REVIEW: Starburst Fruit by the Foot

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Starburst Fruit by the Foot

What is Starburst Fruit by the Foot?

General Mills’ popular fruity kids treat that has no actual fruit now has varieties that taste like the original Starburst chewy candies — Cherry, Strawberry, Orange, and Lemon.

Starburst Fruit by the Foot Wrappers

What flavor you get in each wrapper is printed in dot-matrix style on the shiny packaging. Oh, how I miss hearing the melodic sound of dot-matrix printers. If you’ve never heard one, here you go. Just leave that playing in another browser tab as you read the rest of the review.

If you’ve never had Fruit by the Foot, which has been around for almost **GASP** 30 years, every roll has about three feet of fun.

How is it?

Starburst Fruit by the Foot Rolls

How these taste can be summed up with the following anticlimactic statement — they taste like their respective Starburst candy. But instead of having to chew on candy pieces that can be somewhat tough like the rope you would gnaw at that’s wrapped around your wrists so that you can’t escape from a laboratory where they do secret experiments on humans to determine how long a person can tolerate the sound of a dot-matrix printer, these are easy-to-chew thin strips of sugar and natural flavors.

I don’t know if this is the sugar talking, but these satisfy my sweet tooth and taste buds. But, now that the sugar is wearing off, if I want candy that tastes like Starburst, why don’t I just buy actual Starburst and also give my jaw a workout.

Anything else you need to know?

If thin fruity flavored strips aren’t your thing, I imagine if you wanted to recreate the Starburst chew with these Fruit by the Foot, you could unravel each strip, peel it all away from the paper, roll it up again sans paper, and squash the whole roll into a solid square block. Although, this has probably been done thousands of times since Fruit by the Foot has been around for almost 30 years.

Starburst Fruit by the Foot Squished

UPDATE: I was bored, so I decided to attempt what I wrote above with a strawberry roll, and it’s still easier to chew than a Starburst. But when eaten like that, it tastes less like a Strawberry Starburst. Weird. Instead, there’s a generic strawberry candy flavor.

Starburst Fruit by the Foot Promise

A box comes with six rolls, and mine came with two strawberry, two cherry, one orange, and one lemon. That appears to be what’s in every box, which I’m glad about because I’d take advantage of Betty Crocker’s Red Spoon Promise if mine came with two lemon rolls.

Conclusion:

Starburst Fruit by the Foot is a candy that’s mostly successful at tasting like another candy.

Purchased Price: $2.58
Size: 6 rolls
Purchased at: Target.com
Rating: 6 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: (1 roll) 80 calories, 1 gram of fat, 0.5 grams of saturated fat, 0 grams of trans fat, 0 milligrams of cholesterol, 17 grams of carbohydrates, 10 grams of sugar, and 0 grams of protein.

REVIEW: Dunkin’ Refreshers

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Dunkin Refreshers

What are Dunkin’ Refreshers?

If you’re looking for an invigorating beverage this summer, Dunkin’ has you covered with the new green tea-based Peach Passion Fruit and Strawberry Dragonfruit Refreshers.

Dunkin Refreshers Flavors Closeup

How are they?

I won’t bury the lede – they live up to their name, but one definitely outshines the other.

Peach Passionfruit was the clear winner.

It tasted like Peach Tea Snapple with a splash of guava that also had a few Sour Peach Fruit Rings floating in it. Well, maybe if you mute all of the previous flavors by about 33%. It’s not nearly as sweet as that description sounds, but I appreciated that.

It started with a strong peach flavor that soon got washed with a mild sourness I can only assume came from the passion fruit that I thought tasted exactly like guava. Still, peach was in the driver’s seat, and the flavors blended well, unlike, Strawberry Dragonfruit, which was just pretty dull.

Dunkin Refreshers Top

It tasted like strawberry for a split second, but immediately turned into Power-C Vitamin Water. It makes sense, since they’re both dragonfruit flavored, but this is essentially just that Vitamin Water with some faint herbal tea notes in the background. That’s it, it’s Vitamin Water.

Anything else you need to know?

Refreshers are made with iced green tea, flavored fruit concentrate, and B vitamins, so you can see why Dunkin’ chose this name. Despite not being a big fan of one, I can’t dispute the claim. These are pretty refreshing.

Dunkin Refreshers Cuvee

For all the wine drinkers out there, I went ahead and tried a little cuvée of both flavors. Sad to say, it was a non-descript mess. Somehow the sourness rose while the peach tea flavored completely died. It ended up tasting like a flat, tangy, tropical punch seltzer.

Conclusion:

Oh, that reminds me, I wish these were carbonated. I think both flavor profiles could have benefitted from some effervescence.

There are much better menu options at Dunkin’, but if you don’t feel like a coffee or a frozen fruit drink, you might get a nice boost to your day from a Refresher – just make sure to get the Peach Passionfruit.

Purchased Price: $2.00 each
Size: Medium
Purchased at: Dunkin
Rating: 7 out of 10 (Peach Passionfruit), 4 out of 10 (Strawberry Dragonfruit)
Nutrition Facts: Peach Passionfruit – 130 calories, 0 grams of fat, 15 milligrams of sodium, 32 grams of total carbohydrates, 29 grams of total sugars, 24mg of potassium, 10g of calcium, 1 gram of protein. Strawberry Dragonfruit – 130 calories, 0 grams of fat, 15 milligrams of sodium, 29 grams of total carbohydrates, 27 grams of total sugars, 24mg of potassium, 10g of calcium, 1 gram of protein.

REVIEW: Ritz Cheese Crispers

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Ritz Cheese Crispers

Ritz Cheddar Cheese Crispers are better than Cheez-It Crackers.

(I’ll pause to allow you Cheez-It lovers to clickity-clack on your keyboards to type horrible words in my direction because of my blasphemy.)

You may think I was paid to write the opening sentence, but I assure you the money under my mattress was there before I even knew these cheesy potato and wheat chips existed. Oh, I should also mention there’s a Four Cheese & Herb flavor along with the cheddar variety. But since I haven’t had Cheez-It Italian Four Cheese Crackers, I can’t say the Ritz Cheese Crispers version is better.

Ritz Cheddar Cheese Crispers

The cheddar one combines the crispiness of a Ritz Crisp & Thins, the size of Wheat Thins, and Cheetos’ radioactive orange color, but without leaving a layer of cheesy dust on your fingers.

Why do I prefer them over Cheez-It Crackers?

Well, first off, the chips have an airy crispiness that I love biting down upon more than the crunch of crackers. Then there’s a sharp cheddar flavor with a bold zing that tastes even cheesier than Cheez-It Crackers. (NOTE: I haven’t tried the Extra Cheesy Cheez-Its.) I could eat these all day if I had an endless supply of it or if the box was a portal to a dimension that has only Ritz Cheddar Cheese Crispers.

Ritz Four Cheese Herb Cheese Crispers

The Four Cheese & Herb variety is seasoned with cheddar, Monterey Jack, parmesan, and mozzarella. The only herb I see listed in the ingredients is parsley, but I imagine that’s there for looks, and the actual herb flavor comes from a vague ingredient listed, like spices.

I can’t pinpoint which cheese is which as I eat it, but combined they taste like, and I’ve used this comparison before with other cheesy cracker products, a Totino’s pizza. Much like the other one, I have a hard time putting this down.

Both are extremely snackable, especially the cheddar flavor, but they’re not perfect.

Ritz Cheese Crispers Front and Back

The whole chip isn’t covered with cheesy seasoning, and it’s most noticeable with the cheddar flavor. While one side looks like Chester Cheetah sneezed point-blank on them after stuffing his mouth with Cheetos, the other side is quite naked.

Because almost all the seasoning is on one side, to get the full cheese punch, it needs to be eaten seasoned side down so that it all hits your taste buds. If consumed the other way, they’re less enjoyable.

I imagine some of you will disagree with my belief that Ritz Cheese Crispers are better than Cheez-It Crackers. Some of you will point out that technically I can’t compare the two because one is a cracker and the other is a chip. But if I’m going to reach for a crunchy cheesy snack in the cracker section of the store I’m at, I’m going to grab Ritz Cheddar Cheese Crispers.

DISCLOSURE: I received free samples of the product. Thanks Ritz! But I purchased the product and finished my review prior to obtaining them. To be honest, I don’t think I need to disclose this. Nor will I complain about getting more of these because did you read this review?

Purchased Price: $3.99
Size: 7 oz. box
Purchased at: Times Supermarket
Rating: 9 out of 10 (Cheddar), 8 out of 10 (Four Cheese & Herb)
Nutrition Facts: (21 chips) Cheddar – 140 calories, 7 grams of fat, 1 gram of saturated fat, 0 grams of trans fat, less than 5 milligrams of cholesterol, 240 milligrams of sodium, 18 grams of carbohydrates, 2 grams of fiber, less than 1 gram of sugar, and 2 grams of protein. Four Cheese & Herb – 140 calories, 7 grams of fat, 1 gram of saturated fat, 0 grams of trans fat, less than 5 milligrams of cholesterol, 230 milligrams of sodium, 18 grams of carbohydrates, 2 grams of fiber, less than 1 gram of sugar, and 2 grams of protein.

REVIEW: Sonic Lemonberry Slush Float

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Sonic Lemonberry Slush Float

What is the Sonic Lemonberry Slush Float?

Sonic has combined four summertime elements into one drink, from top to bottom: real strawberries, classic Sonic slush, 100% real ice cream, and lemonade slush.

How is it?

Since I had to get it from the drive-thru and bring it home (see below), I used my own straw and spoon to taste all the elements.

Sonic Lemonberry Slush Float Strawberry

The strawberries on top have the unmistakable flavor of frozen fruit. I don’t expect a national fast-food chain to use fresh berries, but I have never found frozen strawberries to taste that great.

Sonic Lemonberry Slush Float Slush

Below that, there’s the “classic Sonic slush.” Does that just mean a slush without any flavoring? Because that’s exactly what it tastes like: nothing. I guess it’s supposed to mix with the strawberries, but I don’t see the point.

Sonic Lemonberry Slush Float Ice Cream

The ice cream is what makes this a float, rather than just a slush, and it’s the reason you need a spoon instead of just a straw. It’s just what you’d expect from soft-serve vanilla. It’s enjoyable, but nothing amazing.

Since the lemonade slush was on the bottom, it was what I tasted when I stuck my straw into the cup and sucked. It was by far the best part -— tart, refreshing, and summery. Unfortunately, I quickly depleted the lemonade part and was sad when I only had the ice cream.

I had hoped the flavors would mix together better, but mostly I just tasted each element on its own, even when I wasn’t trying to keep them separate, and even though they looked like they were somewhat mixed.

Anything else you need to know?

When I pulled into a stall to order in the usual Sonic way, the red button timed out twice without anyone ever helping me, so I had to go to the drive-thru, where I kindly told them what had happened. Also, they gave me salt packets but no syrup for my French toast sticks. So, at the risk of sounding like a Karen, my experience at the Salt Lake City Sonic gets a 2 out of 10. Yelp review over. But I’m rating the drink on its own merits.

Conclusion:

The Lemonberry Slush Float is fine, but next time I think I’ll just get a regular lemonade slush.

Purchased Price: $2.79
Size: Small
Rating: 6 out of 10

Nutrition Facts (small) 350 calories, 80 calories from fat, 9 grams of fat, 5 grams of saturated fat, 0 grams of trans fat, 30 milligrams of cholesterol, 125 milligrams of sodium, 68 grams of carbohydrates, 1 gram of dietary fiber, 59 grams of sugar, and 3 grams of protein.

REVIEW: Subway BBQ Rib Sandwich

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Subway BBQ Rib Sandwich Sign

When people usually think of pre-formed rib portions, they often think of McDonald’s famed McRib, and rightfully so. Wanting in on that long-running fandom and fanfare that comes maybe once a year, the sandwich artists at Subway are horning in the fake-rib business with the introduction of its BBQ Rib Sandwich.

Using a similar rib-shaped patty to the McRib, Subway’s variation seems more significant, nearly filling the entire six-inch sub I ordered. And while the artisan behind the glass recommended white bread, I instead went with whole wheat. This is where the Subway sandwich begins to differ from McD’s greatly.

Subway BBQ Rib Sandwich Patty

The pale patty with fraudulent grill-lines is placed on bread and absolutely slathered with Subway’s somewhat passable barbeque sauce. It is then put into the proprietary space-age super-oven and toasted nicely within a minute. After it’s pulled out, another heavy squeeze of sauce is added. And then comes the cheese and vegetables.

Subway BBQ Rib Sandwich

With the McRib, you get it the way the clown wants to give it to you: rib, bun, pickles, slivered onions, and sauce. But with Subway, its method of making the sandwich right in front of you brings this rib patty concoction into a whole new realm of possibilities. In addition to the bread, I also got a few slices of provolone cheese, some fresh tomatoes, red onions, green peppers, and jalapenos.

While it will never be a true BBQ feast, for a fast food sandwich, it is one of the better BBQ sandwich offerings out there. While the patty is less fatty than McDonald’s, there is an easy smoky flavor that is enhanced by Subway’s tomato-rich barbecue sauce. Combined with the melty provolone cheese and various vegetables, it’s like a BBQ dinner in a bun.

With Subway’s BBQ Rib Sandwich, I got better than expected results. It’s available for a limited time, but if it comes back somewhat regularly, like the McRib, I can see myself lining up for a taste year after year after year.

Purchased Price: $4.29
Size: 6-inch sub
Rating: 8 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: 430 calories, 18 grams of fat, 6 grams of saturated fat, 0 gram of trans fat, 50 milligrams of cholesterol, 590 milligrams of sodium, 47 grams of carbohydrates, 5 grams of fiber, 8 grams of sugar, and 19 grams of protein.

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