Tag: Fast Food

QUICK REVIEW: Starbucks Caramel Brulee Iced Coffee Straw and Pineapple Iced Tea Straw

Heather 9 Comments

Starbucks Pineapple Iced Tea and Caramel Brulee Coffee Straws

What is it?

Starbucks recently debuted these straws – but unlike the Frappucino Cookie Straw of 2015, these are not entirely edible. The Caramel Brulee (made for iced coffee) and Pineapple (made for iced tea) are paper straws with the bottoms dipped in a hard candy-like shell.

How is it?

Well, folks, this is a lesson in asking questions and not making assumptions. I assumed that the flavored end of the straw would go inside the drink to add a little something special. Well, after checking with my friendly barista, I learned it actually goes OUTSIDE the drink – as in, you drink through the candy end. That way, you get the flavor right at your lips as you sip the drink.

Starbucks Caramel Brulee Iced Coffee Straw

I favored the Pineapple over the Caramel Brulee. While the Caramel Brulee was good, it didn’t add to my coffee experience and was slightly artificial in taste. The candy itself tasted like a Werther’s Original hard candy that your grandpa used to slip in your pocket.

Starbucks Pineapple Iced Tea Straw 3

Pineapple had just the right amount of sweetness to flavor my iced green tea and had a more natural taste. The Pineapple also gets bonus points for the adorable pineapple design on the straw itself.

Is there anything else I need to know?

Starbucks Caramel Brulee Iced Coffee Straw 2

Be aware that you might have to bite or suck some of the candy to get your beverage through the straw. The hard candy may cover the opening when you first open the package. And if you want to enjoy the whole straw, you’ll have to work your way down it as you drink.

Conclusion:

These are a fun concept, but now that I’ve used them once, I probably won’t again. There’s something about walking into my office with my coffee and a candy straw that doesn’t seem right in corporate America! But if you’re up for fun, I say go for it.

Purchased Price: $1.75 each (Although when I purchased, they were running a Buy One Get One Free deal, so I got both for $1.75)
Size: N/A
Rating: 6 out of 10 (Caramel Brulee)
Rating: 7 out of 10 (Pineapple)
Nutrition Facts: Caramel Brulee – 20 calories, 0 grams of fat, 0 grams of saturated fat, 0 milligrams of cholesterol, 0 milligrams of sodium, 5 grams of carbohydrates, 4 grams of sugars, and 0 grams of protein. Pineapple – 20 calories, 0 grams of fat, 0 grams of saturated fat, 0 milligrams of cholesterol, 0 milligrams of sodium, 5 grams of carbohydrates, 4 grams of sugars, and 0 grams of protein..

QUICK REVIEW: Dairy Queen Reese’s Outrageous Blizzard

Joe

Dairy Queen Outrageous Blizzard

What is it?

Like last month’s Oreo Firework Blizzard, the Reese’s Outrageous Blizzard is a copycat of the candy that shares its name. August’s Blizzard of the Month combines peanut butter and caramel topping in vanilla soft serve with Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups and Pieces — but not the eponymous candy bar.

How is it?

The Outrageous is a dream come true for my accordion-necked alien induced addiction to Reese’s Pieces. The peanut butter-flavored soft serve is appropriately brash for a treat heralded as outrageous, and the extra saltiness it brings is complemented fantastically by the sweeter caramel.

While the base is full of leguminous goodness, what really had my heart Skippying a beat is the addition of Reese’s Pieces. Broken bits of crispy shell provide the crunch that famously enamors wrinkly extra-terrestrials. The sweetly coated candy’s classic taste is amplified by the caramel and peanut butter infused vanilla ice cream.

Dairy Queen Outrageous Blizzard 2

Sadly, the less numerous Cups are crowded out. There are enough to impart a needed chocolate vibe, but it lacks the pronounced punch one expects from Reese’s Cups. To the Outrageous’ credit though, every spoonful includes a large, if imbalanced, amount of candy.

Is there anything else I need to know?

Dairy Queen Outrageous Blizzard 3

This is an iteration on 2017’s Reese’s Extreme Blizzard where chocolatey topping is swapped out in favor of caramel. As peanut butter and chocolate will probably be found on my death certificate, I am shocked that I love the Outrageous whereas I was underwhelmed by yesteryears not so extreme take on Reese’s. I guess the more accurate Reese’s Satisfactory Blizzard didn’t have the same ring to it.

Conclusion:

If you need a Reese’s Peanut Butter Cup fix, stick with the classic menu mainstay. If on the other hand you love Reese’s Pieces or peanut butter in general, then the Reese’s Outrageous will leave you phoning home to tell all of your friends about it.

Purchased Price: $3.89
Size: Medium
Rating: 9 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: (Medium) 1010 calories, 45 grams of fat, 21 grams of saturated fat, 1 gram of trans fat, 55 milligrams of cholesterol, 540 milligrams of sodium, 137 grams of carbohydrates, 2 grams of dietary fiber, 105 grams of sugar, and 17 grams of protein.

QUICK REVIEW: Burger King Frosted Frozen Fanta Orange

Denis 8 Comments

Burger King Frosted Frozen Fanta Orange

What is it?

In case the name didn’t give it away, it’s Burger King’s new summer drink blending Frozen Fanta Orange with vanilla soft serve.

How is it?

Burger King Frosted Frozen Fanta Orange 2

Decent, adequate, ordinary.

Grab a thesaurus, or use that Google thing, and pick your favorite adjective for average. Mine is fair to middling. With a simple concoction such as this, it would be hard to envision it being incredible or terrible. And it’s not; it’s just okay.

Burger King Frosted Frozen Fanta Orange 3

I was expecting more of an orange Creamsicle/Dreamsicle taste. This will remind you of that, but only faintly. There just wasn’t much tang from the Fanta and not much sweetness from the soft serve. Also, the consistency was a touch gritty — not quite a milkshake and not quite a slush.

Maybe the BK soft serve is to blame (after all, Dairy Queen and McDonald’s are known for their soft serve; BK not so much). I’m not sure I even knew BK had soft serve before having this.

Is there anything else I need to know?

One caveat about this review: upon ordering I was given the dreaded “let me see if the machine is working” response. After a less-than-confident “I think so” from the manager, my order proceeded. And the Burger King I patronized did not have Fanta of any variety at the soda fountain, so that made me wonder where said Fanta came from for my drink. Unfortunately, the machine that might or might not have been working properly was located out of view, so the mystery endures.

Conclusion:

If you are having one of those blah days where you don’t want to be too excited about something or too disappointed, this might be the drink for you.

Purchased Price: $2.00
Size: 16 oz.
Rating: 5 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: 180 calories, 1.5 grams of fat, 1 gram of saturated fat, 0 grams of trans fat, 5 grams of cholesterol, 160 milligrams of sodium, 42 grams of carbohydrates, 0 grams of fiber, 41 grams of sugar, and 2 grams of protein.

QUICK REVIEW: 7-Eleven Cap’n Crunch’s Crunch Berries Slurpee

Vin 2 Comments

7 Eleven Cap n Crunch s Crunch Berries Slurpee

What is it?

A strange marriage between 7-Eleven and the Cap’n to say the least – Crunch Berries Slurpee.

How is it?

I was skeptical, but this really hit the mark. They managed to “slurpitize” Cap’n Crunch Berries.

7 Eleven Cap n Crunch s Crunch Berries Slurpee 3

It was especially good for the first few sips while the ice was still crystallized. You get the classic Crunch Berries taste up front, but also a starchy cereal flavor. This is basically “Oops! All Berries” in Slurpee form, but I contend there is a hint of the corn cereal pieces in there as well that brought a nice dry finish to early sips.

While I’m pretty positive there’s no lactose element, they somehow managed to mimic a milky vanilla creaminess. It’s somehow both creamy and icy, but in no way like ice cream – if that makes sense. Just nod your head.

Those flavors paired with the fluffy slush reminded me a bit of cotton candy.

Is there anything else I need to know?

7 Eleven Cap n Crunch s Crunch Berries Slurpee 2

You probably need to be a fan of Crunch Berries to enjoy this. While I figured this was a berry-flavored frozen drink that they just slapped a familiar name on, it honestly tastes like full-blown Cap’n Crunch cereal.

It may be shocking to taste these flavors at this temperature, but I really dug it.

I would recommend getting a small because it’s best fresh from the machine. Once the ice melted, it became a slurry of pure syrup.

Conclusion:

This is an ambitious partnership. I imagine it may be polarizing as it is definitely strange to taste cereal in frozen form, but I’d say give it a go. It won’t be around forever, and Slurpees cost a buck and change.

Some 7-Eleven stores are also selling exclusive Cap’n Crunch Slurpee T-shirts, and I won’t lie, I’m pretty mad I didn’t get one.

Oh, and be forewarned, you’re gonna have a blue tongue.

Purchased Price: $1.59
Size: Large
Rating: 8 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: Not available on 7-Eleven website.

QUICK REVIEW: Starbucks Summer Sunset Cold Foam Tea Lemonade

Tiffany

Starbucks Summer Sunset Cold Foam Tea Lemonade

What is it?

Just in time for peak summer, Starbucks launched two new lemonade drinks with nondescript names: Summer Sunrise and Summer Sunset. The Summer Sunset is a blend of the pineapple tea infusion, a new item that launched this time last year, Passion Tango Tea, and lemonade. The new, exciting part of these two drinks is the cold foam; the Sunset in particular features a sweet Passion Tango herbal tea cold foam.

How is it?

It’s not quite the Teavana Shaken Iced Tea Infusions beverage, and it’s also not quite the PTL (Passion Tea Lemonade); it’s so non-committal and in-between that it’s mediocre. While I can taste each of the flavor elements, it doesn’t do either of them justice.

I was hoping the Passion Tango cold foam would tie everything together, but it didn’t. While the color of the Sunset is pretty (I see what you made me do there Starbucks), the execution reminds me of Crystal Light.

Is there anything else I need to know?

Starbucks Summer Sunset Cold Foam Tea Lemonade 2

The cold foam seems like a lot of extra work for little payoff. I watched the barista painstakingly wait for it to finish blending after she already mixed the tea lemonade concoction. Note for anyone who is lactose intolerant – the cold foam contains milk.

There’s also 36 grams of sugar, but it doesn’t taste that sweet. It’s easy to drink without feeling like you’re drinking classic syrup, so technically it delivers on the refreshing aspect.

Conclusion:

Starbucks is cutting back on limited releases by 30 percent, but somehow this drink still made the cut. It’s just a blend of existing drinks with gimmicky cold foam and seems to be made mainly for the ‘gram.

Purchased Price: $4.75
Size: Grande
Rating: 4 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: (Grande) 150 calories, 0 grams of fat, 0 grams of saturated fat, 0 grams of trans fat, 0 milligrams of cholesterol, 25 milligrams of sodium, 37 grams of carbohydrates, 0 grams of fiber, 36 grams of sugar, 0 grams of protein, and 0 milligrams of caffeine.