The Impulsive Buy

  • REVIEW: Swedish Fish Blue Raspberry Lemonade

    What are they?

    We just got Sour Patch Kids Lemonade Fest, and one of the flavors, blue raspberry lemonade, is spotlighted in Swedish Fish, the Kids’ confectionary cousin.

    How are they?

    Of the four flavors in the Sour Patch Kids Lemonade Fest, I’m not sure why blue raspberry lemonade got the Swedish Fish treatment. In the SPK mix, I thought it didn’t have a strong flavor, but at least it was sour, so it evoked lemonade.

    Here, though, it really doesn’t taste like anything. It’s just sweet. I can maybe taste lemon if I squint. But I’m not going to squint because there’s no tartness to make my eyes do funny things.

    In my junk food drawer, I have a bag of red, white, and blue Swedish Fish Mini, which includes both blue raspberry (blue) and lemon (white). Each of those has a more discernible flavor. But for some reason, the flavors just get diluted when they’re mixed together.

    And there’s another thing: I think these would work better in the mini format. The full size is just too big, and it’s not worth chewing that much for a mediocre flavor.

    Anything else you need to know?

    Sometimes if you eat too many Sour Patch Kids, your mouth starts to hurt. So at least that’s one thing these Fish have going for them that the SPK mix doesn’t: they won’t hurt your mouth.

    Conclusion:

    Unfortunately, Swedish Fish Blue Raspberry Lemonade are a forgettable candy that doesn’t evoke either blue raspberries or lemonade.

    Purchased Price: $2.75
    Size: 8.04 oz bag
    Purchased at: Dollar General
    Rating: 4 out of 10
    Nutrition Facts: (5 pieces) 110 calories, 0 grams of fat, 15 milligrams of sodium, 27 grams of carbohydrates, 23 grams of sugar (including 23 grams of added sugar), and 0 grams of protein.

  • SPOTTED: 6/21/2023

    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.

    Cholula Salsa

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

    Kellogg’s Town House Star-Spangled Dippers

    (Spotted by Robbie at Walmart.)

    McCain Mash-Ups Mild Cheddar

    (Spotted by Amanda Y at Walmart.)

    Great Value Birthday Cake and Cinnamon Crunch Instant Oatmeal

    (Spotted by Amanda Y at Walmart.)

    The Original Donut Shop Coffee Iced Duos Cookies Caramel
    The Original Donut Shop Coffee Iced Duos White Chocolate Raspberry
    The Original Donut Shop Coffee Milky Way K-Cups

    (Spotted by @TheJoshCatlett at Kroger.)

    Blue Diamond Almonds Double Dark Chocolate Thin Dipped Almonds

    (Spotted by Amanda Y at Walmart.)

    Mamba Berrytasty Fruit Chews

    (Spotted by RaveGyrl at Dollar Tree.)

    Bobo’s Grape PB&Js Bars

    (Spotted by Amanda Y at Walmart.)

    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: Cap’n Crunch Instant Oatmeal

    So was a treaty signed between Cap’n Crunch and the Soggies to make these instant oatmeal flavors happen? (Spotted by Robbie at Walmart.)

    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: Snickers, Twix, and M&M’s Cookie Dough

    No way! No Milky Way cookie dough? (Spotted by Erin K at Hy-Vee.)

    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: Jack in the Box Jack Wraps

    How my Jack in the Box Crispy Jack Wraps were made can’t be right, right? From above, they look like ghost burritos with the way the tortillas are folded. There is something inside the tortilla, but less than half of it being used.

    I checked YouTube and saw Jack Wraps folded in various ways. One video showed one just like mine, another looked like a burrito, and another was made with the excess tortilla folded over the other half, which allowed the ingredients to pop out of the top.

    I picked up both Crispy Jack Wrap varieties — Classic and Spicy. The Classic comes with one chicken strip, shredded lettuce, shredded cheddar, pickles, Good Good Sauce, and buttermilk ranch dressing in a warm, oversized tortilla. The Spicy version has jalapeños instead of pickles and swaps the Good Good Sauce with the spicy version. Either one is also available with grilled chicken, which I unintentionally tried. I’ll explain later.

    With the way my Classic Crispy and Spicy Crispy Jack Wraps were made, the first bites would’ve been ALL tortilla, so I rewrapped them into burritos. Unfortunately, that didn’t prevent my jaw from getting a little workout, thanks to the tough tortilla, which felt like it wasn’t warmed up to soften it. But I did some microwave magic to make everything less chewy.

    The Classic Crispy Jack Wrap has a lot of flavor, thanks to the Good Good Sauce and ranch. The pickles added a tasty pungent kick. The chicken strip inside was a bit dry and had little crispiness, but the sauces and vegetables mostly compensated for those issues. As for the Spicy one, the jalapeños overwhelmed the whole thing, and after eating a third of it, I took them out. For something so small, there were a lot of jalapeños in it. But even with them out, their flavor lingered a bit too much.

    Unsatisfied with my experience, I went to a different Jack in the Box location for another Crispy Jack Wrap. This time, I ended up with one wrapped like a burrito. But, despite my receipt saying I ordered a Crispy version, I had grilled chicken in mine. This time, the tortilla was much easier to chew and had some crispiness, and overall I liked grilled chicken Jack Wrap as much as the Crispy version.

    While the Classic Crispy and Grilled Jack Wraps were tasty, I’m not completely impressed. Their price seems a bit high for something with ONE chicken strip in them, even at the advertised price of three dollars, and those tortillas were comically too big. Jack in the Box knows there are smaller tortillas, right?

    Purchased Price: $3.29 each*
    Rating: 6 out of 10 (Classic Crispy), 5 out of 10 (Spicy Crispy), 6 out of 10 (Classic Grilled)
    Nutrition Facts: 380 calories each for the Classic Crispy and Spicy Crispy Jack Wraps. Other nutritional info is not available.

    *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.