What are Garlic Parmesan Combos?
The ‘bos are back in town, this time in the flavor of garlic bread.
How are they?
I imagine most people enjoy the taste of garlic bread, and Garlic Parmesan Combos do a pretty good job mimicking that flavor profile. That being said, you’ll probably also need to be a big fan of hard, horrific smelling cheeses to really enjoy these. More on that later.
I usually prefer pretzel Combos to the baked cracker cylinders, but the crackers did a great job as a bread proxy. They’re basically as salty as the pretzels too, which I appreciated.
The filling is exactly as advertised. It’s a cheesy, garlicky clump of dry mud. If spread on a loaf of bread, it’d be gross but would probably taste how you’d want snackified garlic bread to taste, with perhaps more cheese flavor than you’re accustomed to. It was definitely a bit too much for me.
The garlic didn’t bother me, but that cheese…
Anything else you need to know?
I mean, look, I knew what I was getting into, but the filling smells awful. Garlic and parmesan aren’t exactly scents you’d want to burn a candle of, but it’s so much worse than I expected.
I basically held my breath before popping each one in my mouth. I called them “‘bos” as a joke, but I think I now know what the “BO” stands for.
It stinks (literally) because they do actually taste good. The smell was just so hard to overcome. If I walked into an Italian joint and caught a waft of garlic and parmesan, I’d probably find it appetizing. Something about that smell coming off that weird Combo paste nearly made me sick.
Conclusion:
It probably didn’t help that my bag had a loose asteroid of filling just floating amongst the crackers like a bag of inverse silica gel, but I really couldn’t get over that rancid smell. It knocked the score of these otherwise tasty snacks down 4 whole points.
Maybe I’m just too sensitive? If you’re one of these maniacs who pop provolone cubes like Tic Tacs, these may not bother you. You’ll most likely enjoy the taste, but just know that if you eat a bag, you might want to steer clear of society for a day or two because you’ll probably reek.
Purchased Price: $2.39
Size: 6.3 oz.
Purchased at: Wawa
Rating: 4 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: (1 oz) 140 calories, 7 grams of fat, 0 grams of trans fat, 3 grams of saturated fat, 0 mg of cholesterol, 300 milligrams of sodium, 18 grams of total carbohydrates, 3 grams of total sugars, 0 grams of fiber, 2 grams of protein.
Welcome back. Hope all is well with Marvo and the TIB staff. Wishing all of you happy holidays and all the best for a happy and healthy 2022. Thank you for all your posts!
^ +77. 🙂
Love them!
i’ve always been one to disassemble foods (i eat all the peanuts off of the caramel in a PayDay or i’ll get all the chocolate off a Kit Kat, then eat all the wafers separately, etc) and tho i haven’t had Combos since i was a kid (i’m 40 now), I recall that they were a terrible food to deconstruct as the filling was always way too salty/flavor intense and needed to be consumed with the cracker part to tone it down. probably why i haven’t eaten them in 30 years.
I also disassemble foods as it is more fun that way but loved the salty hit from Combos. This does mean that I could only consume a few at a time which is probably for the best anyhow.
The Italian half of me would probably like these.
The not at all Italian, but would happily stab someone over garlic part of me will probably love these!
As a lover of garlic and cheeses, I still want to try this.
Same here! I was reading the review and thinking the whole time that these are RIGHT up my alley. I’ve been on the lookout for them since I saw a “spotted” post of them here.
In case you don’t see my recent post, just wanted to let you know you can find these at https://www.farmandfleet.com/products/1398995-combos-63-oz-garlic-parmesan-crackers.html
Highly recommend them if you’re a garlic butter lover!
I might grind it up and then crust chicken on it.
Even 30 years ago the cheese in Combos stunk.
*Hands in the air shrug* It’s processed shelf stable cheese; what is one to expect? Ooooh, wait, am I just picking up on a pun that you may or may not have intended?! 🙂
Glad that you reviewed these. I need these ‘bos in my life!
No pun intended.
I love garlic, parmesan, and Combos These were a huge let down for me. I can only smell them when I put my nose close. There was hardly any flavor when you eat it with the cracker, however if you got just a feeling then you could taste it. These do not live up to what I would expect from a Combo.
Interesting reading this post and comments. I’m a Combos fan and have tried every flavor but these were absolutely my favorite! I took them to work and shared with others and EVERYONE that tried them agreed that they were sinfully good. Admittedly, they must not be doing well because it appears they have been discontinued.
If you are a garlic butter lover, you must try to find a bag before they disappear forever. The inside really does taste exactly like garlic butter. We all liked them so much that we ordered 12 bags from Blain’s Farm Store because we can no longer buy them where we live.