Doritos Spicy Garlic

Same name, different color and flavor!

The Attraction

Umm, Doritos, hello? It also doesn't hurt that it's a flavor you can't get here in the US. I quickly plunked down my converted Taiwanese dollars and brought this baby home for a sampling.

The Review:
One of the more exciting parts of traveling aboard is hitting all the markets and hording all the interesting snacks that you just don't see when you are back home. Every trip I take outside of the US, I make it a point to scope out every snack aisle I come across to locate treats that light up my face the same way snacks did when I was a chubby teenager. That's the true litmus test as to if I should review it. If I'm that exciting to buy it, it's going to get reviewed. One such snack that I was excited to come across while in Asia was these Doritos Spicy Garlic flavor chips.

You may know my cousin, Cool Ranch

Being a true snack enthusiast, Doritos easily makes my snack Top 10. Hell, it might even make my top 5.  I am also not alone in my love for Doritos. The crispy corn chip crunch with a generous dusting of nacho cheese flavoring has been providing years of empty calories for happy Americans for decades. In more recent times, they've expanded the product line to include flavors like Cool Ranch, Spicy Sweet Chili and Spicy Nacho, but for me, Nacho will always be king.

With that said, I occasionally dabble in the other flavors like Cool Ranch and Spicy Sweet Chili, to break it up sometimes, so when I saw this new offering of Spicy Garlic, I knew I couldn't pass it up.

..or my other cousin, Sweet Chili?

When I finally got back home from Asia, I cracked open the bag and noticed a slight garlicky scent.

"As promised", I thought to myself

I grab a lucky chip out of the sea of Doritos in the bag and crunch down on one.

I'm happy to see that the Doritos signature crunch extends to products overseas as well. Flavor-wise, the people over at Doritos were smart to not make the garlic flavor too intense. It's a bit more subtle than I was expecting. It wasn't like garlic powder on a chip. The flavor was more of a kiss of garlic-ness that wasn't very salty. I think if it was saltier, it would have made the garlic flavor more pronounced, but by downplaying the salt factor, you can get the essence of garlic without it overpowering your taste buds.

It was only after the garlic flavor began to fade away when the spicy part of the flavor namesake came into play. It's something I've noticed with many "spicy" snacks. They layer the heat on the latter part of the flavor profile and it works well because it doesn't distract you from the other flavors. It acts like a spicy cleansing of the palate. The trade off is that if you are accustomed to that more forward, aggressive spiciness, the heat this snack punches may feel more like a love tap.

The Sweet:
Consistent Doritos crunch no matter the flavor. Exicting flavor deviation

The Bitter:
However interesting the flavor is, it's not enough to really distinguish itself

Conclusion:
It's tough being a Doritos product. I suppose to a degree, it's similar to being the offspring or relative of someone very famous; you are measured against this really high bar because of the name you carry when all you want to be is yourself.

That's the curse of this product; because the Doritos brand is so beloved, it takes something really special to stand along side the enduring Doritos flavors. I'm glad that they continue to experiment in all parts of the world and perhaps the Spicy Garlic flavor will resonate to other snack lovers in other regions, but for me, it didn't make enough of an impression to occasionally give up the space in my shopping cart that I would normally reserve for the Doritos flavor that will always have my heart, Nacho Cheese.

Video of the Week

Which Philly Cheese steak is really the best?

I've seen so many food shows on TV blowing smoke up some Philly Cheesesteak's owners butt about how good their specific cheesesteak is, but I never really get a straight answer about which ones are really good. Finally, the good people over at Bon Appetit sent someone out to taste 16 cheesesteaks in Philadelphia in 12 hours. I don't know if I will ever eat that many cheesesteaks in one visit, but I won't need to now that I know which they liked the most. For those not familiar with what a Philly Cheesesteak is, you can learn more about this iconic sandwich here.

Frutips Black Currant

 I'm sorta a big deal

The Attraction

I've seen this candy around at various points in my "Asian" life. It was time I wrote a proper review of this perennial treat.

The Review:
Ask any Hong Kong native or frequent visitor to the island about this snack and most likely they will be familiar with it. Frutips in HK are like the equivalent of Lifesavers or Tic Tacs here in the States. Every grocery / convenience store carries these snack stables. I vaguely remember seeing these at various point of my childhood growing up. Even though I was raised in the US, I remember seeing the packaging of these snacks when I would visit HK or when someone would visit from HK and would bring a few roll of these for someone I knew.

Tunnel of yummy goodness?

I have forgotten about this snack years ago, until about 3 years ago, a former colleague of mine with friends in Hong Kong would have them ship her these gummy pastilles to her several times a year. She was kind enough to share some with me and it immediately brought me back to my younger days.

What's curious about it is that although gummies are not an unusual favorite of children and grown-ups alike, the famous flavor of these Frutips are black currant. Yes, black currant. You may be asking, what the heck flavor is that? Well, it looks like a grape and blueberry. It's better explained here.

Gummy and chewy

In any regard, the black currant flavor is far more familiar to folks in Asia and in Europe. So much so that another black currant flavored treat, Ribina, is also very popular in Hong Kong. Fortunately, you can get these concentrated drink mixes here in the US.

What makes these treats so tasty? They are gummy, but not overly sweet, with a subtle tartness to them. The gummy texture is also not too gummy. It doesn't get all in your teeth to the point where you have to use your tongue or worst, your finger, to get the candy our of your teeth. I'm drooling a little just thinking about them now.

The Sweet:
Gummy, chewy, slightly sour treats that are highly addicting

The Bitter:
Hard to find outside of Asia

Conclusion:
There's a reason why this gummy treat is so popular in HK. It's not too sweet and the chewy consistency makes it tough to resist a multiple pastille tasting. Unfortunately, these are usually not sold in the US, so they are a tough item to come by, but when you do, after trying it, you'll be hording a few rolls of these the next time you happen upon them.

Video of the Week

Boy, the things you can win these days in the claw machine

A slightly pervy, yet genius of a business person in Taiwan came up with the idea of putting bikini-clad women in the claw machine games to draw more players. This may surprise you, but it seemed to have worked in a big way. No, you can't select the model with the claw (unfortunately) and it's probably not a good idea to play one of these machines while you are on a date, unless you want to potentially just go home alone.

Pomelo

 No, I'm not a giant pear!

The Attraction

As part of my recent trip to Taiwan, I had the chance to try this obscure fruit in the US, that happened to be in season on my visit.  

The Review:
These pomelos were all over the place when I was in Taiwan. Every market had them, I saw truck fulls of them everywhere I went. I even saw fancier versions of them wrapped preciously in paper and packaged in boxes. What the heck must these things taste like if they are so popular? Oh heck, what do I have to lose?

My in-laws had a big box of these in their house and one night after dinner, they busted out a few for us to have. I was a little nervous at first as I've never had one before so I had no idea how to begin to eat it. They were kind enough to cut it open for us, so at least I knew not to bite into it like an apple.

Once it was opened, it looked very similar to a giant orange or a large grapefruit. I wasn't sure how to feel exactly. I love oranges, but more lukewarm towards grapefruits. Either way, I had to try it now. I can't not have a little in front of the whole family.

Look how big this sucker is compared to my hand!

When I picked up a half, it was clear that even though it looks like an orange, the skin surrounding the actual pomelo flesh itself was much thicker and tougher. Almost like you have a really dry grapefruit skin.

Sure enough, people begin peeling off the skin around the flesh and ate the juice vesicles. (not to be confused with juice testicles, which is something I just made up). I followed in suite and stared at the fruit of my labors for a moment. Then I popped it in my mouth. After all that work, this better be worth it...

Tasty little bit

As I chomped down on the pomelo, there was a burst of citrus juice in my mouth; it tasted like an orange at first, but before it could get sweet like a conventional orange, a tartness settled in like a grapefruit. Wow...how interesting. It's literally like an orange and grapefruit combined; not as tart as a grapefruit, but not as sweet as an orange.

Is that a good or bad thing?

I laboriously picked thought a few more pieces to see if it would become any clearer to me, but it didn't. I did eat all the pieces that I extracted...that must mean something, I think.

The Sweet:
It's a great snack if you are looking for something new with a sweet and slightly tart twist.

The Bitter:
Takes some work to get to the good stuff

Conclusion:
Pomelos are a strange snack to me; they didn't really strike me as anything special when I first had them. They didn't bowl me over the way persimmons did when I first had them, so I thought I could take them or leave them. However as more time passes since my last encounter, I find myself looking for them in Asian markets.

Maybe Pomelos are like that female friend that you always got along with and had a great time with, but you never really thought about because they were always there. It wasn't until they weren't around anymore that you realized how much you missed them.

Yes, what I think I'm trying to say is say is Pomelos are like Rachael Leigh Cook in "She's All That"

Video of the Week

Great, it's going to kill me, in a stylish way

After warning you for months, if not years that these things (here and here) are going to take over the world and kill us, they've now made a robot that can jump and flip. I'm human and I can't do half the stuff this robot can do. We are doomed. Calling Kyle Reese, come in Kyle Reese.

Ho Ho Mei Pineapple Bun

The logo says it all, I think

Yes, I am back! More on where I've been later. Let's just get to the reviews, shall we?

The Attraction

Several years back, I was visiting the in-laws in Taiwan when we happened upon a stall in a Taipei night market with a long line for it. I had no idea what the people were on the queue for, but I was intrigued. With so many stalls in so many night markets, for Taiwanese people to line up and wait for something, it had to be something special, so without even knowing what it was, we jump into the line. (Spoiler alert!) Little did I know that decision would result in me discovering one of my favorite night market items.

The Review:
Taiwan is really well known for it's night markets. With so much variety and at such inexpensive pricing, it's really tough not to love it. From sweet to savory treats to a variety of fruits, soups and sometimes even clothing, night markets have something for everyone. Personally, they had me once I knew they had a variety of food vendors, many of which serve Taiwanese comfort foods that you cannot get anywhere else.

Now, I can't say for sure that the Pineapple bun originated in Taiwan, but I will say that Ho Ho Mei has just about perfected it.

I have loved pineapple buns or bolo baos from since when my Mom would get me some from Chinatown here in New York. Their sweet crunchy topping on a soft fluffy bun proved to be a simple, yet tasty combo to me. Since then, I've had many pineapple buns (not actually pineapple flavored, just named that based on the pineapple-like texture of the sweet topping) in my day, but what is it about Ho Ho Mei's version of bolo baos that made people line up and convert me to a lifelong fan?

I look like a regular pineapple bun...

To start, the bun itself is fresh. Seemingly made the same day. In most cases, bakeries in NY are also fresh and made the same day, but somehow Ho Ho Mei's bun seem softer and fluffier. That was a distinct difference when I took my first bite. It felt like it was melting in my mouth. How often have you had a pastry do that?

The crunchy sweet topping is standard faire, good, but indistinguishable from other pineapple buns I've had, but when it's placed on top of such a stellar bun, it seems to enhance the overall experience. Speaking of enhancements...

...until you look under my pineapple hood

Although Ho Ho Mei offers the plain bolo bao, their real bread and butter (bad pun) is when they place a cold, big pat of butter into the warm pineapple bun. The contrast between the warm, soft bun against the cold, hard butter creates a strangely satisfying eating experience. The butter adds both a flavor as well as a textural dimension to this already enjoyable snack. It works and it works big.


The Sweet:
What isn't great about this bun? Soft, not too sweet, the contrast between warm bun and cold butter works unexpectedly well.

The Bitter:
Only available in Taiwan!

Conclusion:
I know what you might be thinking; what stops me from just buying a pineapple bun and placing a big pat of cold butter in between it on my own? Well, it just so happens that there is a place here locally in NY that offer a warm pineapple bun with a cold pat of butter in between. After coming back from Taiwan, I was really missing this snack, so I tracked down a place that seemingly had a similar product. I was excited to try it and had high hopes, but it was very ordinary. So ordinary that I had to face the truth; there are magic in those Ho Ho Mei pineapple buns.

Video of the Week

I thought I would get bored, but I watched the whole thing

People have been asking me what I've been doing since I've been gone so long. (No one has asked me that.) Well, some of that time was spent watching videos like these that you don't learn much from, yet are still entertaining. Who knew something so simply could be so fun? Leave it to the Japanese to find strange and interesting ideas.

YBC Vanilla Sandwich

 

 If it weren't for the letters YBC, I would have
never known what these are called

The Attraction

These cookies / crackers remind me very much or these Japanese Ritz flavored cookies, I've had before, but there's no sign of "Ritz" or "Nabisco" on the packaging, so when these became a new resident on the shelves of the grocery store I frequent, I wondered if they were as good. You know what I must do. "Must" be the operable word. 

The Review:
This is a mystery. I started seeing these YBC crackers everywhere where I used to see the Ritz Custard Crackers I reviewed previously. What was odd was that it wasn't like they were competing for customers because seemingly one week the Ritz versions of the crackers were there and the next week, these YBC versions of the same type of cookies seem to take it's place. I've never seen a store have both and as of recent, I've only seen these. No more of the Ritz versions.Are these knockoffs? Did Nabisco yank their name off the product? Maybe I will never know unless I'm in Japan...and as much as I want to know the dillyo, that's a long way to go to get to the bottom of this snacking situation.

Don't call me the "R" word

As you may have already noticed, the packaging is very similar, but will it taste the same? I've had the custard-flavored version before of these (or the original Ritz version) and was rather fond of it, but this product just produced more questions; would it taste as good? Is custard and vanilla flavors that different? If this was a competitor trying to create a similar product, would it taste inferior? Worst yet, if these were the new "Ritz" sandwich, did they lose the recipe as well as the name? All of this could be solved with a bite.

Sweet and salty goodness

Like the Nabisco version, each package comes with two individually wrapped rolls of cookies / crackers. I pull out a "sandwich" and dig in.

Then all of a sudden, it's like a movie. The savory cracker flavor of a Ritz hits my tough first and as I pull away, the crisp, slightly dull snap of the cracker screams out, "Hey, I'm a Ritz, remember me!?"

As the familiar Ritz cracker movie plays out, there is a surprise twist to this snack I've eaten dozens of times; there is a sweet cream component that cuts-in between the tango my taste buds are having with this savory cracker.

"How rude?!", instinctively I first think, almost like a reflex, however like a smooth foreign spy, it woos me and convinces me it means no harm and rather......it's better this way.....and you know what...he wouldn't be totally wrong.

The savory flavor of the crackers sandwiching the sweet vanilla cream in between compliments each other rather than competing for flavor real estate. A flavor tango indeed.

The Sweet:
These things are amazingly tasty. Scratch both the savory and sweet itch at the same time.

The Bitter:
Umm...so do these replace the Ritz version or are these a knockoff?

Conclusion:
I really enjoy these crackers, but it bugs me that I can't tell if these have replaced the Ritz version I've seen before or are these an impostor, albeit a tasty one at that.

Either way, should I come across these, I will have to proceed with caution as I've become all to aware of how quickly a package of these can disappear when within my possession.

Video of the Week

I'm not even this cool now.

I really hate when in the movies they do that cliche thing where older white people pretend to be into hip hop like here and here. In the case of this week's video, I don't think he's pretending. He looks to be living the lifestyle.

Kiwano Melon

 
 Not to be confused with the equally delicious guano

The Attraction

I was strolling in an American supermarket last week when I came across a small exotic fruit section in the produce aisle. As I was scoping out the fruits in there, (among them persimmons and quenepas) I come across a fruit that I have never laid eyes on before. It was orange and had horns on it. (I was tempted to write "horny", but I was giggling too much). I didn't even know what it was called, but one thing was for sure; I was going to be taking one of these home to try!

The Review:
The label on this bizarre looking fruit said, Kiwano. I was really curious as to what this thing would taste like. It vaguely resembles a dragon fruit or pitaya, but probably mostly because of the shape.

After googling it extensively, I find out that the kiwano is actually a kind of melon that is popular in Africa. Not sure when the next time I'll be in Africa, so I was sure glad I grabbed this kiwano before some other adventurous soul beat me to it.

Once I take it home and cut it in half, it becomes very clear kiwano is very different from dragon fruit.

Whoa....that's freaky!

The kiwano melon has all these seeds inside that are surrounded by these gel like pods. Think like a pomegranate. It's a little freaky looking, but that just made it all the more intriguing.

I picked up a half and grabbed a spoon. It was time to dig in. I scoop out several "pods" and go to town on it.

The seeds are edible!

The first thing I notice is that unlike pomegranate seeds, these seeds are far easier to eat. You can barely feel the texture difference between biting into the gel sack portion and when your teeth hit the seed within the pod. Think passion fruit in texture.

Flavor-wise, it was reminiscent of eating a not sweet green grape. Some green grapes have a slightly tart flavor along with the sweetness. In the case of this kiwano melon, the lip smacking tartness is there, but none of the sweetness. The texture is also similiar to an inside of a grape. I also get a slight cucumber vibe off it as well, but not a lot, otherwise I would really not like it.

I can't help but feel like a bit of a fruit pioneer as I eat this melon (except people in Africa have been eating this for many years)

The Sweet:
A nice change of pace from the "regular" fruits. Refreshing!

The Bitter:
Not chocked full of flavor. Very subtle flavor compared to many other fruits.

Conclusion:
No, I won't be running back to the supermarket to buy out the remaining stock of these exotic melons, but I am glad I tried it. I can see chilling one of these in the fridge, then cutting them in half and eating them as a chilled dessert with a spoon because, well, lets face it, how many fruits can you eat with a spoon with no preparation?

I would, however, recommend that should the next time you are at the market and see one of these or another fruit you've never had before, you jump in with both feet. How often does one get to sample these types of fruit in your home town? It's one of the best parts of traveling to new and exotic places; sampling the local cuisine. Now you can do it from the comfort of your own zip code.

Video of the Week

This video makes me think of this song

At first, I wasn't too amused, until the remix kicked in. It seemed like it started out intentional and then he lost control. I hate showoffs, but love it when karma kicks in....even with little kids. That shows him what happens when you try to showboat.

Luppo Cake Bite

 Oh no, not again!

The Attraction

I didn't pay this any mind really, but the little lady was interested for some reason. She normally doesn't pickup any Choco Pies, so I was surprised when she brought this snack to my attention. Who am I to turn down a new chocolate snack? I have a feeling this might be a disaster. How exciting!

The Review:
This whole thing dates back to one of my early reviews of Moon Pies. I really loved it, but then as I would go through the Asian markets, I would come across seemingly the Asian knockoffs called Choco Pies. If you read through the Wiki on it, then there was some drama between two large snack producing companies over the name "Choco Pie".

These look familiar

Well, to sum up that chapter, I think Moon Pies are tastier than Choco Pies, however in NYC, Choco Pies seem vastly easier to come across than Moon Pies. If you can't have the real thing, Choco Pies aren't a bad substitute.

Fast forward to this Luppo Cake Bite (cough, another Moon Pie clone, cough) and you are all caught up. What's different already about this snack is unlike the original and it predecessor, these treats are not individually wrapped. They sit in a plastic tray neatly separated, a la Mallomars. 

Doesn't look too exciting

I didn't expect much as I've had several variations of Choco Pies before and the lack of individual wrapping made me think it was all in the name of a cheapo product. Not much put in, not much comes out....or so I thought.

I pluck a lucky "bite" out and take a casual nibble. "Hmm...this seems familiar, but something is a little different.", I thought to myself. I take another bite to see if I can hone in on the different twist.

"Coconut?"

Despite no mention on the packaging, these "cake bites" have a slight coconut flavor to them. It's not in your face or coated with coconut shavings or anything, but there's a definite coconut flavor in there. Aside from that little twist, it's what you have come to expect from a Choco Pie; a nice layer of chocolate coating on the outside, with a marshmallow cream filling on the inside. A bit of a bounce when you bite in from the filling. All wonderful, yet hardly earth-shattering things.

That was a little different

As I took a few more bites, I had to ask myself; "Coconut good, coconut bad, or coconut weird?"

It's not bad and it's not really weird tasting either. I guess that could only mean one thing.

The Sweet:
Slight coconut flavor brings a unique twist on a familiar tasting and looking snack.

The Bitter:
Not the most original idea

Conclusion:
I thought I had seen the last of these Moon Pie / Choco Pie clones. Realistically, how many similiar products can you have of snack that doesn't involve flavor variations? Yet Luppo Cake Bites boldly steps into the already crowded chocolate "pie" arena and differentiate itself with a subtle and tasty twist.

As for me, I think I'm done with these chocolate pies. How many more can a person eat? Well, then again, maybe I should learn by now that one should never say never.

Video of the Week

Not to be confused with this parkour

Yes, parkour was (is) still a thing. It's still impressive no matter how much time has passed. Even more so when you hit the longest and scariest looking parkour course in China. I got winded pressing the play button on the video, so I can appreciate this guy's athleticism.