REVIEW: Red Bull Summer Edition Watermelon Energy Drink

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Red Bull Summer Edition Watermelon Energy Drink

What is Red Bull Summer Edition Watermelon?

Summertime and the livin’s easy, even in the middle of Febru-ary…

The Groundhog may have called for an early spring, but the Red Bull isn’t having any of that chilly damp nonsense.

With the release of new Watermelon Summer Edition, Red Bull has officially declared it summertime.

Who are we to argue with the company that gives us wings?! Welcome to summer, folks!

How is it?

This may be the first energy drink I’ve had in ages that actually gave me real energy. I chalk that up to the fact the flavor was not the sweet watermelon I was expecting.

Red Bull Summer Edition Watermelon Energy Drink Closeup

It smelled like typical artificial watermelon candy or Jell-O – which I love – but it tasted more like an under ripened watermelon mixed with citrus flavors.

An unripe watermelon is usually a major buzzkill, but it worked well in energy drink form.

Summer Edition Watermelon is one of the sourest Red Bulls I’ve ever had, and I kinda dug that.

Is there anything else I need to know?

There’s a quick burst of watermelon that transitions to a very citrusy finish. I’d totally believe this was “Watermelon-lemon” flavored. Actually, I’d think lemon or lime would be the first flavor listed in that mix because the acidity is what lingers the longest in each sip.

They shoulda called it Sublime-Watermelon. Right? Remember when I referenced their song earlier?

I usually whine about something being too sweet and cloying, but as much as I enjoyed this, it probably coulda been about 25% closer to the Jolly Rancher Watermelon flavor. That would have made this a Hall of Famer.

Conclusion:

If you’re buying a Red Bull, you’re looking for that shot of energy, and I think this one will give you a pep in your step.

I didn’t get the watermelon flavor I anticipated, but I still wasn’t disappointed. It’s not my favorite Red Bull, but with it getting this super early release, I can see myself grabbing it a few more times over this eight-month summer.

Purchased Price: $2.50
Size: 12 Fl. Oz.
Purchased at: Walmart
Rating: 7 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: 160 calories, 0 grams of fat, 125 milligrams of sodium, 40 grams of total carbohydrates, 38 grams of total sugars, 0 grams of protein.

REVIEW: Papa John’s Papadias

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Papa John s Meatball Pepperoni Papadia

Update 6/2/21: We tried the Parmesan Crusted Papadia! Click here to read our review.

Update 9/21/20: We also reviewed the Grilled Buffalo Chicken Papadia.

Update 12/12/20: We also reviewed the Double Cheeseburger Papadia.

While your favorite pizza chain is still 2000 and late by adding more things to the crust, my favorite pizza chain – Papa John’s – is doing the most with its new Papadias. Inspired by the piadina, a Northern Italy flatbread sandwich, these were tested back in July and clearly did well enough to be launched nationwide. Thank you, test markets!

I was surprised to see ALL four varieties (Italian, Philly Cheesesteak, Grilled BBQ Chicken & Bacon, Meatball Pepperoni) made it through, but I’m making an educated guess the Philly Cheesesteak was the crowd favorite because it’s the hero image on all posters, website, etc.

I’m going to cut right to the chase; these part pizza, part sandwich phenoms are legit! I have eaten many a Subway flatbread sandwiches and it simply can’t compare to flatbread created with Papa John’s fresh, never frozen dough that has a fantastic springiness to it.

I can see why this portable form would work well for lunch. Thanks to the uniform fold-over, it was really easy to hold and didn’t come undone. There was no chance of me accidentally eating more of the top than the bottom and making a mess. Additionally, there wasn’t much oil residue on my fingers – just the tolerable, manageable dustiness that comes with eating pizza.

I was also very impressed by the amount of food for $6 each. It was one of the rare times that the press photos actually mirrored the size of the food in real life!

Double Cheeseburger

(Added 12/12/20)

Zesty burger sauce, ¼ pound of seasoned beef, dill pickles, and signature cheese. Served with a zesty burger dipping sauce.

I’ve been really into cheeseburger pizzas lately. Why you ask? My response: WHY NOT?

Papa John’s new Double Cheeseburger Papadia isn’t helping my cause either. It launched with the reintroduction of its seasonal Double Cheeseburger pizza offering. Both are only around through December 27th!

I was really intrigued by Papa John’s take because of the pickles — not all cheeseburger pizzas include this polarizing brined fruit. So, if you like pickles, you’ll probably enjoy this because it’s pretty pickle-forward tasting.

It may be less pickle-y for you if your Papa John’s doesn’t skimp on the carne though. It claims that it’s the meatiest Papadia ever, but the quarter pound of ground beef was drowned by the creamy burger sauce (which is just basically thousand island dressing methinks) and slices of pickle. The Italian one was way more meaty tasting.

I did enjoy that there was no tomato included as the pizza version of this does. Hot take: tomato chunks or slices don’t belong on a cheeseburger pizza or any legit cheeseburger for that matter.

Also, because there was so much sauce already, I didn’t even touch the additional cup provided. I’d rather have the garlic butter, please.

So, I tried it again – this time as prescribed above with double meat (with no upcharge on the app!) and garlic butter on the side instead. The adjustments brought it very close to dethroning my top flavor, Meatball Pepperoni, but not quite! Plus, it’s only available for a limited time, so I’m sticking with my tried and true.

Rating: 7 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: 1000 calories, 57 grams of fat, 24 grams of saturated fat, 3 gram of trans fat, 130 milligrams of cholesterol, 3190 milligrams of sodium, 78 grams of carbohydrates, 4 grams of fiber, 8 grams of sugar, and 42 grams of protein

Grilled Buffalo Chicken

Papa John's Grilled Buffalo Chicken Papadia

(Added 9/21/20)

Grilled chicken, onions, signature cheese, and three-cheese blend, buttermilk ranch buffalo sauce. Served with a ranch dipping cup.

The latest Papadia to hit the menu is a Buffalo chicken flavored one. It’s inspired by Buffalo wings, but it needed way more tangy heat to deliver on that! The sparse dabs of Buffalo sauce reminded me of pepperoni grease pools. But obviously, there’s no pepperoni.

The cheese was the dominant flavor. The cheese blend and ranch reminded me of alfredo sauce, which is tasty but a far cry from saucy wings. This was all without dipping it in the ranch sauce, so I didn’t bother with the extra cup on the side.

Papa John's Grilled Buffalo Chicken Papadia Split

There were also pretty visible slices of onion. But, like the grilled chicken, it took a secondary flavor seat to all the cheese.

The Grilled Buffalo Chicken Papadia is a safe choice if you can’t decide what to get but want something reliably tasty. But don’t go in expecting big Buffalo flavor.

I would tell you to try it soon, but it isn’t clear if this flavor is being offered only for a limited time or if just the $6 pricing is limited until 10/25.

Rating: 6 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: 910 calories, 39 grams of fat, 18 grams of saturated fat, 1 gram of trans fat, 165 milligrams of cholesterol, 2860 milligrams of sodium, 77 grams of carbohydrates, 3 grams of fiber, 9 grams of sugar, and 62 grams of protein.

Meatball Pepperoni

Spicy meatballs, pepperoni, pizza sauce, mozzarella, and classic Italian seasoning. Served with a Pizza sauce dipping cup.

Papa John s Meatball Pepperoni Papadia Box

I didn’t want to put this one down. I don’t usually order meatballs as a topping at Papa John’s, so I was a blank slate on this one. I found that the beef and pork meatballs had good flavor and a pleasant overall texture – easy to bite into without weird tough bits or strange gamey-ness. And the pepperoni complemented these very well!

Papa John s Meatball Pepperoni Papadia 2

The meatballs were also cut in half, which helped with the distribution – I always had bites with meatball and/or pepperoni – and ensured that it all stayed in the flatbread. I was a bit disappointed the meatballs weren’t actually spicy though. On the bright side, no need for Alka-Seltzer! Spicy meatball reference, anyone? Overall, this Papadia had all the tastiness of a meatball sub without any of the messiness.

Rating: 8 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: 950 calories, 50 grams of fat, 21 grams of saturated fat, 1 gram of trans fat, 140 milligrams of cholesterol, 2460 milligrams of sodium, 81 grams of carbohydrates, 4 grams of fiber, 9 grams of sugar, and 42 grams of protein.

Grilled BBQ Chicken & Bacon

Grilled chicken, bacon, fresh-cut onions, and mozzarella. It’s drizzled with sweet and smoky BBQ Sauce. Served with a BBQ sauce dipping cup.

Papa John s Grilled BBQ Chicken Bacon Papadia Box

What I noticed immediately about this one was the smell. The BBQ sauce was quite pungent, but it was welcomed! The plethora of sweet and smoky BBQ sauce was well-balanced with the mild mozzarella, savory bacon, and sharp onion strips. The first thing that came to mind was that it reminded me of a Carl’s Jr Western Bacon Cheeseburger except way easier to eat. Again, I can get a version of another favorite with LESS MESS? YAS.

Papa John s Grilled BBQ Chicken Bacon Papadia

Rating: 7 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: 880 calories, 30 grams of fat, 14 grams of saturated fat, 0.5 grams of trans fat, 165 milligrams of cholesterol, 2630 milligrams of sodium, 91 grams of carbohydrates, 5 grams of fiber, 36 grams of sugar, and 59 grams of protein.

Italian

Alfredo sauce, spicy Italian sausage, salami, mozzarella, and banana peppers. Served with a Pizza sauce dipping cup.

Papa John s Italian Papadia Box

I LOVE Italian sandwiches because of the nuanced cold cut meat flavors balanced by the fresh crunch of banana peppers. The Papadia interpretation lost me a little bit because by having it all warm/cooked, the flavors and textures blended together too much.

Papa John s Italian Papadia

It blended so much so that I didn’t even realize there was Alfredo sauce! Furthermore, the salami and spicy Italian sausage melded together so much that the salami flavor couldn’t be discerned. And once again, no heat. Luckily, I was able to get some fuego from the standard pepperoncini fixin’ on the side. From a texture perspective, I could definitely taste the tangy banana pepper, but I wanted that added crunch!

Rating: 6 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: 960 calories, 55 grams of fat, 21 grams of saturated fat, 1 gram of trans fat, 140 milligrams of cholesterol, 2760 milligrams of sodium, 77 grams of carbohydrates, 4 grams of fiber, 8 grams of sugar, and 38 grams of protein.

Philly Cheesesteak

Sliced Philly steak, fresh-cut onions, green peppers, mozzarella, and the chain’s Philly sauce. Served with a Garlic sauce dipping cup.

Papa John s Philly Cheesesteak Papadia Box

The flavor was unmistakably a Philly cheesesteak with that green bell pepper and onion-forward flavor. However, my biggest gripe was the texture of the “sliced” Philly steak. Sliced is in quotes because it felt like ground beef and I couldn’t get past that. I’m no Philadelphian, but even I know that’s blasphemy! The flavor couldn’t make up for the faux pas on texture. However, even if the texture was right, it still would not leap frog the other flavors in tastiness.

Papa John s Philly Cheesesteak Papadia

Rating: 6 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: 850 calories, 39 grams of fat, 16 grams of saturated fat, 1 gram of trans fat, 95 milligrams of cholesterol, 2180 milligrams of sodium, 81 grams of carbohydrates, 4 grams of fiber, 12 grams of sugar, and 40 grams of protein.

Besides personal preference on flavors and textures, the only thing I thought was gratuitous across the board was the sauce on the side. All of the Papadias were really well-sauced and didn’t need any extra love.

Given the tastiness and viability of this innovation, I wouldn’t be surprised to see a Hutadias or Domdias soon.

Papa John s Papadias

Purchased Price: $6 each

REVIEW: Mountain Dew Zero Sugar

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Mountain Dew Zero Sugar

What is Mountain Dew Zero Sugar?

PepsiCo has released Mountain Dew Zero Sugar, a new formulation with 0 calories and 0 sugar. Wait, what’s going on here? Isn’t there already Diet Mountain Dew?

Calorie and sugar-conscious consumers may have noticed some weirdness with the calorie counts for various sizes of Diet Mountain Dew. A 12-ounce can will have 0 calories, but larger serving sizes will have 5, or even 10 calories.

This is because the FDA requires companies to round to the nearest 5 calories, with anything below 5 calories per serving able to be stated as 0. If these calories and carbs have been a barrier from choosing PepsiCo’s citrus soda, this is the Dew for you.

How is it?

The question of Mountain Dew Zero Sugar isn’t how it compares to regular Mountain Dew, but how it stands next to Diet Dew. To test this, I poured a sample of each and carefully considered their attributes.

Mountain Dew Zero Sugar Comparison

The color is identical, though I detected a slightly sharper citrus scent in the Zero Sugar sample. I take a sip of each, being sure to aspirate the beverage and thereby allowing the aerosolized droplets to fully coat my palate. This reveals the samples to have very similar flavors. There’s a rounder flavor to the original Diet Dew, with Zero Sugar once again being a bit more acidic. I suspect the small amount of concentrated orange juice in the original formula accounts for this.

Is there anything else you need to know?

Mountain Dew Zero Sugar Closeup

My careful organoleptic analysis revealed some subtle differences that will be clear to the mindful drinker. The flaw here is that no one actually sips Mountain Dew. No, Mountain Dew is meant to be chugged while snowboarding down some sick powder, brah, or perhaps while pwning some n00bs in Call of Duty.

I would’ve liked to replicate those conditions, but I can’t snowboard and am terrible at competitive video games. Instead, I slammed down a glass of each while playing Death Stranding and as a snow plow added to the grey pile of slush in front of my driveway.

They taste the same.

Conclusion:

Mountain Dew Zero Sugar succeeds at removing an obstacle for calorie and sugar-conscious drinkers from Doing the Dew without sacrificing Diet Dew’s flavor.

Purchased Price: $2.68
Size: 16.9 oz (6 bottles)
Purchased at: Target
Rating: 9 out of 10

Nutrition Facts: 0 calories, 0 grams of fat, 0 grams of saturated fat, 0 milligrams of cholesterol, 60 milligrams of sodium, 0 grams of carbohydrates, 0 grams of fiber, 0 grams of sugar, and 0 grams of protein.

REVIEW: Reuben Pringles

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Reuben Pringles

There are people out there who reject rye bread, cold-shoulder corned beef, swear against Swiss and sauerkraut, and “thank you next” Thousand Island dressing. But those people can’t deny that when these ingredients come together, the result is a delicious Reuben sandwich.

Given its flavor complexity, I was eager to see how it would be executed with the new Reuben Pringles.

First things first, this package stays true to the hilarious anthropomorphized Pringle format by featuring a lone crisp sitting at a deli counter with bib affixed and ready to snarf down a Reuben, which is larger than the Pringle itself. In case anyone was wondering, my second favorite anthropomorphized Pringle artwork is the Dill Pickle flavor.

Reuben Pringles 2

When you pop (the fun don’t stop) the top off this Pringles tube, the first thing you’ll smell is rye bread. It’s an overwhelmingly spot on caraway rye aroma. Glancing inside the container, the crisps appear lightly seasoned, but at closer inspection, they look that way because one of the two visible powders is white. Because the other powder was a maroon color, I was hoping this meant these would have a unique corned beef taste.

Reuben Pringles 3

The flavor is really interesting. First, I got an oniony kraut, then a savory nuttiness that I guess is a blend of corned beef and Swiss. Then it was THOUSAND ISLAND TIME as the dressing taste comes through STRONG. If Pringles could partner with McDonald’s to do a Big Mac variety, I think they’d nail it by combining this Thousand Island seasoning and its previous cheeseburger item. The lingering aftertaste is pure caraway rye, and then this flavor roller coaster is over.

Reuben Pringles 4

Overall, I was slightly let down by the sauerkraut and corned beef not being more distinct and thought the overall flavor could have been stronger. For this reason, I think being “Limited Edition” is appropriate for this crisp. I liked it once but probably wouldn’t add it to the standard rotation.

I definitely don’t think Pringles did anything wrong by the Reuben in making this crisp! In fact, the flavors they were able to pack in are pretty impressive. If you like Thousand Island, you’ll like this. The sauerkraut wasn’t completely distinct, but they didn’t miss the mark, so if more kraut varieties show up, I’ll be hunting them down.

Purchased Price: $3/5 (sale)
Size: 5.2 oz. can
Purchased at: Walgreens
Rating: 7 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: (15 crisps/28 g) 150 calories, 9 grams of fat, 2.5 grams of saturated fat, 0 milligrams of cholesterol, 180 milligrams of sodium, 16 grams of carbohydrates, less than 1 gram of fiber, less than 1 gram of sugar, and 1 gram of protein.

REVIEW: Pizza Hut Mozzarella Poppers Pizza

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Pizza Hut Mozzarella Poppers Pizza

I once had a dream that Pizza Hut here in the U.S. offered a pizza with large crispy mozzarella sticks as the end crust. When I woke up and wiped away the drool from my mouth, which ABSOLUTELY DOES NOT happen all the time, I realized it was all a dream, and the bodily fluids stopped coming out of my mouth and started rolling down from my eyes.

Pizza Hut’s Mozzarella Poppers Pizza is not the pizza of my salty dream. Instead of edges that are entirely made of crispy, breaded cheese sticks, the large pizza has 16 1.5-inch mozzarella-filled squares plopped onto and baked with the regular crust, and spaced out so that there will be two of them on each of the eight slices. The menu item also comes with two containers of marinara sauce for dipping.

Pizza Hut Mozzarella Poppers Pizza Closeup

It doesn’t take much effort to pop off the poppers from the pizza, which doesn’t have the iron grip that’s shown in promotional photos. Their breaded exteriors are seasoned with garlic, onion, parmesan, parsley, basil, and oregano, and they have a subtle crispiness. Thanks to the seasonings, I could eat them without dipping them into the sauce, but they taste better with it.

Pizza Hut Mozzarella Poppers Pizza Popper Closeup

The cheese wasn’t gooey, and it tastes similar to what’s in the chain’s original Stuffed Crust. If you’ve had a mozzarella stick, you know what you’re getting here.

Now, you could eat the poppers and end crust separately, leave them attached and eat them with the rest of the crust, or, if you don’t eat that part of a pizza, remove the cheese-filled squares and let the remaining bread rot forever in the hell where all the other discarded pizza crusts go to burn into charred lumps that’ll never be eaten. Sorry, remembering another dream I had.

If you like to eat crusts, I’d recommend leaving the poppers on to make it a little more tolerable, because the bread directly underneath them gets a little moist, probably due to the heat between them.

I have to admit the dough the poppers are sitting on with my pizza looks a bit undercooked when compared with the golden brown mozzarella poppers, but its texture and taste was fine while eating. Okay, the taste was super dull, but thankfully the two marinara containers have enough for the poppers and most of the remaining end crust. But it would be less boring if the poppers are left on.

As for the non-crust side, I ordered a modified Supreme, and it tasted like a…Pizza Hut Supreme Pizza. SURPRISE!

Overall, Pizza Hut’s Mozzarella Poppers Pizza is a bit ho-hum. The poppers themselves are a nice appetizer when dipped in marinara, but if you do that to all of them, you’re left with a crust that’s more bland than usual.

Of course, that could’ve been avoided if the edges were only mozzarella sticks or if the poppers were a topping. Yes, poppers as a topping was from another dream.

Purchased Price: $21.99* (Supreme)
Size: Large
Rating: 6 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: (1 slice – Supreme) 460 calories, 23 grams of fat, 10 grams of saturated fat, 0.5 grams of trans fat, 55 milligrams of cholesterol, 990 milligrams of sodium, 44 grams of carbohydrates, 2 grams of fiber, 2 grams of sugar, and 20 grams of protein.

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

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