Wednesday, February 8, 2017

Trader Joe's Honey Butter Flavored Potato Chips

 With so much drama with these HBCs
It'll be kinda hard eating the whole B-A-double-G
But, somehow, some way
I keep munchin these funky lil chips like every single day...

Whoo boy, let's just stop while we're somewhat ahead. Sorry if this disappoints, but no more rap parodies here. Least not with Snoop Dogg....too much "creative editing" involved.

So let's just talk some Trader Joe's Honey Butter Flavored Potato Chips.

Lots of different crazy chip flavors out there, and apparently, honey butter chips (HBCs if you're into the whole acronym thing) were a craze a year or three ago that I, in typical me fashion, completely missed out on. But TJ's to the rescue! Now if they could only also sell Game of Thrones DVDs so I can see what that whole fuss is about.

But honestly, if these chips are a representative of most honey butter chips, I don't see what the huge fuss is/was. There's nothing really particularly standout about them, and in fact, taste downright odd. The only reason I kept eating them was because I was first kinda repulsed, then somewhat intrigued, followed by kinda bewildered, and finally indifferent.

This is basically how the flavor goes: initial hit of creaminess, like a sour cream based chip without the inherent tanginess, followed by either a semi-salty or kinda faintly sweet hit. There is a honey flavor, but light, definitely subtle. Absolutely, um, "laid back." And not present at every bite, so there's an uneven aspect at play here, especially when the first hits of butteriness fade away. More often than not, it seems like the flavor just kinda divebombs away, and somehow the remaining chip taste seems almost bitter while still faintly sweet at the same time. The fine folks who developed these chips need to put their mind on the honey, and the honey on their mind to make a better chip.

Sorry, that was just a little too easy.

Anyways, the chips are crispy, munchy, okay for a snack but won't trigger a selfgorging. Which is a plus. Also: check out them calories. Only 70 for a typical 1 oz serving?** I checked another bag of chips Sandy's mom had around - over twice as many for same size serving. So another plus.

Honestly, in the end, I'm not entirely sure what to think of them. Neither is Sandy. There's no love or hatred...just kinda indifference. I won't tell you to not try them, but there's no sense storming the TJ castle for the honey chips either. Which is kinda disappointing to me - I wanted to love them, but nah. Matching threes from us.

Bottom line: Trader Joe's Honey Butter Flavored Potato Chips: 6 out of 10 Golden Spoons
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**UPDATE!: One of our Facebook fans reported seeing a sign at their local store stating the calorie info was mislabeled on these bags, and the chips are actually more in the typical150 calories/serving range. Does anyone have more info about this?

10 comments:

  1. Our TJs had the same flyer up at the register correcting the calorie count!

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  2. Funny, I'm the only one in my household that really enjoyed these. I think they nailed the flavor. I'm hooked!

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  3. I work for Trader Joe's here in Chicago. Yes... it was simply a typo on the calorie count. Since there's nothing inherently wrong with the product, TJ's chose to sell the remaining inventory (with a posted disclaimer) and new shipments will have the correct calorie count.

    For the record - I think they're delicious, but nothing in recent memory matches my love for our new baked Cheese Bites! Little nuggets of crispy, golden heaven.

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  4. The question I have is what the heck the tiny green bits are. There is nothing listed in the ingredients that would explain them. My guess is another mistake?

    Seems like chives. Also seems like you should remove them to restore the more buttery taste. Along with upping the sweetness a bit and taking down the salt.

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  5. I recently tried these in the store and just thought they were kind of "blah". I didn't hate them, but didn't want to buy them either.

    Then about 2 weeks later I happened to win the weekly bag raffle and this product was in the bag I won. I accepted it graciously, and the unopened bag will probably go to my grandkids who won't mind that they are "blah" and just be excited to get a bag of chips.

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  6. I like these and I've been disappointed by most potato chips after I turned 40 (which was quite a few years ago). Maybe tastes change. Anyway, they're not spectacular, but I find them pretty easy to eat with dip.

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  7. Does anyone know if these HBC are gluten free? I don't see an gluten containing ingredients

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  8. Trader Joe's has discontinued this product 😭😭😭😭 please write to TJs if you want them back!! If there's enough outcry for it they just might bring it back!

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  9. I just found out they've been discontinued too! I was so disappointed I wrote them an email asking for them to come back. I hope they bring them back, they're a favorite in my household.

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