Football season is upon us, and I’m staring down the barrel of another “mid” season at best. It’s been a pretty terrible decade if I’m being honest, but it’s hard to complain when you’ve witnessed two of the greatest Super Bowl wins ever in the past twenty years.

Can you guess which team I root for?

“Can you just get on with the review?”

Yeah, jeez. Allow me to awkwardly transition to today’s review of Lay’s Loaded Nacho Wavy Chips. They remind me of this NFL schedule in a way. While I still get mild excitement from each new season(ing), they ultimately just remind me of more triumphant (champion)chips of the past.

Right from the jump, there’s an identity crisis. They’re confused – kind of like me, insinuating the word is “championchip,” above. Do people actually want nacho flavors on a potato chip?

Tortilla nachos ain’t broke, so why are the corrupt referees at Frito Lay trying to fix ’em?

One might counter, “Who says ‘nacho’ flavor profiles only have to work with corn-based chips?” It’s a fair question to ask, but… nacho flavor profiles only work on corn-based chips. These confirmed it.

The bag literally shows a stack of tortilla chips covered in salsa, nacho cheese, sour cream, and what I think is cilantro. Why make me think of other chips while I’m eating chips? I like a Wavy Lays chip, and while I think they are the best-case potato delivery system, they simply don’t stack up to the real nachos you’re insisting I fantasize about.

The bag reeks of agita, and Taco Doritos, which I actually love, but can’t eat many of.

With that said, the overall flavor is a lot milder than I was expecting. There’s a “kick” that grows as you eat, but as far as the actual nacho flavor, it’s kinda soft.

I tasted a “meat” element, but as far as I can tell, there’s no meat hinted at anywhere on the bag or in the ingredients. More of said meaty flavor would have improved these.

Intentional or not, these ended up really reminding me of three other classic chip varieties: Taco Supreme Doritos, Cheddar and Sour Cream Ruffles, and Chili Cheese Fritos, with the latter standing out the most.

Now, if I just told you those flavors, you’d probably wanna buy multiple bags, but these Loaded Nacho chips are about 33% as good as any given one of them. They never get there. So, while I’m eating these, I’m not only wishing I was eating real nachos, I’m also thinking about three other bags of Frito-Lay products I’d rather have. Why not just do a special edition “Loaded Nacho Cheese Doritos” or something?

This pointless flavor could’ve been called “Chili Cheese Lite.” They aren’t gross, they’re just aggressively “mid.” The heartburn ends up outpacing the slight flavor enjoyment.

Lay’s Loaded Nachos are a team that’s about to go 8-9. They might have a little stretch where you think they can snag a Wild Card, but in the end, they’re losers.

They’re limited, but don’t rush. Wait for a sale or just punt on them.

Oh, hey, look, another crushing loss for my G-men. Life is full of disappointments.

Purchased Price: $3.99
Size: 7.5 oz
Purchased at: Shop Rite
Rating: 5 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: (11 chips) 150 calories, 10 grams of fat, 1.5 grams of saturated fat, 0 grams of trans fat, 0 milligrams of cholesterol, 180 milligrams of sodium, 15 grams of total carbohydrates, 1 gram of total sugars, 1 gram of dietary fiber, 2 grams of protein.

Lionel Messi, one of the most celebrated and decorated soccer (ahem, football?) players of all time, has a new collaboration with one of the oldest and most celebrated chip brands, Lay’s. Paying homage to Lionel’s home country of Argentina, which he helped win the most recent FIFA World Cup for in 2022, the newest limited edition creation from this power duo is Argentinian Style Steak.

When I think of Argentina and steak, I think of chimichurri, and the bold graphic of perfectly vibrant medium-rare steak covered in chunky green goodness on the bag lets me know my brain has gone in the right direction. For those unfamiliar with chimichurri, it is a delicious uncooked sauce made up of olive oil, fresh herbs, and garlic. I love chimichurri. Unfortunately, I don’t love these chips.

The chips aren’t bad by any means, but they don’t deliver the flavors I want and enjoy from steak with chimichurri. What the chip gets right is the beef flavor, as it’s certainly there and notably meaty from the first salty bite to the last. Where it goes wrong is in the lack of complexity and vibrancy of the chimichurri.

When I think of a good chimi, I think first of garlic, then maybe some parsley and a hint of basil, all enrobed in a velvety smooth fatty olive oil. The seasoning on these chips leans into the beef first, followed quickly by an aggressive onion flavor. I like onions and onion powder, but being the dominant flavor here is far from satisfying. The end result is a chip that tastes more like beef and onions than Argentinian Style Steak, which isn’t bad, but disappointing. Sour cream and onion, hold the sour cream, feels closer to home than a spiced-up steak.

In their purest form, this new limited edition chip reminds me of fast food French fries that sit in a paper bag on the drive home next to a juicy burger with onions on it. The fries absorb a bit of that beef and onion aroma, but still mostly taste like potatoes. I don’t mind fries with some beef and onion juice on them, but I certainly can’t put that kind of profile into the Messi-inhabited GOAT conversation.

Purchased Price: $2.69
Size: 2 1/2 ounces
Purchased at: 7-Eleven
Rating: 6 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: (15 chips, 28g) 160 calories, 10 grams of fat, 1 gram of saturated fat, 140 milligrams of sodium, 16 grams of carbohydrates, 1 gram of fiber, 0 grams of total sugars, and 2 grams of protein.

I’ve been enjoying the influx of internationally inspired, inventive, or trendy chip flavors that have been coming out lately. Now, don’t get me wrong, I love a good sour cream and cheddar Ruffle, but “New!” holds a special kind of allure for me, and creative AND new? Well, sign me up yesterday!

Lay’s Wavy Magic Masala isn’t the brand’s first foray into the world of internationally-inspired flavors. Heck, it’s not even the only one available on shelves right now… but it’s definitely a unique addition to the lineup and the lineup of other seasonally available or otherwise limited edition chip flavors at my local grocery store, and that counts for something!

These chips smell amazing as soon as you open the bag. There is a distinct waft of spices in the most delicious way. Strong, but not overpowering, much like the flavor. They have a great balance between the bold spices and the rest of the ingredients, with a surprisingly perfect kick that leaves that gentle warmth on your lips and tongue for a few minutes after eating them. Perfect if you like that sort of thing, anyway.

My favorite Indian restaurant starts every meal with a little bowl of a complimentary snack called Aloo Bhujia: thin, crispy, spiced potato noodles. These chips remind me almost exactly of that. The spice blend is strikingly similar (thus, I feel it’s probably fairly authentic to the chips’ Indian inspiration), and it complements the potato base equally as well. It’s a perfect pairing of crispy texture and a flavorful, spicy seasoning that doesn’t hold back (probably a six on a 1-10 scale of relative snack food spiciness). They would go great with a cooling, creamy dip, too. The color is also nice and bright without that artificial Cheeto-y orangeness some chips have. And while we are on the topic of color, I absolutely love the bag design! The colors are bright, the accents are fun, and it definitely lets me know that something special and delicious waits inside.

I’m most definitely picking up several more bags of these, along with the ingredients for a nice homemade raita to dip them in.

Purchased Price: $2.50
Size: 7.5 oz bag
Purchased at: Walmart
Rating: 9 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: (1 oz) 150 calories, 10 grams of total fat, 1.5 grams of saturated fat, 0 gram of trans fat, 0 milligrams of cholesterol, 190 milligrams of sodium, 15 grams of total carbs, 1 gram of dietary fiber, 1 gram of total sugar, and 2 grams of protein.