Tag: Fast Food

QUICK REVIEW: Krispy Kreme Nutter Butter Twist and Chips Ahoy Cookie Doughnuts

Sean

Krispy Kreme Nutter Butter Twist and Chips Ahoy Cookie Doughnuts

What are they?

The Chips Ahoy! Cookie Doughnut is an unglazed shell filled with cookie dough Kreme, dipped in dark chocolate, topped with cookie pieces and a mini Chips Ahoy! Cookie. The Nutter Butter Cookie Twist is an original glazed twist dipped in peanut butter icing, topped with Nutter Butter cookie pieces, and drizzled with peanut butter icing.

How are they?

Krispy Kreme Nutter Butter Twist and Chips Ahoy Cookie Doughnuts 2

The Chips Ahoy! Cookie Doughnut is a slightly modified version of one of my favorite Krispy Kreme staples, the chocolate iced kreme filled, and it’s pretty damn tasty.

Krispy Kreme Nutter Butter Twist and Chips Ahoy Cookie Doughnuts 3

The cookie dough kreme is very similar to the usual white kreme but with a lovely brown sugar flavor and gritty crunch to emulate one of America’s favorite ice cream mix-ins. Somehow the brown sugar presence makes the kreme overall less sweet and when combined with the dark chocolate icing makes for a delicious and well-balanced bite.

The cookie crumbles on top were pretty much a non-factor – only giving a tiny bit of crumbly boost without much flavor. I’ve never been a big fan of chewy Chips Ahoy! And unfortunately, the mini cookie on top, which should be crunchy, got a bit soft from exposure to the air.

Krispy Kreme Nutter Butter Twist and Chips Ahoy Cookie Doughnuts 4

The Nutter Butter Cookie Twist feels like a bit of a missed opportunity – it isn’t filled with peanut butter. Since we already know KK can whip up a great PB Kreme from last year’s Reese’s doughnut, I can’t help but feel a bit let down by the lack of peanut butter pop.

Krispy Kreme Nutter Butter Twist and Chips Ahoy Cookie Doughnuts 5

The glaze on the twist combined with the cookie crumbles makes the overall profile super sweet, and any salty nuance gets lost in the shuffle. It’s still a decent doughnut but it tastes like a sugary crunchy version of the original glazed that veers too much into sugar coma territory – nothing special.

Is there anything else I need to know?

This is pure junk food/fast food fun at its best. The shape of the twist cleverly emulates the shape of Nutter Butter cookies and the Chips Ahoy actually comes with a cookie. Taking childhood cookie staples and transforming them into fresh doughnuts is great, and hopefully the Caramel Tim Tam Krispy Kreme isn’t too far around the corner.

Conclusion:

While neither of these doughnuts completely nail the cookie they’re going for, there’s no doubt that the Chips Ahoy one is a tasty remix of one of KK’s best offerings, while the Nutter Butter is forgettable.

Purchased Price: $1.89 each
Size: N/A
Rating: 8 out of 10 (Chips Ahoy)
Rating: 6 out of 10 (Nutter Butter)
Nutrition Facts: (Chips Ahoy) 400 calories, 22 grams of fat, 9 grams of saturated fat, 1.5 grams of trans fat, 120 milligrams of cholesterol, 210 milligrams of sodium, 50 grams of carbohydrates, 1 gram of fiber, 26 grams of sugar, and 4 grams of protein. (Nutter Butter) 310 calories, 14 grams of fat, 5 grams of saturated fat, 1.5 grams of trans fat, 0 milligrams of cholesterol, 180 milligrams of sodium, 43 grams of carbohydrates, 0 grams of fiber, 27 grams of sugar, and 4grams of protein.

REVIEW: McDonald’s Signature Crafted Garlic White Cheddar Burger

Adam 5 Comments

McDonald s Signature Recipe Garlic White Cheddar

Less than a football field away from the closest McDonald’s to my apartment is a Wendy’s. Said Wendy’s has a sign touting fresher is better. Said sign corresponds to a commercial Wendy’s runs about their fresh never frozen beef. Said frozen beef is a reference to the McDonald’s 90 yards away.

Correction: Was.

In case you haven’t heard, McDonald’s is making the great leap forward. And, apparently, that leap to fresh beef starts with the rollout of the Signature Crafted Garlic White Cheddar Burger.

Which is convenient because if the moon is made out of cheese, and the cow jumps over the moon, it really is one small leap for mookind. But I digress.

Say what you will about fast food burgers in general, but McDonald’s burgers have (had?) a specific taste and texture that some people happened to like in a kind of lowbrow comfort fast food sort of way.

McDonald s Signature Recipe Garlic White Cheddar 2

The new patties are definitely a step away from that. With visible surface browning and what appeared to be sea salt on the patty, the beef looked like something I could have made at home. And the taste is altogether beefy —- more nuanced, rounded, and meaty than I remember. But the patty, aside from tasting drier than the average Quarter Pounder I’ve had in the past, didn’t taste well-seasoned or particularly succulent. As someone who grills a lot of burgers myself, I’d compare it to ground sirloin. Beefier, yes, but noticeably leaner and less flavorful.

McDonald s Signature Recipe Garlic White Cheddar 3

The good news is the burger construction is engineered for what my friend calls the executive bight. Carefully placed lettuce and tomato, as well as the slightly sweet bun, do wonders to round out the taste. Meanwhile, the garlic chips and aioli leave a distinct and savory garlic flavor that brings together all the flavors and makes your breath smell like the equivalent of three roasted heads of garlic.

McDonald s Signature Recipe Garlic White Cheddar 4

While I wanted to love (and I mean LOVE) the sharp white cheddar cheese, its flavor on the burger is less impressive than its flavor on its own. Unlike past McDonald’s “cheddar” cheeses, the slice actually has a bit of funk, but within the burger it gets lost amidst the beef and the garlic aioli and chips. It’s not a bad thing, but it’s sort of a waste of an otherwise perfectly good slice of cheese.

There was a time when I might have said $5.19 is too much for a burger. Well, that time was in college and considering I’m about to be 30 and no longer use “adult” as a verb, I’m willing to pay $5.19 for a good fast food burger. And make no mistake about it, the Signature Crafted Garlic White Cheddar Burger is a good burger by fast food standards.

Just be prepared to eat a Tic-Tac afterwards.

(Nutrition Facts – 620 calories, 300 calories from fat, 33 grams of total fat, 12 grams of saturated fat, 1.5 grams of trans fat, 95 milligrams of cholesterol, 95 milligrams of sodium, 49 grams of total carbohydrates, 3 grams of dietary fiber, 12 grams of sugars, and 31 grams of protein.)

Purchased Price: $5.19
Size: N/A
Rating: 8 out of 10
Pros: Beefier fresh beef patty than traditional McDonald’s burgers. Excellent double whammy of garlic taste. High quality ingredients make $5.19 price tag a bargain.
Cons: Leaner-tasting patty lacks juiciness and richness. Quality of cheese is lost against garlic flavor.

REVIEW: Taco Bell Triple Melt Burrito and Triple Melt Nachos

Louis 6 Comments

Taco Bell Triple Melt Nachos

“Caseus et magis in melius.”

Mother, if you are reading this, please have this newly-minted personal creed inscribed on my tombstone along with a picture of Taco Bell’s Triple Melt Nachos, if only for future generations to know that we are currently living in the cheesiest point of recorded history.

And while all this cheese comes at a sacrifice — Nacho Fries are gone, long live Nacho Fries — if value-based creations such as the Taco Bell Triple Melt Burrito and, even more so, the Triple Melt Nachos, are a glistening yellow beacon to what we can achieve in the realm of queso and queso-related foodstuffs, then it’s the culinary petard that I will defiantly hoist my husky frame upon.

The aforementioned dynamic duo of Triple Melt meals from Taco Bell are seemingly a long time coming and hopefully a new standard bearer on not only the value meal menu but anything in the future that they dare to proclaim as “cheese-filled.”

By combining the Bell’s patented nacho cheese goodness with a shredded three-cheese blend of mozzarella, cheddar, and pepper jack, these new mixtures and additions hit closer and closer to what we should rightfully expect from years of Tex-Mex fast food promises.

Taco Bell Triple Melt Burrito

And while not as super-gooey as you’d think — the combined cheeses settle very fast into their own blessed mass of congealment — these very different cheeses and their fully distinct flavors make the Triple Melt Burrito a definite triple-crown entry as far as taste goes in this never-ending value menu race to the top. Along with the always welcomed ground beef and perfectly blended sauce, it makes for a burrito well worth your dollar.

Taco Bell Triple Melt Burrito 2

That being said, the main drawback here is the continued unimaginative use of Taco Bell’s typically bland rice as a wholly unnecessary filler that might as well be sawdust the way it soaks up all that important cheesy flavor. (I mean, let’s be honest: is there really anyone out there who truly likes Taco Bell’s rice? A mea culpa to you and yours if so, but I doubt it.)

Taco Bell Triple Melt Nachos 2

This minor act of edible malfeasance is absolutely rectified, for the most part, by the award-worthy Triple Melt Nachos. Featuring those beloved chips and aforementioned ground beef professionally imbued with all these different cheeses, like a calcium-rich daydream of innocent fools come to fruition, it’s a hearty combination that makes this a Dollar Menu item beyond reproach.

The warm queso blankets the top while the corresponding layers underneath are shielded by the melting shredded cheese that soaks down to the bottom, making sure that every bite is loaded with some semblance of flavor like a sternly protective father, a true rarity especially when it comes to these dollar nachos and their moderately-sized portions and partitions.

And, to be fair, if you want to complain about the size of these nachos, it’s only a buck hoss…man up and order two or three or whatever it takes to satisfy those curdled urges deep inside. Lord knows I have. ¡Cómpralo ya!

(Nutrition Facts – Triple Melt Burrito – 410 calories, 16 grams of fat, 6 grams of saturated fat, 30 milligrams of cholesterol, 1030 milligrams of sodium, 50 grams of carbohydrates, 4 grams of fiber, and 15 grams of protein. Triple Melt Nachos – 260 calories, 16 grams of fat, 4.5 grams of saturated fat, 30 milligrams of cholesterol, 550 milligrams of sodium, 19 grams of carbohydrates, 3 grams of fiber, and 10 grams of protein.)

Purchased Price: $1.00
Size: N/A
Rating: 8 out of 10 (Burrito)
Rating: 10 out of 10 (Nachos)
Pros: So very, very cheesy. The mixture of cheese flavors works. Great value even for value menu items.
Cons: Limited-time only. The rice on the burrito is total filler. Nachos congeal fast.

QUICK REVIEW: Burger King Sourdough King

James 5 Comments

Burger King Sourdough King

What is it?

The Sourdough King is basically a slightly ritzier version of BK’s line of King sandwiches. The ingredients are all pretty much part and parcel of the usual Burger King sammich – you’ve got your flame-broiled patty, you’ve got some American cheese, and you’ve got a few strips of bacon – but the big variable is what’s holding all of it together: a toasted sourdough bun. Toss in some grilled onions and the King’s signature creamy sauce and that’s pretty much the gist of it.

How is it?

Burger King Sourdough King 3

It’s a bit of a mixed bag. The onions are pretty juicy and crispy, so that’s a plus. The charbroiled beef is as good as ever and that proprietary secret sauce (I’m thinking it’s half honey mustard and half Catalina dressing) is downright delicious.

Unfortunately, the toasted sourdough bun seems to get soggy fast, and the bacon – at least at my local BK – felt a little too chewy and flavorless.

Is there anything else I need to know?

With a fairly steep price point (the double-patty version will cost you $5.99), the Sourdough King doesn’t do a whole lot to justify its cost – indeed, it seems to be smaller than the chain’s regular Bacon King offering.

Burger King Sourdough King 2

Furthermore, the sodium content is also pretty high, so you’re definitely going to need a beverage to choke this thing down. And while very yummy, that “special sauce” is extremely greasy – better have the napkin dispenser nearby if you plan on tackling this sucker.

Conclusion:

The Sourdough King is tasty, but it’s hardly what I would consider a L-T-O worth going out of your way to experience. The sourdough bun doesn’t add anything to the tried-and-true formula, and you could easily replicate the overall taste and flavor of the sandwich by special-ordering a regular burger — thus saving yourself a dollar or two in the process.

Honestly, this is hardly anything more than a Bacon King with toast instead of a sesame seed bun; and if such an invitation has your mouth-watering and your free hand just itching to fork over your wallet…well, that makes one of us.

On the planet.

Purchased Price: $4.99
Size: Single patty
Rating: 6 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: (Single Patty) 730 calories, 43 grams of fat, 16 grams of saturated fat, 1.5 grams of trans fat, 125 milligrams of cholesterol, 1570 milligrams of sodium, 52 grams of carbohydrates, 2 grams of fiber, 12 grams of sugar, and 35 grams of protein.

QUICK REVIEW: Dairy Queen Summer Berry Cheesecake Blizzard

Joe 13 Comments

Dairy Queen Summer Berry Cheesecake Blizzard

What is it?

One of two new blizzards available on Dairy Queen’s Summer Blizzard menu. The Summery Berry Cheesecake Blizzard adds real raspberries, blueberries, and blackberries along with cheesecake pieces to vanilla soft serve.

The emphasis on the use of “real” berries begs the question, does that mean the cheesecake and ice cream are part of the illusory world that is Ed Sheeran’s dream?

How is it?

The only flavor that distinguishes itself is blueberry despite equal representation of raspberries and blackberries. This created a mildly blueberry flavored ice cream base that was unexpected but welcome. Unfortunately, when it comes to whole berries mixed with soft serve, the cold most certainly does bother me.

Dairy Queen Summer Berry Cheesecake Blizzard 3

While cheesecake topped with fresh, succulent berries isn’t Ed’s dream come true, these icy berries are texturally unpleasant and muted in flavor. Fortunately, the stark reality of boring berries is somewhat offset by the fantastic cheesecake pieces. They bring a deep cream cheese flavor with a bit of tanginess upfront and finish with graham cracker in all its soft, crumbly, brown sugary glory.

Dairy Queen Summer Berry Cheesecake Blizzard 2

Enrobed in a creamy cloak of the blueberry-infused base, the intense cheesecake pops and almost delivers on the promise of its lofty name, sans frigid fruit faux pas that is.

Is there anything else I need to know?

Whoever said patience is a virtue is a big fat liar as letting the ice cream temper didn’t help matters. The fruit was no longer as problematic in the polar molars department, but that served to underscore that fresh off the vine these berries are not.

Conclusion:

In what I suppose works out to be the equivalent of taking a purple pill from Morpheus, the Summer Berry Cheesecake is seemingly two worlds colliding. The unreal cheesecake highs are brought down by the real lows of frozen, bland fruit that isn’t berry good.

Purchased Price: $3.59
Size: Small
Rating: 6 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: (Small) 560 calories, 21 grams of fat, 13 grams of saturated fat, 1 gram of trans fat, 75 milligrams of cholesterol, 260 milligrams of sodium, 79 grams of carbohydrates, 2 grams of dietary fiber, 64 grams of sugar, and 14 grams of protein.