Author: Tiffany

REVIEW: Starbucks Iced Honey Apple Almondmilk Flat White

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Starbucks Iced Honey Apple Almondmilk Flat White 1.

As part of the fall launch lineup, Starbucks added two additional non-pumpkin flavored beverages to the mix. These are app exclusives: the Iced Caramel Apple Cream Latte and the Iced Honey Apple Almondmilk Flat White.

Let me start by saying that I am all about fall, y’all. I celebrate the PSL season like it’s an official holiday. This year’s celebration included driving about 500 miles round trip on launch day to experience the Ultimate Pumpkin Spice Experience at a Starbucks Roastery.

That aside, I don’t discriminate when it comes to fall delights. While I revel in pumpkin spice, I equally love apple cider, apple cider slushies, apple cider donuts, and apple picking. But I’m adding Starbucks’ new Iced Honey Apple Almondmilk Flat White to my fall delights list.

Coffee snobbery aside about the merits of Starbucks making a “real flat white” or that flat whites can’t be iced, it’s a perfect fall beverage to sip on.

Starbucks Iced Honey Apple Almondmilk Flat White 2.

Per the coffee chain, it features “almondmilk and Starbucks Blonde Espresso Roast, poured over ice with a hint of honey – topped with silky, nondairy cold foam infused with apple brown sugar-flavored syrup.”

This drink works beautifully to create a perfect fall experience. The apple brown sugar syrup is a thing of beauty. Though it’s only in the nondairy cold foam, apple dominates the flavor, followed by the floral notes of sweet honey. The cold foam adds an incredibly creamy texture. I was amazed by the silky texture of the nondairy cold foam. I couldn’t believe it wasn’t dairy! Incredible.

Starbucks Iced Honey Apple Almondmilk Flat White 3.

Blonde espresso is the perfect choice, offering a mildness – compared to the regular dark roast – that lets all the flavors shine and ties everything together with that distinct espresso finish.

If you’re torn between this and the new Iced Apple Crisp Nondairy Cream Chai, they’re both really tasty beverages and actually tastes fairly similar except for the end note (apple pie from the chai vs. espresso), so it really is up to whether you feel like drinking coffee or tea!

Purchased Price: $5.95
Size: Tall
Rating: 9 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: 180 calories, 7 grams of total fat, 0.5 grams of saturated fat, 0 grams of trans fat, 0 milligrams of cholesterol, 105 milligrams of sodium, 29 grams of total carbohydrates, 1 gram of dietary fiber, 24 grams of total sugars, 3 grams of protein and 150 milligrams of caffeine.

REVIEW: Fanta Beetlejuice Beetlejuice Haunted Apple and Haunted Spritz

Tiffany 4 Comments

Beetlejuice, Beetlejuice, Beetl—SHHH!

While he’ll eat anything we want him to eat, swallow anything we want him to swallow, let’s not summon him to try any of the new Fanta and Beetlejuice Beetlejuice movie collaboration beverages.

In anticipation of the upcoming sequel, Fanta created four specially marked packages featuring the actors’ faces. There’s only one new limited edition flavor – Haunted Apple – on shelves, which features the bio-exorcist himself!

I specify on-shelf because there’s another new collaboration flavor on Coca-Cola Freestyle machines only: Haunted Spritz.

I will also say that Betelgeuse’s Haunted Apple flavor has pretty sweet packaging with the iconic black and white pinstripes of his suit. It looks even better on the can versus the 20-ounce bottle, which is clear with the label featuring the pinstripes.

The rest of the packaging doesn’t really stand out as much; it looks best all stitched together on the movie theater fountain cup. The special Beetlejuice cup was only available in the medium size at my local theater.

Both Haunted Apple and Haunted Spritz are delightfully hued. The former is a neon green, and the latter is a deep, haunting purple – both apropos of the spooky season and movie.

I also enjoyed watching the blending colors pour from the Coca-Cola Freestyle for the Haunted Spritz. My human eyes could only see purple and then red syrup. Maybe ghosts, like The Maitlands, can see more spectral colors in this.

However, neither is “spine-tingling,” as stated. It’s not even the slightest bit stimulating as this is caffeine-free, like most Fanta flavors.

Haunted Apple reminded me of drinking a caramel apple pop and a fall candle in that overly fragrant artificial way. There was a distinct crisp apple flavor, but it was quickly taken over by caramel and a hefty dose of cinnamon. It’s not a red-hot cinnamon but more of a fall spice, like in apple cider. It was unexpected and a bit jarring, so I petition to rename this to Haunted Spiced Apple or Haunted Fall Apple to help better explain what to expect. Also, I don’t know about you, but I don’t love drinking the smell of air fresheners or candles. Lastly, it’s really just not as good as other apple sodas out there.

As for Haunted Spritz, it’s always fun to guess a mystery flavor, and this one was no exception. The purple was unmistakably a candy-like grape, but I couldn’t identify the red syrup being mixed with it. Grape and cherry do NOT create what I was tasting. But what I tasted was Fruity Pebbles. Trippy. While it was a fun couple of sips, there was no way I could consume a whole cup of it as it was incredibly sweet. However, I may consider siping this again when I watch Beetlejuice Beetlejuice in the theater.

The new flavors are great for the novelty and got me to buy lots of Fanta, but I wouldn’t rank these as favorites. So, I won’t be sad when these limited edition items float away in the Lost Souls room.

Purchased Price: $7.99 (Haunted Apple), $6.25 (Haunted Spirtz)
Size: 12 fl oz cans/12 pack (Haunted Apple), Medium (Haunted Spritz
Purchased at: Meijer (Haunted Apple), Emagine Theatres (Haunted Spritz)
Rating: 5 out of 10 (Haunted Apple), 6 out of 10 (Haunted Spritz)
Nutrition Facts: Haunted Apple (1 can) – 160 calories, 0 grams of fat, 50 milligrams of sodium, 42 grams of carbohydrates, 42 grams of sugar, and 0 grams of protein. Haunted Spritz – 400 calories.

REVIEW: Domino’s New York Style Pizza

Tiffany 15 Comments

Where can you find Domino’s hometown, Joe’s Pizza’s first non-NYC location, the OGs of Detroit-Style pizza, AND Little Caesars’ hometown within a 30-mile radius?

The lower “thumb*” area of Michigan, of course! And I just happen to reside in this microcosm of pizza. So when Domino’s introduced its New York Style Pizza, I felt particularly compelled to try it because of Domino’s hometown roots AND because there’s a legit NYC institution (Joe’s Pizza) down the street.

Domino’s offers five types of pizza crusts: pan, hand tossed, crunchy thin, gluten free, and now New York Style.

Ordered as-is, the New York-style pie was an X-large 16″ pizza with the standard “Robust Inspired Tomato Sauce” and a cheese blend of cheddar, mozzarella, and provolone. It was also cut into six slices, rather than eight, to enable folding.

Compared to the regular hand tossed, it was noticeably flatter and less seasoned looking. This wasn’t surprising as the hand tossed crust includes a garlic-oil seasoning blend. Unfortunately, this visual translated to a lack of flavor. It was rather bland and cardboard-like, especially with the thinner nature of it. Also, despite the robust tomato sauce (rather than the hearty marinara sauce), it didn’t impart any robust flavor.

Domino’s achieved the texture, though! It folded nicely, stayed firm, and wasn’t super greasy. I must mention that I clearly did not test it with any other toppings except for cheese, so the foldability was not rigorously tested. While I would test this further, none of the other toppings really interested or screamed NYC to me. Like, where’s the white pizza at?!

However, if we’re really nitpicking here, while the texture was foldable and structurally sound, it lacked that slight chewiness and springiness in the classic NYC crust.

If you want to switch up crusts, why not try the New York Style? I won’t stop ya. But if you’re on the fence, I don’t really find it worthy of replacing your go-to order.

*Because the physical state of Michigan is shaped somewhat like a mitten (Mitten State!), Michiganders use their hands to show where they generally reside – e.g., the thumb area, the palm area, the fingertips, etc.)

Purchased Price: $13.99
Size: XL (16”)
Rating: 5 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: (199g) 510 calories, 24 grams of fat, 13 grams of saturated fat, 0.5 grams of trans fat, 70 milligrams of cholesterol, 1050 milligrams of sodium, 48 grams of carbohydrates, 2 grams of fiber, 5 grams of total sugar, and 23 grams of protein.

REVIEW: Reese’s Cluster Bites

Tiffany 4 Comments

Reese’s is the elite, the S-tier. So, when it came out with its new Cluster Bites, I was immediately intrigued. All its new items have been pretty fire so far, from the DiPPeD line to the Big Cups with various inclusions.

While the name itself is a mashup of the now-discontinued Reese’s Bites and the current Reese’s Clusters, the offering is a bit different from both. It touts “creamy peanut butter, gooey caramel and crunchy peanuts, all covered in smooth milk chocolate.” So, unlike the clusters, there are no pecans! But honestly, it may have benefitted from it.

I ripped open the bag to find bigger clusters than expected. I thought it would be smaller because of the bites part of the name. For once, the food itself actually matched the size of the picture on the bag!

Unlike a Reese’s Peanut Butter Cup, it smelled more like peanut butter. But, it was its texture that shook me. It was quite a different eating experience compared to a Reese’s cup, which has that distinct texture of the thin chocolate snapping under the pressure of your teeth. Instead, these clusters were soft and squishy, particularly because of the caramel. The texture primarily came from the whole peanut rather than tempered chocolate. Its flavor was like eating a softer, smaller nougat-less Snickers bar. Meh.

All good things come to an end, including Reese’s streak of fire innovations. This was just OK, but maybe it’s because Reese’s other new items have been so good that they set the bar way too high.

I will say that the new Cluster Bites are indeed more “snackable,” and I can appreciate the volume. I can eat many without feeling as guilty or full as I would if I ate an equivalent number in mini cups or DiPPeD pretzels. Even so, I don’t see this replacing or being added to my weekly Reese’s rotation.

Purchased Price: $4.42
Size: 7 oz pouch
Purchased at: Menard’s
Rating: 5 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: (4 pieces – 30 grams) – 160 calories, 10 grams of fat, 3.5 grams of saturated fat, 0 milligrams of cholesterol, 45 milligrams of sodium, 16 grams of carbohydrates, 1 gram of fiber, 13 grams of sugar (including 11 grams of added sugar), and 3 grams of protein.

REVIEW: Dunkin’ Chocolate Chip Banana Bread

Tiffany 1 Comment

What happens when a store known for donuts tries to make banana bread?

Dunkin’ fudged around and found out with its new Chocolate Chip Banana Bread.

Well, actually, chocolate chips were used, but you catch my drift.

Launched on National Banana Bread Day, Dunkin’ made a bold statement that it was making the classic bakery treat even better by adding chocolate chips. It specifically mentioned that it’s pre-packaged to ensure it doesn’t dry out. I refuse to use the M-word that rhymes with “voiced” the brand used.

Upon hearing about this new item, I couldn’t help but compare it to Starbucks’ offering because that’s where I usually get my banana bread on the go. So, I decided to do a banana bread face-off.

Starbucks’ version has walnuts and pecans, and I’m calling this out because that could be a non-starter for people with a tree nut allergy. If that’s you, Dunkin’s Banana Chocolate Chip bread is not made with walnuts or pecans! But, you’re going to get literally more with Starbucks’ slice. It was thicker and only 50 cents more.

While the Starbucks one smelled slightly more cinnamon-y, the bites were similar. They both delivered on what you expect banana bread to be — banana-forward but not artificial banana tasting like a banana-flavored Runts or taffy. Texture-wise, the crumb on both was tender and not too densely packed. While the nuts added better textural contrast with the Starbucks one, the chocolate chips in the Dunkin’ one made it a bit more indulgent for me. However, I wish chocolate chunks were used to get the indulgence AND texture.

So it ended up being a pretty close matchup, and both were tasty!

While I’m impressed by how well Dunkin’ executed its Chocolate Chip Banana Bread, I’m still left scratching my head about it. If I want a treat or something to go with my coffee, I will get a donut. Munchkins, for the win!

Purchased Price: $3.49
Size: 1 slice (3.45 oz)
Rating: 8 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: 330 calories, 15 grams of fat, 3.5 grams of saturated fat, 55 milligrams of cholesterol, 280 milligrams of sodium, 45 grams of carbohydrates, 1 gram of fiber, 27 grams of sugar, and 5 grams of protein.