REVIEW: GoodPop Ore-Ida Fudge N’ Vanilla French Fry Pop

/ / Reviews / 4 Comments

Ore-Ida getting into the ice cream game is not something I had on my radar for the second half of 2024, but I am totally here for this experimental weirdness. I suppose I shouldn’t be too surprised by any unusual brand collaborations these days, and despite not seeing this one coming, it does make sense. Although I am not personally a fan of dunking my fries into a milkshake, I know it’s a popular move, and I do enjoy the two in tandem, as the sweet and salty complement each other well. To emulate this burger joint staple, GoodPop has taken a creamy dairy-free oat milk base and coated it with chocolate fudge sprinkled with real crispy potatoes.

As a mission statement, GoodPop only uses dairy and gluten-free ingredients, so it’s no surprise they know how to do a decadent vegan ice cream bar well. The oat milk base is nice and creamy, with a touch of fluffiness and decent density. The flavor is unmistakably oat milk for those familiar with dairy versus nondairy frozen desserts, but it’s a safe and satisfying execution of a plain/vanilla profile. The finish has a touch of the taste of the way Play-Doh smells, which probably sounds like a bad thing, but I’ve tasted this in a lot of oat milk bases, and I don’t mind it at all.

Where this bar really shines is in the chocolate coating. You could have fooled me into thinking this was a full-on milk-laden Häagen-Dazs exterior because of the fantastic flavor. Bittersweet in its profile, it has a luxuriously melty mouthfeel and the perfect level of thickness to really carry and enhance the enjoyment of the novelty treat.

But what about the potatoes? The potatoes totally work and deliver a big, bold, satisfying crunch that ties the whole experience together like a Christmas bow. A decent amount of fried potato flavor comes through, too. Not so much that it’s distracting from the overall sweet presence of the dessert, but enough to stand out from your average Nestle Crunch-style rice coating.

My one gripe with the potatoes and the bar as a whole is that it could be a bit saltier. There is some salt there, and it’s largely dependent on the density of the potatoes in any specific bite, but because the potatoes are covered in chocolate, there are times that that salty pop doesn’t come through. It’s far from non-existent, but I wanted a little more for a product that’s supposed to boldly emphasize its sweet and saltiness.

As a vegan ice cream treat, this is about as good as it gets. With a bit more salt and a bit more availability, this could become an all-time collaboration between two standouts of the frozen food aisle.

Purchased Price: $9.99
Size: 9.32 ounces
Purchased at: Online
Rating: 8 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: (1 bar) 160 calories, 10 grams of fat, 7 grams of saturated fat, 0 milligrams of cholesterol, 60 milligrams of sodium, 14 grams of carbohydrates, 1 gram of fiber, 10 grams of sugar, and 2 grams of protein.

SPOTTED: 7/26/2024

/ / Spotted on Shelves / 3 Comments

Here are some interesting new products found on store shelves by your fellow readers. If you’ve tried any of them, share your thoughts in the comments.

Cosmic Bliss Hailey Bieber’s Strawberry Glaze

(Spotted by Sarah R at Sprouts.)

Lawry’s Salt & Pepper Vinegar Seasoning
Lawry’s Hot Garlic Parmesan Seasoning

(Spotted by Robbie at H-E-B.)

Starbucks Limited Edition Smoked Butterscotch Ground Coffee

(Spotted by Tommy at Walmart.)

Central Market Gochujang Popcorn
Central Market Hatch Cheddar Popcorn
Central Market Sweet Fire Popcorn
Central Market Parmesan Garlic Popcorn
Central Market Aged White Cheddar Popcorn
Central Market Love Dip Popcorn

(Spotted by Robbie at Central Market.)

If you’re out shopping and see new products, snap a picture of them, and send them in via an email ([email protected]) with where you found them and “Spotted” in the subject line. Also, if you want to send in photos and are wondering if we’ve already covered something or if they’re new, don’t worry about it. Let us worry about it.

SPOTTED: McConnell’s & See’s Candies Ice Cream

/ / Take My Idea / 4 Comments

McConnell's & See's Candies Banana Cream With Toffee-ettes Ice Cream.

McConnell's & See's Candies Banana Cream With Toffee-ettes Ice Cream 2.

McConnell's & See's Candies Coffee With Molasses Chips Ice Cream.

McConnell's & See's Candies Coffee With Molasses Chips Ice Cream 2.

McConnell's & See's Candies Vanilla With California Brittle Ice Cream.

McConnell's & See's Candies Vanilla With California Brittle Ice Cream 2.

McConnell's & See's Candies Chocolate With Polar Bear Paws Ice Cream.

McConnell's & See's Candies Chocolate With Polar Bear Paws Ice Cream 2.

Geez, it’s about time! This collaboration could’ve happened 70 years ago. McConnell’s has been around since 1949, and See’s Candies has been around since 1921. (Spotted by Sarah R at McConnell’s.)

If you’re out shopping and see new products, snap a picture of them, and send them in via an email ([email protected]) with where you found them and “Spotted” in the subject line. Also, if you want to send in photos and are wondering if we’ve already covered something or if they’re new, don’t worry about it. Let us worry about it.

SPOTTED: Frank’s Red Hot Buffalo Style Chicken Pizza

/ / Spotted on Shelves / 1 Comment

Frank's Red Hot Buffalo Style Chicken Pizza.

One of the toppings listed is “unsmoked provolone cheese.” Wouldn’t that just be provolone cheese? (Spotted by Liz C at Sam’s Club.)

If you’re out shopping and see new products, snap a picture of them, and send them in via an email ([email protected]) with where you found them and “Spotted” in the subject line. Also, if you want to send in photos and are wondering if we’ve already covered something or if they’re new, don’t worry about it. Let us worry about it.

REVIEW: Post Limited Edition Mint Chip Oreo O’s Cereal

/ / Reviews

Cookie-based cereal is far from new. Cookie Crisp, the gold standard, has been filling our mornings with sweet, sweet sugar since 1977. In that almost half-century, it has tried its hand at multiple iterations—oatmeal, peanut butter, and sprinkles, to name a few.

Oreo O’s cereal, which came out 20 years later, is a relative youngster by comparison. It disappeared for a bit—well, everywhere except for South Korea—but came back in 2017. Over the years, Oreo has also messed about a bit by featuring an LTO Golden Oreo version and a “Mega Stuf” variety that incorporates creme-flavored marshmallows. But that’s it.

It’s interesting to me that a product known for endless flavors has been fairly conservative regarding the cereal version. Well, maybe the tide is turning, beginning with Mint Chip. In case you missed it, Mint Chip is the Oreo flavor of the moment. It is currently on shelves in cookie form and now as a cereal. So, is the cereal good enough to warrant branching out with new cereal varieties?

Here’s the deal — this cereal is quite minty. But unlike the deplorable Froot Loops Sherbet Scoops cereal I begrudgingly consumed for my last review (in case you missed it, it’s designed to “cool” your mouth), the mint here actually made sense. It was subtler than the mint of a Mint Oreo cookie but still noticeable and moderately enjoyable. (Really, how much you enjoy the mint in these is entirely contingent on how much you enjoy mint, you know?) I cannot, however, understand how this was mint chip and not just regular mint; the mint “flavor crystals,” for lack of a better term, were of a little “chippier” texture than the rest of the cereal, so, maybe that’s it. (Note: I have not tried the Mint Chip Cookie, though Sean recently reviewed it.)

The chocolate—which purports to be made of real Oreo cookie pieces—was predictably Oreo-wafer-like in taste. (That said, I don’t know how distinct the chocolate Oreo wafer taste truly is. It’s really when combined in concert with the creme that we get the cookie’s real essence.)

One thing that surprised me was how these held up in milk. The last bite was truly as crunchy as the first, a quality that is both terrifying and wonderful. On the one hand, I wish all of my favorite cereals had this sustainability, but I also shudder to think what petrification may be occurring with my internal organs.

While I found these Mint Chip Oreo O’s to be perfectly fine, I don’t feel compelled enough to buy them again. Now, if they’re interested in trying out a peanut butter version—peanut butter being the best Oreo variant by far—then sign me up.

Purchased Price: $4.93
Size: 16.5 oz box
Purchased at: Walmart
Rating: 6 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: 160 calories, 2 grams of fat, 0 grams of saturated fat, 0 milligrams of cholesterol, 210 milligrams of sodium, 34 grams of carbohydrates, 1 gram of fiber, 17 grams of sugar, and 2 grams of protein.

Scroll to Top