I'm Not Shellfish

  

 Lay's Spicy Lobster

Let's talk about bravery.

Celeste dug into the snack stash and pulled out a bag of chips. "Can I have these?" she asked.

I thought about it for a moment.  I was planning to do a post about them but hadn't gotten around to it, so part of me was thinking that I should tell her to wait.  But heck, she's my daughter and it wasn't the only bag of chips in the sea, so I said "Sure, go ahead."

She walked out of the room, happy.

One minute later she walked back in with the open bag and a horrified expression on her face.

This is that very bag of chips, and even after her complete rejection of them after one nibble of a chip I still tried them.

That is bravery ... or maybe stupidity ... or sheer bloodymindedness.  Nevertheless ...

The chips have a scent that's kind of like Thai fish sauce.  I suppose that's appropriate.

For appearance they're pretty unremarkable, with a light dusting of orange powder.  If I didn't know better I'd think they were ordinary cheesy chips or maybe barbecue.

The flavor, surprisingly, isn't bad.  They taste a bit like some of the fishy or nori-wrapped crackers in the cans of Hapi Party Mix - a little savory, a little fishy, and a little sweet - though these are a lot saltier.

You know you want some!

So they're not exactly something I'd seek out again, but I don't think they deserved the grimace that Celeste gave them.  Then again, I think she'd been wanting chocolate before that so it might be connected to the difference between what she wanted and what she got.

[Addendum:  These things give you serious Sea-Dragon Breath!]

Rating: 3/5

Thai Basil?

Lays Sweet Basil Flavor

After a couple of recent experiences with chips from overseas, I hesitated a bit before buying these. Still, your intrepid chip-taster must carry on!

I got them at Jungle Jim's (of course). From the packaging it looks like they were made for distribution in Thailand - the ingredients and product information is all in Thai, covered over with a sticker in English to meet US labeling laws.

Opening the package yielded an ... interesting ... smell ... that I couldn't quite identify. It wasn't the basil or chili pepper I would have expected from the picture on the front. I suppose it could be something like nam pla (fish sauce), but if so then it's not very fishy.

Just so you know, I also hesitated a bit before trying one.

They weren't bad, per se. They had a little bit of a bite that was closer to wasabi than chili, though it did have an afterburn. The taste was sweet, with a hint of Worcestershire sauce, which probably really is nam pla. I suppose there might be basil buried in there somewhere.

All in all it wasn't a bad experience, but it also wasn't one I'd be eager to repeat.

Rating: 3/5