Category: Reviews

REVIEW: Jack in the Box Oreo Cookie Ultimate Chocolate Shake

Marvo 2 Comments

Jack in the Box Oreo Cookie Ultimate Chocolate Shake

This is what Jack in the Box’s mobile app says about its new Oreo Cookie Ultimate Chocolate Shake, “It’s the best of both worlds – our rich old-fashioned chocolate shake with fan-favorite Oreo cookie crumbles mixed in and topped off with whipped cream and a maraschino cherry. You don’t have to thank us for this game changer, but you’re welcome to.”

Game changer, huh?

It’s a chocolate shake with Oreo cookie crumbles in it. “Game changer” is a bit hyperbolic. If this shake is a game changer, then this sentence is the greatest sentence that uses the word “sentence” three times.

Look, if the whipped topping was also chocolate flavored or chocolate mousse, and if the maraschino cherry was chocolate coated, then it might be a “game changer” and worthy of the title “ultimate.” But what’s on top is just the standard white whipped topping and bright red cherry that come with Jack’s other shakes.

Jack in the Box Oreo Cookie Ultimate Chocolate Shake Spoon

With that said, the Oreo Cookie Ultimate Chocolate Shake is as satisfying as Jack’s regular Oreo shake. The combination is a no-brainer, and it tastes exactly how you’d expect — chocolatey with little pops (and crunch) of darker chocolate from the cookie crumbles.

Jack in the Box Oreo Cookie Ultimate Chocolate Shake Topping

Like the word “ultimate” in this menu item’s name, the cherry is also unnecessary. I know it completes the whole shake experience and adds some color to the white whipped topping, but do you know what else would’ve added some color on this particular shake? More Oreo crumbles. As for the whipped topping’s contribution, it somewhat dilutes the flavors of the two headliners, and if I get this shake again, I’ll omit it.

Jack in the Box’s Oreo Cookie Ultimate Chocolate Shake is a perfectly fine dessert but isn’t the most imaginative idea, and it’s not a changer of games. If it came topped with Jack’s Chocolate Overload Cake, it would be the ultimate chocolate shake, and if it came with a couple of Jack’s mini churros lounging at the edge of the cup, that would be a game changer.

Purchased Price: $5.69
Size: Regular
Rating: 7 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: 790 calories – full nutrition facts unavailable.

REVIEW: Heinz Dip & Crunch

Tiffany 5 Comments

Heinz Dip Crunch Containers

What is it?

Inspired by #FoodTok (TikToks about food), Kraft Heinz’s new Dip & Crunch is a combo pack of burger sauce and crushed-up potato chips (crunchers).

Apparently, it’s a social media trend to dip your burger into different sauces and coat them with potato chips for more flavor and texture. Who knew?!

Dip & Crunch launched in two flavors – secret sauce and spicy sauce.

How is it?

I don’t know why, but I felt compelled to purchase McDonald’s to pair with this. My usual homemade burger just didn’t feel right for the occasion!

The sauces were both orange-ish in color. The secret sauce had floating bits of relish, as expected, whereas the spicy one looked a bit smoother.

Heinz Dip Crunch Dips

They both smelled pungent and vinegary with a mayo-like linger. The crunchers smelled stale because oil was the only thing I could discern. They looked like regular ol’ potato chips – a la Lay’s Original as opposed to wavy or kettle style. It tasted stale and was texturally a bit soft, but I wasn’t expecting much from the crunchers because Heinz doesn’t make chips on the regular.

Heinz Dip Crunch Burger

But it does make condiments! So, I was a little disappointed by the secret sauce. It didn’t really do much to enhance my burger’s flavor. There was a smidge of tanginess but overall wasn’t very flavorful. However, I really enjoyed the spicy one. It ate like spicy mayo – spicy, tangy with a bit of sweetness. I was pleasantly surprised that it actually had some heat to it!

Anything else you need to know?

Heinz Dip Crunch McNuggets

I honestly preferred to Dip & Crunch my McNuggets and fries instead. My favorite combination was the McDonald’s Sweet & Sour Sauce with the potato crunchers. The Mickey D fries’ texture compensates for the chip’s staleness, and the fast food sauce provided better stickage.

Heinz Dip Crunch McD Sauce

Conclusion:

I like playing with my food, and this is a fun way to do just that. With free sauces at fast food joints and way fresher potato chips, if self-crushed, I probably won’t buy this again.

Purchased Price: $1.89 each
Size: 2.75 oz
Purchased at: Target
Rating: 5 out of 10 (Secret Sauce), 6 out of 10 (Spicy Sauce)
Nutrition Facts: (1 package) Secret Sauce and Crunchers – 430 calories, 40 grams of fat, 7 grams of saturated fat, 0.5 grams of trans fat, 15 milligrams of cholesterol, 480 milligrams of sodium, 15 grams of carbohydrates, 1 gram of fiber, 2 grams of total sugar, and 2 grams of protein. Spicy Sauce and Crunchers – 440 calories, 41 grams of fat, 8 grams of saturated fat, 0.5 grams of trans fat, 15 milligrams of cholesterol, 480 milligrams of sodium, 15 grams of carbohydrates, 1 gram of fiber, 2 grams of total sugar, and 2 grams of protein.

REVIEW: Dairy Queen Reese’s Take 5 Blizzard

Denis 2 Comments

Dairy Queen Reese s Take 5 Blizzard Top

What is it?

The Reese’s Take 5 Blizzard is the August Blizzard of the Month, and Dairy Queen says it’s the first time ever that its signature treat contains five flavors, even if the math is a little fuzzy, as I’ll explain. This doesn’t contain pulverized Reese’s Take 5 bars but instead mimics the candy with Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups, caramel topping, peanuts, and pretzel pieces.

How is it?

It’s a touch disappointing if I’m being honest, and I don’t mess around with dishonesty when I’m talking about Blizzards. Before trying this, I was certain it would land at or near the top of my list of all-time favorites, but it comes up a little short.

Dairy Queen Reese s Take 5 Blizzard Spoon

For me, there’s just a bit too much going on, and perhaps that’s why DQ has never put five ingredients in a Blizzard. And I’m not even counting this as five flavors anyway. In an actual Take 5 bar, there are five parts, as the milk chocolate lovingly embraces and surrounds the pretzels, peanuts, peanut butter, and caramel, while this Blizzard uses peanut butter cups. Yes, I know PB cups contain peanut butter and chocolate, but for reasons I can’t articulate fully, I just can’t count that as two things.

As for how this tastes, the peanut butter flavor gets lost in the mix, which doesn’t quite seem right for something branded as Reese’s. The pretzels do give it a nice salty component to offset the sweetness, but again, the pretzel taste is hard to distinguish as the pieces have the same kind of crunch as the peanuts. And stop me if you’ve heard this before, but the caramel flavor is somewhat sparse because it’s fighting for attention against all its Take 5 friends. The four (or five) ingredients still combine for a pleasant taste experience, but instead of being distinctive, it’s almost more generic, like it should just be called a chocolatey peanutty Blizzard.

Dairy Queen Reese s Take 5 Blizzard Dig

Anything else you need to know?

I guess I haven’t followed candy bar branding closely in recent years because I didn’t realize that this bar was simply called TAKE5 until the “Reese’s” name was added in 2019. Also, Hershey’s needs to hire a proofreader for its website because on the same page, it alternates between a space and no space in TAKE 5 (and the DQ website doesn’t use all caps, so I have no idea what the official name really is). Regardless, Hershey’s has said that the peanut butter in the bar has always been Reese’s since it debuted in 2004.

Conclusion:

Even if you ignore the minor mathematical issues with this Blizzard, it doesn’t quite add up to a perfect 10. It’s good — actually very good — but it’s a classic case of more is not always better.

Purchased Price: $4.49
Size: Small
Rating: 8 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: (Small) 770 calories, 34 grams of fat, 15 grams of saturated fat, 0.5 grams of trans fat, 50 milligrams of cholesterol, 580 milligrams of sodium, 99 grams of carbohydrates, 3 grams of dietary fiber, 76 grams of sugar, and 21 grams of protein.

REVIEW: Burger King Frozen What The Fanta Mystery Flavor

Erin 17 Comments

Burger King Frozen What The Fanta Mystery Flavor Slush Cup

Fanta recently unveiled a new line of mystery flavored beverages that are designed to “fool senses and challenge tastebuds with opposite flavor notes.” Read: Fanta is trying to screw with you. Some flavors are appearing in 20-ounce bottles and others are in Coke Freestyle machines or in frozen form at various restaurants. I like to confuse my mouth as much as the next person so I picked up a Burger King Frozen What The Fanta Drink and proceeded to, as the ads put it, “Taste the Unknown.”

Yup, I’m definitely tasting the unknown. It’s a familiar sort of unknown that makes me think I can place it but at the same time, I can’t make a guess with any real confidence. When I ordered, the manager told me it was great and showed me his almost empty cup of the green stuff as proof he drinks it himself. I asked if he had a guess as to the flavor and he offered up “maybe lime something?”

Burger King Frozen What The Fanta Mystery Flavor Slush Top

Mine started out perfectly frozen and a light green reminiscent of the daytime color of objects that glow in the dark. It didn’t smell like much at first and tasted fruity but also kind of creamy. These melt fast and the flavor seems to change as they do. After an initial several sips where I thought I should know the flavor but couldn’t put a name to it I began to think it might be strawberry banana. That’s a combination I only know from eating it in the form of Trix yogurt approximately twice as a child because I hate bananas and would never seek out anything flavored like them. That being said, the banana here (if it’s here at all?) isn’t overwhelming or enough to make me dislike it.

Sticking my nose in the cup after about half had turned to liquid gave me a totally different smell, it was heavier on the vanilla and creamy, maybe even sort of caramely notes. Maybe it’s a strawberry banana cream pie? With a little lime and I don’t know…kiwi? Do I even know what a kiwi tastes like? I feel like maybe when they reveal what this mystery flavor is it could be a fruit I’ve never tasted. Jackfruit! Wasn’t that having a moment a while ago? Jackfruit Shortcake is my official guess based on absolutely nothing.

Burger King Frozen What The Fanta Mystery Flavor Slush Sign

To sum up, this tastes like something that would happen when you mix four flavors at the Slurpee machine but have strategically chosen the flavors in the hopes they won’t clash with one another. It’s a good but not amazing drink and one that I don’t think most people would find objectionable even if they aren’t into the whole “mystery” concept and would rather know what they’re tasting. If you think mystery flavors are fun this one should keep you guessing because I’ve seen people say it tasted like everything from caramel apple to key lime pie and at the price of only $1 it makes for some refreshing summer entertainment.

Purchased Price: $1.11
Size: Medium
Rating: 7 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: 170 calories, 0 grams of fat, 0 grams of saturated fat, 0 mg of cholesterol, 75 milligrams of sodium, 44 grams of carbohydrates, 0 grams of fiber, 44 grams of sugar, and 0 grams of protein.

REVIEW: Doritos Twisted Southwest Ranch

Marvo 3 Comments

Doritos Twisted Southwest Ranch Bag

Frito-Lay seems to be slacking.

(Drops mic)

Well, if I’m on the company’s holiday card mailing list, I’m definitely off it now. Or maybe I’ll be on a different list that’ll get lumps of caked Flamin’ Hot seasoning.

Why do I think they’re slacking?

Well, recently, they seem to be slightly tweaking flavors that already exist. The Doritos Tangy Tamarind I reviewed the other day tastes like a less spicy version of Doritos Flamin’ Hot Limon. And after eating these Doritos Twisted Southwest Ranch, my taste buds think they’ve been eating a significantly less hot version of the Doritos Flamin’ Hot Cool Ranch that came out early this year. I guess you could say this new flavor is a Smolderin’ Warm Cool Ranch Doritos, if you will.

Doritos Twisted Southwest Ranch Closeup

Doritos Twisted Southwest Ranch is currently a Sam’s Club exclusive in a pillow-sized 19.375-ounce bag. While looking to see if my local Sam’s Club had this in stock (it didn’t), I noticed a review for it that said there’s no ranch flavor and another that said it was gross. However, much like the Doritos Flamin’ Hot Cool Ranch, I thought the ranch seasoning sticks out the most. While it may not have the trademarked “Cool Ranch” in its name, it could be mistaken as a Cool Ranch cousin.

Doritos Twisted Southwest Ranch Tangy Twist

But along with the ranch’s tang, there’s an added sour cream tanginess that’s surprising. It was odd at first, but then it grew on me. Also, a faint sweetness comes from the brown sugar in the seasoning. According to the back of the bag, these chips have a “desert heat with a tangy twist.” So I guess that added tang on top of the ranch is the “twisted” part.

Or maybe the “twisted” part is that even though there’s fire on the packaging, the heat is paltry. The warmth from the chips is the equivalent to what you’d get from standing in front of your TV while Netflix’s Fireplace For Your Home plays on it.

Overall, Doritos Twisted Southwest Ranch is a chip I’m willing to eat 19.375 ounces of. But I think that extra tanginess, sweetness, lack of heat, or a combination of the three might turn off other taste buds. My wife grimaced the first time she tried a chip, but after eating a few more she admitted the flavor grew on her. Your amount of grimacing may vary.

Purchased Price: More than one should pay on eBay*
Size: 19.375 oz bag
Purchased at: eBay
Rating: 7 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: (about 12 chips) 150 calories, 7 grams of fat, 1 gram of saturated fat, 0 grams of trans fat, 0 milligrams of cholesterol, 190 milligrams of sodium, 17 grams of carbohydrates, 1 gram of fiber, 1 gram of sugar, and 2 grams of protein.