Wheat Thins Ranch

I’m cautious with ranch-flavored food products. Often, the ranch flavor is not very good. Not so with Wheat Thins Ranch. The crackers have a great, tangy ranch flavor that makes them really delicious. The crackers have a different texture and crunch then I am used to from Wheat Thins. I think it’s because Nabisco changed the ingredients a while back to make them free of partially hydrogenated oil (“0g Trans Fat,” it says on the box). Even without the unhealthy fat, the crackers are good, and their ranch flavor makes them even better.

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Cheez-It BBQ Cheddar

Just when I thought that the folks at Sunshine had thought of every possible flavor for a Cheez-It, they come out with a new one. Cheez-It BBQ Cheddar tastes exactly how you would expect them to. They have a pretty bold BBQ flavor that, unlike the flavors of some other of the Cheez-It varieties, is very distinguishable. They are tasty enough that I ate most of the box in two sittings. If you are a big fan of BBQ-flavored foods, you’ll probably like them even more than I did.

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Hershey’s S’mores Candy Bar

I recently picked up a Hershey’s S’mores candy bar at the local Safeway. “Milk Chocolate, Marshmallow & Graham Cracker Bits,” the label said. It’s got to taste great, right? Not quite. The candy bar has an almost nonexistent graham cracker flavor, and the marshmallow was hard to taste too. It really doesn’t taste anything like a s’more should taste. In this regard, I think there is a little false advertising going on here, and it continues with the picture on the wrapper that looks nothing like the candy bar inside. There are many better candy bars out there. I wouldn’t waste your money on this one.

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Hardee’s Monster Thickburger

Living in California has its advantages, but right now I wish I lived in one of the states Hardee’s operates in. That’s because they have just introduced their Monster Thickburger. I can’t eat one (Yahoo! Maps says I’m 1173.6 miles from the closest Hardee’s), but just looking at a picture is enough to make me drool like Homer Simpson craving a donut. This burger is made with two one-third pound patties of Angus beef, four strips of bacon, three slices of cheese and mayonnaise on a buttered sesame seed bun. It has 1,420 calories and 107 grams of fat. Is it good? With those ingredients, how could it not be good? Yes, it’s a heart attack waiting to happen. Yes, it would probably be illegal in many countries. But for fast food burger lovers like me, it’s like a dream come true.

If any readers have the opportunity to eat one of these burger, please e-mail me and let me know how it is. Until then, I just have to give it Phoood’s highest rating.

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Triscuit Cheddar

Regular Triscuit crackers are kind of dry if you eat them plain, but are pretty good when you put something fattening on top of them. Triscuit Cheddar, on the other hand, are very tasty eaten straight out of the box with nothing on them. These orange crackers have a cheddar cheese flavor that may not satisfy a highbrow epicure, but is just fine for regular guys (and gals) like me. Best of all, you won't feel too guilty because Triscuits are a baked, whole grain wheat cracker. I feel healthier already...

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