REVIEW: Baskin-Robbins M&M’s Monster Cookie Ice Cream

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Baskin-Robbins’ Flavor of the Month for August 2025 is the M&M’s Monster Cookie Ice Cream, which should not be confused with Baskin-Robbins’ blue Cookie Monster Ice Cream. The limited time only scoop features brown sugar ice cream with M&M’s Minis milk chocolate candies, cookie dough pieces, and peanut butter cookie swirls.

First off, let’s start with the brown sugar ice cream, which wasn’t as satisfying as the brown sugar base I’ve had from Ben & Jerry’s. Something was lacking from it to make the brown sugar stick out and convince my taste buds that a cookie inspired the Flavor of the Month.

What sticks out are the peanut butter cookie swirls. They were sweet, salty, and had a satisfying, gritty, and crunchy texture. Some might find them to be too salty, and that might’ve happened because of the ice cream base’s lack of flavor, but I enjoyed that salty kick, and I found these to be the highlight of the scoop.

Unfortunately, due to the luck of the scoop and that mine was the first drawn from the tub, I ended up with just four M&M’s Minis in my order. I wish there were as many of them as there were in the store window’s poster because the chocolate added a sweetness that cuts through the peanut butter cookie swirl, making things a bit more balanced between sweet and salty. But I felt like that job should’ve also been done by the base.

Finally, the cookie dough pieces were another lowlight. They added a weird, mild savoriness that reminded me of Japanese rice crackers. However, they had a chewiness that gave the scoop another textural dimension to go along with the creamy ice cream, crunchy and gritty swirls, and crunchy M&M’s.

After trying the Baskin-Robbins M&M’s Monster Cookie Ice Cream, I kind of wished I had accidentally ordered the Cookie Monster one. The new flavor isn’t awful, but parts of it were unsatisfying or weird, and I wouldn’t order it again.

Purchased Price: $3.79
Size: 2.5 oz scoop
Rating: 5 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: 200 calories, 10 grams of fat, 4.5 grams of sugar, 25 milligrams of cholesterol, 115 milligrams of sodium, 25 grams of carbohydrates, 1 gram of fiber, 19 grams of sugar (including 16 grams of added sugar), and 3 grams of protein.

REVIEW: Dunkin’ Chipotle Hash Brown Wake-Up Wrap

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I love fast food wraps. I’m basically the anti-Sir Mix-a-Lot anaconda, because I actually want some if you ain’t got buns, Hun.

It’s a great time for me because it’s basically the summer of the wrap, with more and more fast food joints jumping into the wrap trap. Popeyes has some solid new tortilla’d strips, “Taco Bell is a chicken place is a taco place is a chicken place,” burritos are really good despite the annoying commercials, and hey, who could forget the much-ballyhooed return of McDonald’s Snack Wraps? I know I didn’t. They’re not the same, but I’ll still throw ’em down.

Here’s the thing, amongst all that hype, I almost completely ignored the best new wrap of them all. While those chicken retreads soak up the spotlight, allow me to ballyhoo Dunkin’s new Chipotle Hash Brown Wake-up Wrap. Ballyhoo, I say!

… I don’t actually know what “ballyhoo” means, but I do know that Dunkin’s Wake-up Wraps are criminally underrated, and it’s about time you people, well, woke up.

Wake-up Wraps are a great little economical breakfast in a pinch. Sure, the eggs are rubber, the bacon is borderline inedible sometimes, the cheese might as well be made by Elmer’s, and the wraps usually have hard edges, but I still kinda love ’em for some reason. Adding hash browns and chipotle sauce brings them to a whole new level.

Dunkin’s hash browns remain arguably my favorite in fast food. I’ve actually been adding the zesty, crispy coins to my Dunkin’ sandwiches and wraps for years, so it’s nice to see the restaurant finally catching up.

I wrote a diatribe about how I don’t love “sauce” in my recent Goldfish review, little did I know that just a few weeks later I’d be adding Dunkin’s Chipotle Aioli to the A-tier on my Sauce Tier list that ABSOLUTELY took the internet by storm.

The chipotle aioli works so well on a breakfast wrap. It’s very similar to the sauce Taco Bell uses in their Breakfast Crunchwrap, which, as we all know, is the breakfast G.O.A.T.

Another thing I like about this wrap is that you can customize both the protein and the cheese, and every combo works. I enjoyed sausage, but I think bacon pairs better with the aioli and hash browns. As long as the bacon is actually cooked, I’d recommend that with American cheese, but white cheddar is no slouch.

There’s no wrong way to eat a Dunkin’ Chipotle Hash Brown Wake-up Wrap. I came up with that slogan. It’s an original.

How can it get any better, you ask?! They’re included in the current $5 Meal Deal! It might not seem like anything amazing, but two of these and an iced coffee for five bucks might be the best deal Dunkin’ has had since its questionable app update.

I think these are a perfect breakfast for anyone on the go. Even if you order two, they won’t bog you down, and they should leave you satisfied. Take advantage of the $5 Meal Deal before the summer wraps up.

Purchased Price: $3.99 each
Rating: 8 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: 340 calories, 24 grams of fat, 0 grams of trans fat, 7 grams of saturated fat, 0 grams of trans fat, 110 milligrams of cholesterol, 910 milligrams of sodium, 22 grams of total carbohydrates, 2 grams of total sugars, 1 gram of fiber, and 10 grams of protein.

REVIEW: Burger King Iced Coffee with Cold Foam

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It’s not surprising to see Burger King offer cold foam with its iced coffees. After all, it plopped a cold foam layer on top of a slush last year. What’s surprising is how long it took for said cold foam to eventually end up on BK’s iced coffee. Has it been in a deep freeze for the past year? Burger chain bureaucracy? Ketchup red tape?

Well, whatever the case, BK now plops cold foam on its Vanilla, Mocha, and Black iced coffees. My sweet tooth convinced me to purchase a Mocha one.

This order was the first time I’ve experienced BK’s cold foam, but I’ve had several Starbucks drinks with a creamy top layer, and the burger joint’s version seems to be a little thicker. It has an almost pudding-like texture, and its flavor reminds me of vanilla frozen dairy dessert. While my order came with a straw, I took my first taste by sipping from the cup, just as I would with a Starbucks order. Well, I tried to drink it this way, but the foam’s thickness makes it hard for the coffee to break through, and I ended up with a whole lot of foam and very little java in my mouth. Not ideal when I’m trying to get caffeine into my bloodstream in the morning. After a few more sip attempts, I gave in and used the straw to mix everything.

When combined, the cold foam dilutes the chocolate and coffee, which defeats the purpose of getting a flavored coffee. The sweetness satisfied my sweet tooth, but my taste buds wanted more. Perhaps Burger King should look into developing flavored cold foams. Additionally, alongside cold foam flavors, I would like the chain to offer a Frappe or Frappuccino-type drink again, as I think the creamy layer would pair well with it, similar to the new Starbucks Strato Frappuccino Beverages.

Unless I’m desperate for caffeine, I’m not sure I’d purchase any BK Iced Coffee with Cold Foam again because of how the cold foam dilutes everything. I’d probably just get a standard iced coffee instead, although something else that BK needs to get through the ketchup red tape is to make its large iced coffee as big as McDonald’s..

Purchased Price: $4.89*
Size: Large
Rating: 5 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: 380 calories, 21 grams of fat, 17 grams of saturated fat, 35 milligrams of cholesterol, 140 milligrams of sodium, 45 grams of carbohydrates, 1 gram of fiber, 38 grams of sugar, and 3 grams of protein.

REVIEW: Cheez-It Wendy’s Baconator Crackers

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Wendy’s has made several forays into the grocery store in recent years, starting with its canned chili, then ground beef patties in select stores, and now it’s entering the cracker and chip aisle. After a recent Takis collaboration at Wendy’s restaurants, we can also find its popular Baconator lending its flavor to Cheez-Its. Does the taste of those bacon-topped square burgers translate to the orange squares of Cheez-It crackers?

Well, like many snacks that try to replicate meat flavors, these are going to be divisive. After opening the package, I didn’t find the smell to be particularly strong, but when I got a little closer and actually sniffed a cracker, I didn’t like the scent of these at all, nor did I think they smelled like something I would choose to put in my mouth. They look much like a standard Cheez-It but have more powdery speckles of seasoning. I expected them to lean into the bacon part of the flavor and have an artificial smoky taste like many things that try to mimic bacon, but I didn’t get much of that here. In fact, I don’t think they remind me of bacon at all. They have a strongly savory, umami aspect to them, and in addition to the regular cheesy flavor, I mostly picked up on onion and garlic. I think those were included to enhance the burger flavor, but a Baconator itself doesn’t actually have onions, so it seems like an odd choice to me that they’d come through this prominently.

I thought I was going to hate these after first smelling them, and there is no doubt they have a strong flavor that will put off many people. My husband is one of those people; he equated the smell to a urinal (I thought it was more BO) and instantly spit the single cracker he tried into the trash can. I can’t honestly say I would pay money to eat these again, but I also didn’t hate them as much as he did. They’re salty and kind of compel me to eat more, even when I’m not sure I actually want to. A look at the ingredients offers a possible explanation for this: these Baconator Cheez-Its contain MSG. I personally have no problem with MSG, and it’s probably the reason I’ve made it through as much of this box as I have.

The back of the box features a code to scan that gives you a coupon for $2 off a Baconator in the Wendy’s app, which could be some consolation if you hate these so much that you have to trash them all and immediately need to eat an actual bacon cheeseburger to cleanse your palate. Will I finish this box of Baconator Cheez-Its that taste nothing like a Baconator? Yes. Will I try to share them with anyone else? No, for fear that anyone I offer them to may no longer trust any food I give them again.

Purchased Price: $5.99
Size: 12.4 oz box
Purchased at: Jewel
Rating: 4 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: (26 crackers) 150 calories, 7 grams of total fat, 1.5 grams of saturated fat, 0 grams of trans fat, 0 milligrams of cholesterol, 270 milligrams of sodium, 19 grams of carbohydrates, less than 1 gram of dietary fiber, 0 grams of total sugar, and 3 grams of protein.

REVIEW: Taco Bell Sweet Chipotle BBQ Crispy Chicken Taco

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I know sauces don’t have feelings, but if they did, Taco Bell’s new Sweet Chipotle BBQ Sauce must be feeling insecure because in the new taco and burrito that feature it, it has to share the tight Tex-Mex space with another sauce — Spicy Ranch. I can imagine what this dark colored topping might be thinking, if it could think.

“Am I not good enough by myself?”

“What do I have to do for Taco Bell to believe in me?”

“Should I request a trade and go to another fast food chain?”

Well, all those thoughts are moot because with the Taco Bell Sweet Chipotle BBQ Crispy Chicken Taco, that white creamy topping added nothing in terms of flavor or heat to my order, so I’m not sure why Taco Bell included it in the first place. Along with two sauces, it features the same ingredients as previous Crispy Chicken Tacos: a crispy chicken strip, purple cabbage, lettuce, pico de gallo, and shredded cheese all wrapped in a flour tortilla.

Now, let’s discuss the dark-colored Sweet Chipotle BBQ Sauce, which is good, but I don’t taste anything unique or special. It has the familiar smoky and sweet flavors I’ve tasted with other fast food barbecue sauces. It lacks a Taco Bell-esque flair that evokes the fast food chain. There’s a slight kick, but it’s so mild that I don’t want to say it’s a kick. It’s more like sticking your foot out during the hokie pokie.

While the barbecue sauce tasted familiar, I enjoyed the flavors it added to the chicken and the taco. But it also gives everything a standard chicken nuggets/strips dipped into BBQ sauce vibe. I wouldn’t be surprised if it ends up being a sauce for the chain’s dippable chicken offerings. Despite the two sauces within the tortilla, my chicken strip had a decent crunchiness, which was enhanced slightly by the colorful purple cabbage. The tomatoes and onions in the pico de gallo added bursts of flavor that complement the condiment. However, the Taco Bell-obligatory smattering of cheese didn’t make a difference.

The $2.79 advertised price for Taco Bell’s Sweet Chipotle BBQ Crispy Chicken Taco is twenty cents less than McDonald’s Snack Wrap, but it appears to be more than twenty cents less substantial than the Snack Wrap. Even with all the colorful toppings and sauces, it still seems a tad pricey when compared to McDonald’s wrapped chicken strip. However, while I do wish it were a little cheaper, this barbecue sauced taco is still something I’d order again.

Purchased Price: $3.99*
Rating: 7 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: 270 calories, 13 grams of fat, 3.5 grams of saturated fat, 30 milligrams of cholesterol, 690 milligrams of sodium, 29 grams of carbohydrates, 3 grams of fiber, 4 grams of sugar (including 2 grams of added sugar), and 11 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. The advertised price is $2.79.

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