was surprising that there was no need to let the fruit thaw before biting into it. As someone who freezes fruit because I don’t eat fresh ones fast enough, I know how solid fresh pineapple can get when frozen. The varied sizes of the pieces also took me aback — some were standard pineapple chunks you’d find in a can, while others were noticeably smaller.

Is it lemon? Is it orange? It is definitely sour.

This is definitely Redberry.

Of the three Sour Patch Kids flavors in the pouch, the only one I could identify with certainty was the Redberry, which ended up being my favorite. Orange didn’t taste like orange, and I’m not sure the purple pieces were grape, but that didn’t take away from how much I liked them. The pineapple’s flavor, which can be a bit tart on its own, wasn’t overpowered by the coating. Instead, the sugary layer amped up the sourness, though not to a face-puckering level. The coating’s grittiness wasn’t off-putting either, adding a sugary crunch to the firm chew of the pineapple.

Is it grape? It is definitely purple.

I don’t know if these are as sour as Fruit Riot’s other products because, as I mentioned earlier, I haven’t had any of them. But I enjoyed the taste of every piece, even though with most, I was not sure what I was tasting beyond the sourness and pineapple. If you’re a fan of sour candy, these are a fun way to eat fruit, and definitely worth opening your freezer door for.

Purchased Price: $5.99
Size: 8 oz pouch
Purchased at: Target
Rating: 8 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: (1 oz/about 3-5 pieces) 45 calories, 2 grams of fat, 1.5 grams of saturated fat, 0 grams of trans fat, 0 milligrams of cholesterol, 0 milligrams of sodium, 7 grams of carbohydrates, 0 grams of fiber, 6 grams of sugar (includes 4 grams of added sugar), and 0 grams of protein.

Dr Pepper Tic Tac Review

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Dr Pepper Tic Tac container

It took well over a century, but the good Doctor Pepper has finally released his iconic twenty-three flavored elixir in pill form.

That’s right, the long-awaited third flavor in the Soda Tic Tac trilogy is Dr Pepper. I was a fan of the Coke one, but hated the Sprite. If we’re just going off the drinks themselves, I like Dr Pepper better than both of ’em, so needless to say, I had high hopes for this collab.

Said hopes were… mostly met.

Dr Pepper Tic Tac's Dr Pepper color

There’s no debating that these are Dr Pepper just from the smell and sight of them. They have the familiar cherry-ish waft of the fizzy drink, and to quote the late great Bugs Bunny, “What a maroon.”

We miss you every day, Bugs. Hope you made it to the great Albuquerque in the sky. If only you said, “What’s up, Doc?” to an actual doctor more often.

But enough about real doctors, do these “mints” taste like actual Dr Pepper? Yes! And no!?

They do, but it’s not as uncanny (or unbottley if you prefer) as Dr Pepper collabs usually are. The candy shell has a vague cherry/cola sweetness, but once that’s gone and the mint turns white and gritty, it just tastes like a really watered-down Dr Pepper knockoff. Dare I say Mr. Pibbian – a far less educated soda.

Dr Pepper Tic Tac in a bowl

I was ready to say these tasted just like cherry Bottle Caps, but I ultimately landed on a particular black cherry soda. They remind me of a drink made by an old med school colleague of Dr Pepper’s — Dr. Brown’s Black Cherry. He’s not as celebrated, but still makes a solid pop.

So, I really like the flavor for about eight seconds, and then I only kinda like it. It reminds me of the delicious sweetness you get from Tic Tacs’ pill cousin, Advil, before you suck on them for too long and they just end up tasting like bitter medicine. That’s how you’re supposed to eat those, right?

Dr Pepper Tic Tac with actual Dr Pepper

With all that said, there’s a kicker here. A saving grace. These Tic Tacs have a fizzing sensation. Have you ever had Zotz, or similar fizzing candy? It’s like those on a much smaller scale, but still noticeable. I honestly don’t think every mint fizzes, only a couple per “sip,” but it adds a fun and creative element to the eating experience.

The fizzing actually made me incredibly thirsty, which might be a stroke of genius brand synergy now that I think about it.

I imagine most Dr Pepper fans will enjoy these just fine, but I’m still not sure they serve much of a purpose. They’re “mints” that don’t freshen your mouth, and not a top-tier “sucking candy.” They’re also not a candy that sucks, and the fizzing is undeniably fun, so I guess that still makes them worth a try. Nothing wrong with a twist on two old classics.

I’m still here for any and all Dr Pepper collabs moving forward. In fact, I have an open pack of Dr Pepper Peeps slowly maturing in the cabinet, and I can’t wait til they get to their maximum staleness to indulge. If only they came in bunny form to honor our old friend, Bugs.

Purchased Price: $4.52
Size: 3.4 Fl. Oz.
Purchased at: Walmart
Rating: 6 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: (1 Mint) 0 calories, 0 grams of fat, 0 milligrams of sodium,0 grams of total carbohydrates, for some reason they don’t even bother mentioning sugar, 0 grams of protein.

Taco Bell Steak & Guac Nacho Fries Review

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Taco Bell Steak & Guac Nacho Fries is topped with marinated chicken, sour cream, nacho cheese sauce, chipotle sauce, and guacamole.

Like four-digit numerical passcodes for your phone, there are thousands of combinations Taco Bell could come up with for its loaded Nacho Fries using its standard ingredients.

The latest is the Steak & Guac Nacho Fries, which have the most condiments I’ve ever seen on the chain’s Nacho Fries and marinated steak — guacamole, reduced-fat sour cream, nacho cheese sauce, and chipotle sauce. There isn’t anything other than the fries and steak to provide some resistance for your teeth.

Since it’s almost halfway there, maybe Taco Bell should create something called Sauce Pool, Sauce Rainbow, or Sauce Swamp Nacho Fries that contains every sauce Taco Bell offers, plus a new one or two. But we’re not here to talk about my wet sauce dream, unless you represent the Yum! Brands, Inc. and are willing to offer me royalties. We’re here to review Taco Bell’s Steak & Guac Nacho Fries.

Taco Bell Steak & Guac Nacho Fries has one scoop of guacamole.

Like many of the previous loaded Nacho Fries varieties that use Taco Bell’s standard ingredients, it tastes fine, and it’s filling. However, when mixed, it tasted like the sour cream, nacho cheese sauce, and chipotle sauce were upset about the steak and guacamole getting top billing here, so they took over the show. The steak’s meaty flavor is erased when coated with all those sauces, and the guacamole loses most of its avocado-ness when mixed with everything. The only flavors I consistently tasted were the nacho cheese sauce and a bit of the chipotle sauce’s smokiness, which also had a slight spicy kick.

Taco Bell Steak & Guac Nacho Fries up close

Because the headlining ingredients don’t make a strong impression, it makes me wonder whether Taco Bell needed to combine all those sauces in the first place. Sour cream and nacho cheese sauce seem to be on EVERY loaded Nacho Fries variant that has come out. Maybe give the sour cream and nacho cheese guns in the kitchen a break.

These Nacho Fries might’ve been wholly more guacamole if the sour cream and nacho cheese were left off and replaced with another serving of guacamole. Then the menu item might’ve been worthy of the Steak & Guac name.

Purchased Price: $7.19*
Rating: 5 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: 530 calories, 34 grams of fat, 5 grams of saturated fat, 0 grams of trans fat, 30 milligrams of cholesterol, 1230 milligrams of sodium, 42 grams of carbohydrates, 5 grams of fiber, 3 grams of sugar (includes less than 1 gram of added sugar), and 13 grams of protein.

*Because I live on an island in the middle of the Pacific Ocean, things are a bit pricier here. You’ll probably pay less than I did.

Triscuit White Cheddar Snack Mix Review

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Triscuit White Cheddar Snack Mix pouch

Triscuit crackers are not adorable.

I mean, if I’m being honest, most crackers other than Goldfish look like what a yawn would be in cracker form. They’re mostly so square, both boringly conventional and literal squares. Perhaps I should be more specific. Regular Triscuit crackers are not adorbs. However, the tiny Triscuit in the Triscuit Snack Mix are so adorable that I want to hug them with my mouth. No, wait. They’re Tris-cute.

Along with the Triscuit minis, the mix also contains mini breadsticks, mini pretzels, and mini corn and rice crisps, but none out-cute the tiny crackers, which look like a minuscule quilt for a baby sea horse. All of them are sprinkled with cheddar cheese seasoning. There’s also an Original variety I considered purchasing, but after looking at the ingredients list, I wasn’t sure whether there was any seasoning, so I left it on the shelf.

Triscuit White Cheddar Snack Mix different pieces

After trying this white cheddar variety, however, I somewhat regret letting the cuteness of the tiny Triscuit crackers appeal to my inner microphile, because if you’re looking for a white cheddar flavor blast, these crunchy mini pieces won’t deliver.

Upon opening the bag, my nose detected a mild cheddar scent, but that cheesy smell translated into an even milder taste that never built to anything significant, even after eating a fourth of the bag. The flavor was also inconsistent with every mouthful. Some were mildly cheesy, while others had no cheesiness at all. And when it was there, it dissipated quickly.

To figure out what was going on, I tried each piece individually. It turns out one piece is much better at delivering cheesiness than the others — you guessed it, those mini Tris-cute crackers. Fingerfuls of non-Triscuit pieces will yield an insignificant or nonexistent level of cheesiness, while those with the tiny Triscuit deliver at least some, depending on how many your fingers pick up. But even then, I wished the flavor were stronger.

Size of the mini Triscuit next to a regular Triscuit. See, adorable!

But maybe that’s on me and not on Triscuit. Maybe my expectations for how bold flavors should be have been tainted by decades of eating snacks engineered to hit a bliss point that maximizes taste without being overpowering, and I’m being prejudiced towards this snack mix for failing to reach it. Or maybe it’s not me, and this Triscuit Snack Mix really does need to be cheesier.

Either way, while the mini Triscuit crackers are adorable, I found the mild, fleeting flavor of Triscuit Snack Mix to be just tolerable.

Purchased Price: $5.99
Size: 6.5 oz pouch
Purchased at: Times Supermarket
Rating: 5 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: (1/3 cup/26 grams) 110 calories, 3.5 grams of fat, 0.5 grams of saturated fat, 0 grams of trans fat, 0 milligrams of cholesterol, 150 milligrams of sodium, 19 grams of carbohydrates, 2 grams of fiber, less than 1 gram of sugar, and 3 grams of protein.

Ruffles, Doritos, and Cheetos Flavor Swap 2026 Review

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Frito-Lay Flavor Swap 2026 Bag designs

You know when you eat food that tastes like other food that isn’t actually that food?

That’s the whole trip of Frito-Lay’s new limited edition Flavor Swaps featuring Ruffles Cool Ranch, Doritos Cheddar & Sour Cream, and Cheetos Sweet Southern Heat Barbecue. My brain felt like a whirring 2000s gaming PC pushed to overdrive, but ultimately settling into a happy, joyful hum. Frito-Lay delivers, but to varying degrees of success, and we’ll get into that.

The three bags each feature a different creator or group — and look to be honest, I had no idea who any of them were, but people in my household did, which makes me adjacently cool and hip, right?

There’s Grammy-nominated singer-songwriter Madison Beer on the Cheetos Sweet Southern Heat Barbecue, trick-shot legends Dude Perfect on the Ruffles Cool Ranch, and marathon streamer IShowSpeed on the Doritos Cheddar & Sour Cream. Each has their signature on the bag, which feels very “I endorse this” — and per the press release, that’s mostly what it was. Maybe with the next Flavor Swap, they will actually get to design the mash-up themselves.

Ruffles Flavor Swap Doritos Cool Ranch

Ruffles Doritos Cool Ranch on a napking

I started with the Ruffles Cool Ranch because I thought it would be my favorite. The vision: take the bold, tangy flavor of Cool Ranch Doritos and mash it up on the ridges of a Ruffle. The first thing I noticed was how perfect and intact the chips were – not a crushed one in the bag.

Ruffles Doritos Cool Ranch seasoning up close

Second thing: the seasoning was generous. That Cool Ranch green and red dusting looked like Christmas came early, and y’all, I was here for it. The flavor delivered – tangy, herby, unmistakably Cool Ranch – but with that satisfying Ruffles crunch, which is crisper than Doritos.

Cheetos Flavor Swap Lay’s Sweet Southern Heat Barbecue

Cheetos Lay's Sweet Southern Heat Barbeque in the bag

Riding what I thought was the peak, I moved to the Cheetos Sweet Southern Heat Barbecue — and was even happier. The vision: take the iconic crunch of a Cheeto and mash it up with the sweet, smoky flavor of Lay’s Sweet Southern Heat Barbecue. Fair warning, though: the smell is a little off-putting at first. Barbecue, yes, but also something I can only describe as…tofu? But, the flavor was a full evolution — it opens sweet, builds into spicy, with barbecue flavor as the through line.

Cheetos Lay's Sweet Southern Heat Barbeque on a napkin

The Ruffles Cool Ranch was great. This Cheeto, however, was a revelation. Though, I feel like a Flamin’ Hot variant would be an improvement.

Doritos Flavor Swap Ruffles Cheddar & Sour Cream

Doritos Ruffles Cheddar & Sour Cream in the bag

Last up, Doritos Cheddar & Sour Cream chips. The vision: take the legendary Doritos crunch and mash it up with Ruffles’ rich, velvety Cheddar & Sour Cream. These looked almost unseasoned at first glance, a uniform light orange that had me worried. But on closer inspection, they were actually well seasoned — the coating was just so even that it read as bare.

Doritos Ruffles Cheddar & Sour Cream on a napkin

The bigger issue, though, is that swapping from a potato base to a corn base mutes everything — the cheddar comes through fine, but the sour cream tang gets swallowed by the corn and mostly disappears. After the Cheetos revelation, it was hard not to feel a little let down. Not bad, just the clear third-place finisher.

So, varying degrees of success as mentioned. The Cheetos surprised me most, the Ruffles delighted me as expected, and the Doritos taught us that corn and potato bases are not always interchangeable. Two out of three landing is impressive for the first year. I’d love to see this next year, but bigger and wilder (Cool Ranch Gatorade anyone?), and for the love of snacks, someone get Flamin’ Hot on speed dial!

Purchased Price: $3.97 each
Size: 9.25 oz (Doritos), 8 oz (Ruffles), 8.5 oz (Cheetos)
Purchased at: Walmart
Rating: 6 out of 10 (Doritos), 7 out of 10 (Ruffles), 9 out of 10 (Cheetos)
Nutrition Facts: (1 oz/28 g) Doritos Cheddar & Sour Cream – 150 calories, 8 grams of fat, 1 gram of saturated fat, 0 grams of trans fat, 150 milligrams of sodium, 17 grams of carbohydrates, 1 gram of fiber, less than 1 gram of total sugars, and 2 grams of protein. Ruffles Cool Ranch – 150 calories, 10 grams of fat, 1.5 grams of saturated fat, 0 grams of trans fat, 140 milligrams of sodium, 15 grams of carbohydrates, 1 gram of fiber, 1 gram of total sugars, and 2 grams of protein. Cheetos Sweet Southern Heat Barbecue – 160 calories, 10 grams of fat, 1.5 grams of saturated fat, 0 grams of trans fat, 180 milligrams of sodium, 16 grams of carbohydrates, less than 1 gram of fiber, 2 grams of total sugars, and 1 gram of protein.

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