Trader Joe's Red, White & Blue Cookie Bites

Decades ago, my father was a tour guide at Independence Hall in Philadelphia. He often remembered the bicentennial year—just a few years before I was born—in 1976. He recalled it as a year-long celebration that saw a huge rise in tourism in Philly. People seemed more interested in US history and the birth of our nation. There were reenactments, parties, fireworks displays, and festivities of all kinds. A few times he'd remarked to me as a child: "Well, you'll be around for the 250th anniversary of our country." And here I am.

We won't be attending any major Fourth of July events this year, but 7/4/26 has been a date planted in my psyche for a very long time now. As far as festivities go, Sonia and I will keep things simple but fun. I mean, we have napkins and plates with red, white, and blue stars. And thanks to Trader Joe's, we have these super duper patriotic cookie bites.

Those of you who've been reading for a while now understand it takes a really special cookie to get a glowing review on this blog. That's not what's going to happen here, unfortunately, but hey I'm down with the fun red, white, and blue theme and there's at least some uniqueness going on here, so let's get down to brass tacks, shall we?

Trader Joe's Red, White & Blue Cookie Bites are tiny balls of crunchy vanilla cookie surrounded by fruit-flavored candy coatings. The red flavor tastes like cherry and the tub is mostly that red flavor for some reason. I think it represents courage, valor, and sacrifice. Or maybe it just stands for cherry. I like the flavor okay, but there is a bit of that cough syrup vibe.

The blue flavor is blueberry-esque. I like it a tad better than its crimson counterpart. Also justice, vigilance, and perseverance are admirable qualities. Go USA.

The white flavor tastes like lemon to me. It's the best of all and there were like five in the entire gigantic tub. Apparently Trader Joe doesn't believe in purity and innocence. I'm kidding. Or am I?

It's going to be hot this Fourth of July, and the candy coating on these cookie bites is going to melt if you take them to a barbecue or outdoor party or something. So...I wish we had like some Trader Joe's Bomb Pops or some other frozen America-themed treat to review today, but I guess you can always do something indoors...in the air conditioning...and hope these vaguely snackable cookies stay solid long enough to try one of each flavor before you say "meh" and hand the tub to the kids.

Should I even score this one? I mean they're not bad. It's just...they're not great either. Someone commented on our YouTube channel "This guy should not be allowed to review cookies." Maybe that's true. I am terribly jaded when it comes to cookies. We've literally reviewed over a hundred types of Trader Joe's brand cookies. Maybe I should refrain from posting negative cookie reviews because normal folks seem to be fond of every cookie that TJ's puts out. Leave your own personal score for these cookies in the comments. Let's just do it that way.

Five bucks for the ten ounce tub. Kosher. Personally, I wouldn't buy Trader Joe's Red, White & Blue Cookie Bites again. Have a great Fourth of July weekend, everybody. Stay safe out there.

Bottom line: America turns 250 years old this weekend and these are red, white, and blue cookie bites.

Trader Joe's Potato Cheese Sticks

Trader Joe's Potato Cheese Sticks look like something you'd find at a county fair right next to the funnel cakes and deep-fried Oreos. They're big, breaded sticks on wooden skewers, packed with potato and cheese, and just begging to be dunked into some sort of sauce.

Surprisingly, though, these aren't some Midwestern carnival creation. They're imported all the way from South Korea, where potato-coated cheese dogs and similar fried potato snacks are popular fare in Seoul and other cities. Leave it to Trader Joe's to bring Korean street food to suburban America's freezer aisles.

We cooked ours in the air fryer, which seemed like the obvious move. The outside got beautifully crisp and golden while the cheese inside turned into that glorious stretchy, stringy goodness that food photographers dream about. Between the potato coating and the mozzarella center, there's also a layer of starchy batter that holds everything together on the stick.

Flavor-wise, these are exactly what they sound like: fried potato and melty cheese. That's not a bad thing at all. In fact, it's downright tasty. The problem is that they're a little plain. After the initial excitement of pulling apart those epic cheese strings, we found ourselves wishing for just a bit more seasoning and personality.

Trader Joe's suggests serving them with ketchup or honey mustard. Sonia and I looked at each other and immediately decided neither option sounded particularly appealing. Instead, we asked ChatGPT for a dipping sauce recipe involving gochujang. It had us mix mayo, rice vinegar, and honey with the spicy pepper paste. The result was creamy, tangy, sweet, and just spicy enough to wake these sticks up. It turned out to be an excellent pairing and added the extra flavor dimension we felt the product needed.

Would we buy them again? Absolutely. They're fun, they're different, and they're satisfyingly cheesy. Sonia was more enthusiastic than I was, though. The beautiful wifey throws out an ardent eight and a half stars. I'll go with a respectable seven and a half.

Trader Joe's Potato Cheese Sticks are crispy, cheesy, Korean-inspired comfort food on a stick. They'll run you $4.99 for four individually-wrapped servings, found in the frozen section. They're a little tame on their own, but with the right sauce and beverage pairings they're a snack worth revisiting.

Bottom line: 8 out of 10.

Trader Joe's Chocolate Croissants

Four bucks gets you two pre-baked croissants in a cellophane wrapper. I emphasize "pre-baked" because most of the other croissants we've seen from Trader Joe's not only require you to bake the pastry yourself, but they also need to be proofed for up to 12 hours prior to going in the oven. See:

Trader Joe's Double Chocolate Croissants

Trader Joe's 4 Almond Croissants

Trader Joe's 4 Pumpkin Croissants

That's a plus. You don't have to wait a ridiculously long time to eat Trader Joe's Chocolate Croissants. You can have them straight from the package or you can heat them up a bit. But I mean, those previous croissant products were all delicious. I'm telling you they might be the best croissants I've ever had in my life. So these pre-packaged traditional all-butter croissants have their work cut out for them.

And unfortunately, they simply don't hold up to the high standard we've come to expect from Trader Joe's croissants. The bread is good. Flaky, buttery, and airy, the bread tastes fine. But by that same token, it's nowhere near as good as the bread on those other croissants. It might not be fair to compare something that's fresh from the oven to something that's been sitting on a shelf for a few days. But even heated up for a spell, the texture simply can't compete with the croissants you proof and bake yourself.

And the filling? The filling is even worse. Look at that picture. There's barely any chocolate in there. At four bucks, these two croissants didn't exactly break the bank, but I feel totally ripped off. You can barely call these "chocolate" croissants. The aforementioned Double Chocolate Croissants were absolutely bursting at the seams with chocolate flavor.

In true Sonia fashion, she'll be extremely merciful with her scoring, focusing on the convenience and decent buttery bread. The lack of chocolate is really her only complaint. And I must admit I grumbled and moaned about the excessively lengthy proofing and baking process involved with those previous croissant products, but now I see why it's necessary. Good things come to those who wait. So much quality is sacrificed on the altar of convenience with Trader Joe's Chocolate Croissants, and the lack of chocolate filling is just a slap in the face. Would not buy these again.

Sonia's score: 7 out of 10 stars.

Nathan's score: 5 out of 10 stars.

Trader Joe's Hot Honey Popcorn

Hot honey. So hot right now. Sometimes Trader Joe calls it Spicy Honey. Whatever butters your biscuit—or in this case, popcorn.

And this popcorn is indeed buttery. It's almost reminiscent of movie theater popcorn. It's bright yellow like butter. Yet it's sweet like kettle corn. Plus, there's a whisper of spicy heat.

Those of you who know Sonia and me probably know we're looking for more than a whisper when it comes to spice. We don't want masochistic mouth-searing heat just for heat's sake. We want a flavorful peppery punch. There is some cayenne listed in the ingredients, but it's pretty low. Too low by our standards. If the name of your product puts "hot" in the headline, then you gotta at least clear our sinuses a bit. Them's the rules.

We thought about adding some of the aforementioned Trader Joe's Spicy Honey but decided against it due to the obvious mess it would create. We could always sprinkle the popcorn with sriracha powder or extra cayenne pepper, but we just decided to enjoy it as is despite us pining for more picante piquancy.

If you're looking for sweet, buttery kettle corn with a hint of heat, look no further. Although, I must say I wish the popcorn tasted a bit more like actual honey. It does contain some "honey powder" but sugar is much higher on the list. Again, maybe actual honey might have rendered such a sticky snack that no amount of Wet Ones could ever sate the sappy syrup from your skin. Maybe if honey powder were higher on the list..?

In the end it's a decent snack even if it doesn't taste just like spicy honey. We've already polished off the majority of the bag. Three bucks. Kosher. Kind of addictive but could be more so if it truly lived up to its name. Eight out of ten stars from the beautiful wifey. Seven and a half stars from me. Would buy again.

Bottom line: 7.75 out of 10.

Trader Joe's Passion Fruit Meringue Tartelettes

$5.49 gets you two passion fruit meringue tarts imported from France. I guess "tartelette" is the French word for "little tart," but I mean honestly, they're not all that small if we're talking single serving desserts.

Super easy. Thaw Trader Joe's Passion Fruit Meringue Tartelettes for two hours in the fridge and you've got some world-class desserts ready to serve. Sonia and I shared just one of the tarts during the recording of our video review, and we were both plenty satisfied. We did share the second one later in the day. We knew they wouldn't last long even if we were attempting to exercise self-control.

Because these are simply scrumptious. The crust is buttery and dense, sweet, and bready. It's a little hard to cut through with a fork if it's not completely thawed, but once you start chewing it, it simply melts in your mouth.

The filling is at least as good, flaunting a sweet-tart tropical flavor that's unique and enjoyable. We love that passion fruit puree is the number one ingredient, and it absolutely comes through in the tangy taste. The meringue on top is smooth and eggy. It adds a bit of deliciousness to the flavor profile, but we think it's there more for presentation than anything else.

And I mean, the presentation is absolutely stellar. Considering this product has traveled all the way from France, and then from Trader Joe's all the way to our house, these tarts are very pretty. They both look and taste like they came fresh from a professional French bakery.

Sonia will go with nine out of ten stars on Trader Joe's Passion Fruit Meringue Tartelettes, found in the frozen section. Limited time only. I'll give these little tarts eight and a half stars, making these desserts a near-miss for our best-of-the-best category. We'd definitely buy these again.

Bottom line: 8.75 out of 10.

Trader Joe's Strawberry Brioche Liège Waffles

As you might have guessed, these breakfast treats are comparable to the previous Liege waffle offerings from Trader Joe's in terms of price, size, texture, and packaging. We're looking at $4.99 for six individually-wrapped Belgian waffles. And yes, they are actually imported from Belgium.

The original Brioche Style Liege Waffles are still my favorite just because they're a tad more versatile than these or their maple-flavored counterparts. We weren't able to get our hands on the pumpkin spice variety last fall, but we'll make another attempt come September, provided they return again this year.

These Liege waffles do have tiny specks of strawberry throughout their bready Belgian brioche-style bodies. It's actually "apple strawberry pieces," whatever those are. There's also some strawberry puree in the mix. And yes, many of you know exactly what's coming: a complaint. They still don't taste enough like strawberry.

I want strawberry chunks in the next one. I want just a whisper of bread with my strawberry puree. I want big berry boldness. I want the berry flavor to knock my socks off. And that's not what this does. It just whispers "strawberry" softly...like a distant melody on the wind...being played by a middle school band...in the next town over.

Maybe I exaggerate. It'll be strawberryish enough for many folks. It's certainly strawberryish enough when paired with Trader Joe's Whipped Strawberry Cream Cheese Spread although that product isn't exactly strawberry overload just on its own, either. But hey, in terms of convenience and value, we've got another winner on our hands.

Sonia and I would both purchase Trader Joe's Brioche Style Strawberry Liege Waffles again. Like their predecessors, they're perfectly edible straight out of the wrappers, but they shine even more when toasted and topped with butter and/or strawberry cream cheese. Eight out of ten stars from the beautiful wifey. Seven and a half out of ten stars from yours truly.

Bottom line: 7.75 out of 10.

Trader Joe's Macaron Ice Cream Sandwiches

Never had a macaron ice cream sandwich before. As you might have guessed these are two macaron "shells" with ice cream in the middle instead of your typical buttercream or fruit jam filling. Both the cookie element and the ice cream element are chocolate-flavored. It's chocolate on chocolate on chocolate.

It's a chocoholic's dream come true. The quality is there, and the taste and texture don't disappoint. In true macaron fashion, we have a slightly stiff egg white and almond flour outer layer. It's sugary and just faintly sticky to the touch. It gives way to a softer cookie underneath, and of course, provided you allow your ice cream sandwich to thaw for the recommended five minutes, the ice cream layer is soft, velvety, and creamy.

In terms of the flavor, it seems somewhere in between your typical milk chocolate and dark chocolate. It is sweet for sure, but there's plenty of that earthy, slightly bitter cocoa taste as well. It's rich and luxurious. Very pleasant even for Sonia and me, and neither of us really gravitates toward chocolate as far as our favorite dessert flavors are concerned.

I kinda wish Trader Joe's had done the Oreo thing and used chocolate cookies with vanilla ice cream in the middle. Raspberry, blueberry, or vanilla macarons would have been A-OK with this guy. Or how about a speculoos cookie butter macaron ice cream sandwich..?

As far as I can tell, this product is domestic, while certain other macarons we've reviewed from Trader Joe's have been imported from France. In any case, this is a quality offering that chocolate fans will no doubt adore.

We'd buy it again even if it's just this chocolate flavor, and we would most definitely check out any additional varieties if TJ's ever rolls them out. $4.99 for two individually wrapped desserts, found in the frozen section...obviously. Sonia and I both give Trader Joe's Macaron Ice Cream Sandwiches eight out of ten stars.

Bottom line: 8 out of 10.

Trader Joe's Garlic Butter Nut Mix

Following in the fine tradition of Trader Joe's other great nut mixes in cans like Nuts About Elote, Nuts About Rosemary, and Trader Joe's Maple Spiced Nut Mix, here we have Trader Joe's Nuts About Garlic...er, Trader Joe's Garlic Butter Nut Mix. It's the same standard packaging. Same price: $6.99.

This one features "crunchy coated cashews." They're cashews...but they're extra crunchy and brittle. I kinda like the soft creaminess of cashews and I kinda miss it here, to be honest. The crunchy thing works for other nuts, but super dry, crunchy cashews is a bit weird to me.

There are way too many "bread chips" in this mix, too. Seems like a way to cheap-out a bit to put a bunch of crunchy, crusty wheat crisps in a premium nut mix. Sonia seemed to be more fond of them than I was, however. She calls them "Lego breads" meaning they're just about the right size for a Lego minifig. So true.

The almonds are fine. The pecans are fine, as well, but in our can at least, they're tragically underrepresented. The garlic butter essence is fairly evenly distributed across all of the elements.

The overall flavor is salty and savory like you might expect. It's buttery, sure. There's a "butter and garlic seasoning" mentioned on the ingredients, but it's not half as garlicky as I would have liked. They could ratchet that garlic flavor way up. After all, Trader Joe is shining the spotlight on garlic in the title of the product.

That said, it's a very decent flavor overall. I've got plenty of complaints and suggestions, but I'll easily plow through the can with a bit of help from the beautiful wifey. It's really not a bad taste nor a bad value. Kosher. Seven bucks for a can of nuts this size is pretty standard these days. I'd even consider buying it again. I just really wish there were more garlic. Sonia agrees.

Bottom line: 7 out of 10.

Trader Joe's Lemon Tiramisu

I'm all about buying things produced here in the good old United States, but if we're talking Italian food that's made by Italians and actually imported from Italy, then I'm going to at least want to try it even if it's coming from halfway around the world. On the back of the packaging, in "2-point font" as my graphic designer wife points out, Trader Joe's Lemon Tiramisu whispers "Product of Italy" as if it's ashamed about the fact.

If it were me, I'd plaster the package with "IMPORTED FROM ITALY" and put red, white, and green flags all over the place. It's not that TJ's imported stuff is always good. I mean, it frequently is just as good or better than their domestic products. It's just much harder to argue with the authenticity of a product hailing from its country of origin.

That said, I'm pretty sure Trader Joe's Italian Tiramisu is imported from Italy as well, and it paled in comparison to the tiramisu I tried at a couple fancy restaurants in Los Angeles. Also, I wasn't aware that lemon tiramisu was a thing. So, you know, all that to say I was skeptical, at best, of this product.

This dessert comes frozen and you're supposed to thaw it for eight hours in the fridge. We were a little short on time, so I checked the internet for quick thaw instructions. In the end, I just trusted my gut and did a hybrid thaw which involved two hours at room temperature and then in the refrigerator for another two hours. They came out perfect.

First bite? A delightful wave of bright lemon washes over your tongue. It's very sweet but also lemony sour. There's not much vanilla or cake flavor. It's just lemon on lemon on lemon. Flavor-wise, it reminded me of Trader Joe's delectable Lemon Curd.

Texture-wise, it's not unlike tres leches cake in that there's a soft, spongy layer that's saturated with a dense, flavorful liquid. In this case, it's almost like sponge cake soaked in a sweet-tart lemon syrup. On top, there's a layer that feels like smooth, creamy lemon custard. The two are in perfect ratio to one another. To be sure, it's not custard and sponge cake per se. It's actually mascarpone and ladyfinger cookies—just like you'd see in traditional tiramisu. But they're just bursting with sticky sweet and satisfyingly sour lemon citrus brilliance.

The servings are quite large. If we'd thought of it ahead of time, we might have only thawed one of the cups and put the other in a ziplock bag to remain frozen for another day. Don't get me wrong—I finished mine in no time flat. But on a normal day, it's quite possible each cup could serve as dessert for two people.

Trader Joe's Lemon Tiramisu tastes the way I wanted Trader Joe's Lemon Sheet Cake to taste. It's intensely lemony. It's scrumptious. The beautiful wifey agrees. We'd buy this again in a heartbeat. Take note, it looks like it's seasonal. So get it while the gettin's good. Six bucks, found in the frozen section. Nine out of ten stars a piece from Sonia and me for this superb Italian dessert.

Bottom line: 9 out of 10.

Trader Joe's Earl Grey Blondie Bars

I had very low expectations going into this one. Although nothing to complain about, I think Trader Joe's Brookie, with its nearly identical packaging and presentation, is a tad overrated. And I really wanted to like the Black Sesame Mochi, but its excessively earthy undertones overshadowed the sweetness of the ice cream by my estimation.

So I was skeptical, at best, of a blondie bar flaunting black tea as its primary flavor. I mean, I have nothing against Earl Grey. I like a London Fog once in a while. I'll even drink it plain if I just need an afternoon pick-me-up and don't want to add unnecessary calories. But I simply don't think of Earl Grey tea as a dessert flavor. Not by a long shot.

Trader Joe's Earl Grey Blondie Bars proved me wrong. There is, indeed, an earthy, slightly bitter essence at the core of these blondies, but it compliments the sweet vanilla caramel cookie flavors of the dessert quite well. The Earl Grey black tea adds richness and complexity without stealing the show.

They were perfect straight out of the plastic box, but Sonia discovered they're even better dunked in a piping hot mug of Earl Grey. The tea enhances the flavors and the liquid makes the soft texture even better. We plowed through the box very quickly making sure it was fairly divided equally between the two of us.

$3.49 for eight blondie bars, found in the baked goods section. Limited time release. Kosher. Would buy again. Sonia gives this product eight and a half out of ten stars. I'll follow suit with eight and a half as well for Trader Joe's Earl Grey Blondie Bars.

Bottom line: 8.5 out of 10.

Trader Joe's Strawberry Mini Sheet Cake

We haven't tried the Yellow Mini Sheet Cake with Chocolate Buttercream yet. Nor have we managed to get our hands on the Cookies n' Cream Mini Sheet Cake. But we have reviewed the following:

Trader Joe's Chantilly Cream Vanilla Bean Mini Sheet Cake

Trader Joe's Pumpkin Spice Mini Sheet Cake

Trader Joe's Lemon Mini Sheet Cake

Trader Joe's Toasted Coconut Mini Sheet Cake

They're all more or less the same in terms of texture. Each one flaunts moist-ish cake topped with thick, luscious buttercream or cream cheese frosting. In every case—at least in my humble opinion—the frosting has outshined the cake itself by a good margin. Some flavors are slightly better than others.

My main complaint about most of these offerings is that they don't have enough of the headlined flavor, particularly the lemon one wasn't over-the-top lemony, as I'd have preferred it to be. And that was our main gripe about the coconut one, too. If I'm buying a coconut dessert, I want it to be absolutely bursting with real coconut flavor and real coconut pieces.

It seems we've found ourselves in the same situation here with Trader Joe's Strawberry Mini Sheet Cake. There's simply not enough strawberry flavor in the dessert. The cake is fine, though I'd still argue it's nothing to write home about. The frosting is pretty delicious and indulgent, but still...not enough strawberry to make it truly memorable and set this treat head and shoulders above any other grocery store's bakery fare—let alone stuff from a dedicated bakery.

If they wanted to make this one super special, they could have included larger strawberry chunks, freeze dried strawberry pieces all through the frosting, or an actual cache of strawberry jam or jelly or filling right in the cake. I see "strawberry preserves" in the ingredients, but it just doesn't come through in the final flavor as much as I'd like it to. You can even tell in the picture, there are only one or two minuscule flecks of red and pink actual strawberry in that whole piece of cake. To be sure, it tastes like strawberry, but it tastes more like wheaty cake and sweet cream cheese.

In the end, it's nothing to complain about really. It's a perfectly delicious, creamy, decadent dessert, but I'd probably reach for some traditional strawberry shortcake over this offering if given the choice. Seven out of ten stars from me on Trader Joe's Strawberry Mini Sheet Cake. Seven and a half stars from the beautiful wifey. Six bucks for the 18 oz cake, found with the baked goods.

Bottom line: 7.25 out of 10.

Trader Joe's Garlic Shrimp Chips

Imported from Denmark, Trader Joe's Shrimp Chips are light, airy, crispy, and full of shrimp and garlic flavor. Parsley, dill, and chives round out the impressive seasoning blend. They're made with tapioca flour, but they have a look and feel not unlike that of puffed rice—like rice crisps or even rice cakes.

They're a tad sweeter than I might have guessed, but the savory and salty flavors balance it out nicely. The taste is honestly quite addicting. Sonia and I polished off the entire three and a half serving bag in well under a day, but it's well within the realm of possibility that two adults could demolish the bag in a single sitting.

The nutrition info is satisfactory, considering the relatively indulgent taste and texture of this snack and the fact that you can have 30 chips per serving. These would go great with an American lager or pilsner if you're looking to pair them with a cold one. I think one of Trader Joe's Sparkling Fruit Beverages would work nicely, too, if you're going the non-alcoholic route.

The spiel on the back of the bag says you can pair them with a spicy, creamy dip. I think I'd like to try them with a sweet chili hummus or something along those lines. Sonia insists they should stay unsullied by condiments of any kind. I must admit, they're pretty amazing just straight out of the bag.

Snacktacular. It's conceivable you won't like these if you don't like the taste of shrimp or garlic...or if you're averse to the puffed tapioca texture. But Sonia and I would both absolutely buy Trader Joe's Shrimp Chips again. I hope they stick around at TJ's. Nine out of ten stars from the beautiful wifey. Eight and a half out of ten stars from me.

Tapioca is naturally gluten free, so I would think this whole product would be gluten free, but it is not labeled as such. Maybe someone can enlighten us in the comments.

Bottom line: 8.75 out of 10.

Trader Joe's Crispy Dried Watermelon

It's important to note that this crispy dried watermelon is, indeed, an entirely different product than Trader Joe's Organic Watermelon Jerky. It is also worth mentioning that, while the review posted of the watermelon jerky on this particular blog is a fairly positive take on the offering, that it was penned by former contributor Russ. My own personal sentiments of that product were not nearly as favorable. I found that stuff to be revolting in both flavor and texture.

While the jerky was fibrous and leathery, Trader Joe's Crispy Dried Watermelon is brittle and snaps apart with a satisfying click. It is indeed crispy and crunchy. The little pieces, when strewn about upon a plate, make a sound not unlike tiny plastic toys or the building elements of a model airplane. It's a unique texture, for sure, but it's far more pleasant than the frustratingly chewy mouthfeel of the watermelon jerky.

The taste is surprisingly close to that of real watermelon. It's shockingly sweet. And while there is a good bit of sugar in the single serving bag, 100% of it is natural sugar. It's literally just the sweetness of the watermelon magically transformed into a crystalline candy format.

It tastes like real fruit, but it also tastes like candy. Moreover, it feels like candy. At 150 calories for the entire bag, it's such a perfect snack for summer and warm weather. If you like this product as much as we do, we also recommend checking out Trader Joe's Watermelon Freeze Dried Candies.

$2.99 for 1.41 oz of Trader Joe's Crispy Dried Watermelon in a resealable bag. Product of Thailand. One and a half pounds of watermelon were used in each bag. Sonia has experimented with adding it to yogurt and ice cream and even rimming her cocktail glass with crumbled crispy watermelon, but we both agree it's best straight out of the bag as a light, sweet summertime snack. We'd both buy it again. Eight out of ten stars from me. Eight and a half stars from Sonia.

Bottom line: 8.25 out of 10.

Trader Joe's PB&J Oat Bites and Trader Joe's Raspberry Oat Bites

So a brand called Bobo's makes little oat bites very similar to these, and for some reason both Sonia and I remembered Bobo's being bigger, but apparently they're the same size. We must have been thinking of Bobo's Oat Bars. At any rate, these whole grain oat-based bites from Trader Joe's are about the size of a golf ball and they come in two different flavors: PB&J and raspberry.

Weirdly, the raspberry one had a nicer texture than the PB&J version. It was a tad softer. While the PB&J one does indeed show peanut butter in the ingredients, there is no actual cache of peanut butter in the center of the oat bite. It appears the peanut butter is commingled with the rolled oats throughout the tiny snack. There is, however, a dollop of fruit filling in the center of both flavors. It's strawberry jelly in the PB&J kind. Both Sonia and I think it would have been stronger with a glob of peanut butter in the center along with the fruity jam.

Furthermore, the raspberry filling tasted better than the strawberry filling to both of us. It reminded me of the raspberry dip that comes with Trader Joe's PB&J Snack Duo. The flavor of the raspberry confection "popped" a lot more than its strawberry counterpart.

Sonia, ever the culinary visionary, immediately suggested crumbling these little oat orbs over a bowl of Greek yogurt, which honestly might be their highest calling. As is, they straddle that line between snack and dessert, but broken up into something creamy and tangy? Now we’re talking about unlocking their full potential. I could totally see them moonlighting as a lazy man’s parfait situation: minimal effort, maximum perceived sophistication.

At the end of the day, they’re a decent grab if you’re already cruising the aisles and feeling oat-curious, but they don’t quite ascend into must-have territory. The raspberry ones flirt with greatness, the PB&J ones just kind of linger in the background. Not a bad snack by any stretch—just one that leaves you thinking about how it could’ve been a little bolder, a little gooier, a little more memorable.

$3.99 for six little oat bites. Would probably buy the raspberry version again. The PB&J one isn't awful by any means, but Sonia and I both preferred the razzle dazzle—and I'm a huge fan of peanut butter. We both give seven and a half stars to Trader Joe's Raspberry Oat Bites. I give Trader Joe's PB&J Oat Bites six and a half stars and the beautiful wifey will go a half star lower.

Trader Joe's Raspberry Oat Bites: 7.5 out of 10.

Trader Joe's PB&J Oat Bites: 6.25 out of 10.

Trader Joe's Korean Bugak Sticky Rice and Seaweed Crisps

Never had bugak before. Apparently, it's pretty popular in Korea. Speaking of Korea, this product is a bona fide South Korean import. $3.29 gets you 1.76 oz of the crispy, crunchy snack in a non-resealable bag.

We lost our minds over the fact the bag wasn't resealable. Fortunately, Trader Joe's Sticky Rice & Seaweed Crisps didn't last long enough to get stale. I really enjoyed them and the beautiful wifey admitted they grew on her by the end of the bag.

The product is sweeter than you might expect. Sticky rice can be sweet, so I'm not sure why we were so surprised about the sweetness. I mean, it's not candy sweet by any means, but it's sweeter than most other seaweed snacks we've tried. See: Trader Joe's Spicy Tempura Seaweed Snack and Trader Joe's Wasabi Roasted Seaweed Snack, among others.

You can also taste sesame seeds, onion powder, and the titular seaweed, though no single flavor dominates. There's a really great umami essence to these snacks. The bag suggests using them as scoops for tuna, so we whipped up some tuna salad and did just that. The pairing was absolutely perfect. You can also add them to rice bowls. Sonia wanted to toss them in soup. And they're perfectly snackable right out of the bag.

As nice as the flavor is, the texture is even better. It's so perfectly crunchable and crisp, yet not hard at all. It's got a very satisfying consistency.

I'd definitely buy it again, and I think Sonia would be on board for a repurchase as well. I'm gonna throw out eight out of ten stars on Trader Joe's Korean Bugak Sticky Rice and Seaweed Crisps with Sesame Seeds and Sea Salt, but I will say that I doubt the average American palate will appreciate this quite as much as I do. If you know you enjoy seaweed, then give it a whirl. The beautiful wifey is down for seven and a half stars.

Bottom line: 7.75 out of 10.

Trader Joe's Meyer Lemon & Cream Yogurt

Trader Joe’s Meyer Lemon & Cream Yogurt sounds like it should taste like sunshine in a cup: bright, creamy, maybe a little indulgent. Instead, it's tart yogurt paired with sour lemon. Sure, there's a good bit of sugar in it, but I didn't feel like it showed up in the flavor profile.

Look, I love lemon. Lemon bars? Elite. Lemon curd? Dangerous. Lemon cake? I'm there. Lemon in snacks and desserts is usually a cheat code for deliciousness. But this yogurt forgets one crucial thing: balance. Yogurt is already tangy. Lemon is aggressively tangy. Put them together without enough sweetness to rein things in, and you’ve got a bit of a tartness overload.

The texture, to be fair, is perfectly fine—creamy, smooth, no weird chalkiness or separation. Structurally sound yogurt. For me, this lands squarely in the “I’ll finish it because I bought it” category, not the “I need six more immediately” tier. Not offensive, just not the lemony dream I was hoping for. It's like it wants to be lemon meringue, but it's simply not sweet enough to be considered a treat. I know, yogurt is supposed to be healthy. But I've had plenty of flavors of yogurt with less added sugar that tasted much better than this offering. Just off the top of my head, Trader Joe's Honey Crisp Apple Cinnamon Greek Yogurt would fall into that class.

Now Sonia, clearly the more optimistic member of this household, came in with a completely different vibe. She liked the lemon and cream combo, saying it struck a nice balance (we may need to recalibrate our taste buds). She did make a strong point: this would probably shine even more as a Greek yogurt, where the natural tartness would actually complement the lemon instead of competing with it.

She also had some genuinely great upgrade ideas: throw in diced walnuts or crushed gluten-free graham crackers and suddenly you’ve got a legit dessert situation. Or use it as a base for chia pudding or overnight oats—honestly, that’s a power move. Yes, it’s lower in protein than Greek yogurt, but that’s fixable with a scoop of protein powder if that's your thing.

If you like your yogurt very lemon-forward and don’t mind a heavy dose of tang, this might be more your speed than it was for me. If you’re expecting a creamy, sweet, lemon-dessert vibe…proceed with caution. $2.99 for four cups. Kosher. Sonia would buy again, while I would not.

Sonia's score: 7.5 out of 10.

Nathan's score: 6 out of 10.