10 Second Kitchen - Kenny Rogers Roaster Manila, Philippines

 Watching the chicken slowly rotate in the over at Kenny Rogers Roaster.

Junk Fud On The Road - Tokyo Disney Sea Part 2

 In this episode of Junk Fud on the Road Chris and Allison talk about their latest visit (their 3rd visit) to Tokyo Disney Sea. It was a quick trip, but full of adventure and plenty of snacks.

A Dessert Hack I'll Never Tell You About

 I have a pretty amazing dessert hack, but because of the actions of one company I will never tell you about it. On this blog and on candycritic.org I'm pretty open about any recipes or food hacks that I discover (both ones that work and ones that don't). I'm also okay when large food corporations take my ideas and turn them in to regular things or even create foods. I've had ideas for hundreds of treats and desserts, and I welcome any food company to take them and make them for free. The thing I love most of all is to make cool new treat ideas a reality that everyone can enjoy.

This hack however will remain my own, because one company decided that people should be charged a great deal to do it. I wrote about this hack in my social media in a particular country a few years back. Then, a few months later Allison and I noticed that this company started encouraging this very hack. We thought it was great, and frankly and obvious choice. The problem is that once they made the change, they also upped their price a great deal. We had managed to make this hack work for practically nothing, but the company decided that it was worth jacking up the price.

This company is a global company, but they only made the change in one country. We then traveled somewhere else and noticed that they hadn't incorporated our food hack or the huge price increase. Allison and I managed to pull out our hack with no problems and with wonderful results. I suggested posting about it, but Allison reminded me what happened last time. The good news is there only seems to be one country in the world that has monetized my food hack, the bad news is you'll have to go through my social media feed to try and figure out exactly what I'm talking about.

The Best Fudge In The World, According to Me

 

One of the most common questions I get about candycritic.org is "what inspired me to write about candy". People often talk about people having a "sweet tooth" and that's probably true, but I feel like sometimes foods can go a little deeper than just a love of sweets, salty or any flavour. A true passion for food often comes from memories, growing up and remembering positive parts of your life that may have been associated with that flavour or smell. There's been a ton of research on the subject and more often than not smell and flavours have been been proven as the most powerful triggers for memories.

This brings me to Maple Leaf Fudge in Niagara on the Lake (just near Niagara Falls). I'm pretty certain that this place is the first place I'd ever tasted handmade fudge. It's actually possible (maybe not likely) that Maple Leaf Fudge might have been the first sweet thing I'd ever eaten. I say this because both of my parents were born near Niagara on the Lake, and both of my grandparents lived fairly close. I've been going to this area of Canada pretty much my entire life.

When I  describe the origins of my sweet tooth it involves family trips to this area and if we were anywhere near Maple Leaf Fudge it would involve getting a slab or two. This fudge shop is in my DNA, and to this day I don't like to pass it by if I'm in the area.

The truly hard question for me to answer however is, objectively how is the fudge. I say this because I've never had a bad slice of fudge from this shop, at least that I can remember. The problem is that there's a very good chance that my memory has chopped out any bad parts from this part of my life. It's also true that visiting this part of Canada has always meant fun family gatherings and small adventures. This means that even if the fudge was bad, it was surrounded with a fun time.

On a recent trip to Niagara I decided to pick up a slab, because I really couldn't think of missing out. I tried to taste the fudge objectively and it seemed pretty good. It had a slight crust on the outside but the centre was soft and even a little gooey. The flavour was really nice and filled my head with maple and chocolate. Unfortunately anything after that is tainted with the fact that it was a wonderful day with my wonderful wife. We visited an fantastic bookstore, had an amazing lunch and walked down the beautiful streets of Niagara on the Lake. It was a perfect day, so I'm not sure if this also affected my love of this fudge.

I'll probably never review anything out of this shop. If you ask me what to do in Niagara on the Lake, I'm always going to suggest getting some fudge. I'm always going to tell you it's the best fudge in the world. Sure you might have your own opinion, and you might even have your own den of nostalgia that's better, and frankly I'm not mad. If you have a place that can and always has brought you this much joy, I'm truly happy for you.

10 Second Kitchen - Street Tea Yangon, Myanmar

 Watching a pot boil at a street market in Yangon, Myanmar.

A Visit To Siamaya In Chiang Mai

I find more and more countries are making chocolate bars. It used to be that a great deal of the milk and dark chocolate of the world was made in Europe. The cocoa would be grown in a select places based on the fact that cocoa plants needs the perfect climate, but making bars is really possible almost anywhere in the world, however Europe really seemed to dominate this market. Today we’re seeing more and more chocolate from different parts of the world, and best of all these new chocolate companies are taking their chocolate and making it reflect the culture and flavours of the place their being made.

Siamaya (a blend of the words “Siam” and “Maya”) is a perfect example of just such a chocolate maker. Founded in Chiang Mai Thailand, the brand has expanded all over Thailand and can be found in just about every single grocery store in Thailand. Probably the highlight of this brand is the fact that they’re taking good quality chocolate and adding flavours that really make them feel Thai. Their durian chocolate is probably the most notorious, but I would argue one of the best ways to taste durian for the first time. They also have flavours based on Thai tea, spicy Thai food dishes as well as local fruit.

I recently found myself in Chaing Mai and I decided to pay a visit to their factory store. At the time their cafe was being renovated, but their chocolate store was totally open. The store not only serves as a place to buy every flavour of chocolate that they manufacture, but it also gives you the opportunity to watch them make the chocolate while you’re browsing.

One of my favourite details about this particular brand (beyond the tasty chocolate) is their package design. The good thing is if you feel as passionate about their package art as I do, you can pick up postcards, magnets and even t-shirts. I got myself a t-shirt and absolutely love it.

The store also offers some great learning experiences to teach you all about the chocolate process. They have a really great explanation about their chocolate making.

They also offer examples of cocoa at various stages in the process.

Since the chocolate is the highlight of this shop, they really have so many flavours to choose from at this shop. Best of all they offer samples of each and every flavour, so you can pick out your favourites. This is also a great opportunity to sample the durian chocolate to make sure you can handle a whole bar. This factory tour is a great hidden gem in Chaing Mai for any candy lover. The shop itself isn’t that big, but it has everything you might want if you’re into the chocolate process as well as munching on samples.

10 Second Kitchen - Deep Fried Pancake 16th Street Yangon

 A 10 second look at a deep fried breakfast pancake in Yangon, Mynamar.

Junk Fud and You - Candy as Currency

 Did you know that in some countries, candy is sort of like currency. I'll explain why.

Quick List - Best Airport Candy

 It took a lot of math, but here's my list of the best treats you can find at your local (or international) airport.

Junk Fud on the Road - Vietnam

In this episode of Junk Fud on the Road Allison and Chris talk about their recent trip to Vietnam. They traveled (on the ground) from Ho Chi Minh City to Hanoi and ate all kinds of amazing treats. 

Candy From Around The World

Recently a friend of mine commented about how many times I've tasted a Kit Kat bar, in particular a milk chocolate Kit Kat bar. The difference between these Kit Kat bars is the fact that they were made in different parts of the world. I feel like most people believe that a milk chocolate Kit Kat bar is the same no matter where you buy it. I used to think that myself, but as I've become more and more experienced eating treats from different parts of the world, I've started to realize that it's just not true. So if you see the same treat reviewed several times on candycritic.org, it's not a mistake, it just means I've been traveling a bit.

Check out my latest international snack version, Cheetos from Thailand.

Coconut Candy Making

One of the benefits of doing a website about candy is the number of times I’ve been invited/gone to candy making facilities. Some of the places I’ve visited are giant factories while other times it’s a place that’s smaller than my kitchen. I can’t say I’ve ever had a bad experience at a candy makers domain, so when given the opportunity I never turn it down. On a recent trip to Vietnam I was given the opportunity to visit a really fascinating place that makes coconut candy.

The most interesting part of this factory is that it’s not very big, yet they do so much. They literally start with whole coconuts, with the husks and all and finish with a packaged candy. The first step in making these coconut candies is getting the coconut out of husks. You often hear about candy makers using local ingredients, these local ingredients are literally grown just outside the factory, harvested and brought in to be husked. Best of all, they use each and every part afterwards as well.

After clearing out the meat of the coconut they send it to this machine that basically gives you ground coconut on one end and coconut milk on the other. This is the kind of machine I could watch all day, and frankly I’m not entirely sure how it performs it’s magic.

The other good thing about a candy making facility like this is that there’s no secrets. The ingredient list is two things, coconut and malt (for sweetening). The malt is brought in separately, they don’t have a facility to make that, but the coconut and malt are mixed together and heated up. One of the sources for the fire to heat the candy mixture is actually the coconut husks.

After the coconut and malt mixture is cooked and has turned into a taffy like consistency, it’s spread out on a table, flattened and cut into strips. The strips are then cut into small squares using the most intense large knife I’ve ever seen in a candy kitchen.

As a note, this is the best time to sample this candy, fresh off the line.

After it’s cooled a bit, it’s sorted and sent off to the packaging machine. Fortunately the candies that don’t fit the right size and shape are also available as more samples.

Watching people make candy from the raw ingredients until they’re packed in a bag is pretty amazing. It not only shows great skill, but also great care. If you every find yourself on Unicorn Island in the Mekong Delta area of Vietnam, why not watch them make some coconut candy.

New Junk Fud on the Road!

 Today Chris and Allison talk about a recent trip to the Philippines, full of spaghetti, fried chicken, ube and donuts.

Visiting My Uncle Roger

When I was younger the idea of a celebrity owning a restaurant wasn’t new, but the idea of a celebrity opening a restaurant around their persona wasn’t as common. Probably the best exception to that rule that I can remember is Planet Hollywood, but that wouldn’t often focus on one particular celebrity but instead would focus on celebrity on the whole. When it came to celebrity foods, the most common thing you’d see is celebrity endorsements. This would mean that a particular food would pay a celebrity to tell the world that they enjoyed using or eating it. I’m not saying that these celebrities were lying, maybe they did actually enjoy the food, however they were often payed to say it publicly.

The difference today is it seems like celebrities, in particular internet celebrities are becoming more of a presence with their food tie ins. In some cases they may be heavily involved with the creation of their food or restaurants, in other cases they make it look like they’re heavily involved. The thing is that it’s not about anonymously owning a restaurant or endorsing a food product, now it’s about making a food product that ties in with the celebrity personality.

On a recent trip Malaysia, I decided to stop in to Fuiyoh, It’s Uncle Rogers. This is a restaurant created around the persona named Uncle Roger, who is a characters creation of comedian Nigel NG. The idea behind the character of Uncle Roger is that he roasts other chefs attempts at making Asian food. He plays with the ideas of authenticity and culture in his comedy, and honestly I find him to be pretty entertaining. In recent years he’s started to put his money where his mouth is and actually started to make some food on his own on his shows, and recently he opened a chain of restaurants in Malaysia. 

In Uncle Roger’s comedy, fried rice is the marker of weather or not a chef can cook Asian food. If you can cook a good fried rice then Uncle Roger will respect you. Honestly I found it pretty daring to open a restaurant that sold fried rice in a country where some of the best fried rice is made. The Fuiyoh, It’s Uncle Rogers location I visited had several other restaurants selling fried rice nearby, dozens within walking distance. Many of those restaurants have been selling excellent fried rice dishes for much longer than Uncle Roger had even been a presence on the internet. Building this restaurant chain in this city was either extremely brave or kind of silly.

Objectively I had mixed feelings about this restaurant going in. I almost skipped it all together. The first thing I noticed about this restaurant is the thing I feel most people want, and that’s Uncle Roger. While he wasn’t there himself when I went, the style and look of the restaurant was all him. The colours, the decorations and even the cutlery screamed Uncle Roger. While I’m sure not everyone eating there knows the backstory, judging by the number of people taking pictures and videos I’ll assume most do. So if you’re going to Uncle Roger’s restaurant because you like Uncle Roger, you’ll be happy, but that doesn’t guarantee you a great meal.

The biggest surprise for me at this restaurant was the staff. This restaurant has one of the most friendly staff I’ve ever had at any restaurant, let alone a themed restaurant. They were friendly, polite and managed to balance the line between being a restaurant and spectacle for other online content creators. As I said before, I was hesitant to actually go at first, but once I was greeted at the door I was happy I went. I was a solo diner, and I’m I little socially awkward, but none of that mattered once I was at my table. The dining experience itself was perfect.

This is all good, but how was the food... right? I got the fried rice, as that seemed like the best thing a person should get at Uncle Roger’s restaurant. It was good. It wasn’t the best fried rice I’ve ever had in my life, but I did not have a bad meal at all. My drink was pretty good too, and I appreciated the collectible cup as it allowed me to have a little souvenir that I could use on the rest of my trip. I don’t really have anything negative or overly positive to write about the food itself, it was okay.

Price wise it’s a lot harder to have a strong opinion. It’s not a hugely expensive experience restaurant, but it is offering what is normally a very inexpensive food. Most of the fried rice restaurants around the area were much cheaper. I would even guess that many of them were better or equal to the quality of Uncle Roger’s fried rice. The thing you’re paying for is Uncle Roger. So I would say that this restaurant did not disappoint, if the food is not the only part of the experience you’re looking for. The great staff might actually push the needle up a bit in their favour as well.

I guess I would say if you’re a fan of Uncle Roger, you’ll have a great time eating his fried rice. You’ll enjoy a good meal with great service. While you may not meet Uncle Roger himself, you’ll certainly feel like he’s made his mark.

This restaurant is a good example of this kind of themed restaurant working out. I’m not sure how well Nigel NG is doing financially with this, but I wish him well. I don’t think this place would work without Uncle Roger, but I don’t think that’s a problem. Having a good theme is fine as long as you don’t skimp on the food itself, and they don’t. Not all social media food collaborations work, but this one is okay, it’s also on brand with the creator. 

10 Seconds of Korean Desserts

 An amazing machine that can make all kinds of Korea desserts including walnut cakes.

Ube Love

 There are certain dessert and sweet ingredients that one associates with certain countries around the world. Turkish delight, Swiss chocolate, Thai Mango Sticky Rice just to name a few. The Philippines however has an ingredient that is not only popular there, but even grows there. In fact this ingredient was first discovered growing there and is considered the place of origin. This is actually fairly rare for treats to be native and still considered their native dish. I’m talking about ube, and it’s a pretty amazing sweet treat.

Ube translates to tuber, and as you might of guessed is a potato. It’s a sweet potato that has one amazing feature, it’s really purple. I don’t know if there is any other natural food in the world that is this purple. It’s such an amazing hue of purple that I’m surprised it’s not one of the most Instragramed foods in the world. It’s beautiful, and it keeps its colour no matter what application you use it.

This ingredient is everywhere in Filipino cooking, particularly in desserts. You won’t find a menu at any restaurant or bakery that doesn’t have something that’s bright purple in the Philippines. Whether you bake with it, or use it as a sauce, it has such a unique stamp that you know for sure what’s going on. The other advantage is that it actually tastes pretty good as well. On its own it has a fairly sweet flavour with a slight nuttiness. This makes it a great flavour for so many desserts and gives a bit of sweet that isn’t too overpowering.

Probably the most common way to enjoy ube is in a jam form. This jam is often used inside baked goods from croissant to mochi. You can also get the jam on its own, which I imagine you could even spread on toast if you like. Honestly I’m not sure what the traditional uses for ube jam are, because today it’s just used so many ways that it’s hard to pinpoint down an exact history.

While the jam is the most popular, there are many other uses for this purple potato. There are several different ice cream brands that offer an ube flavoured ice cream. There’s even one that makes a chocolate covered ice cream bar, but they also add ube to the chocolate to give it a nutty flavour and very purple colour. I also recently tried a rice porridge (like a rice pudding) that was ube flavoured. It was really great because the nutty flavour of the potato cut through the sweet flavour of the rice porridge really well. I feel like there are endless ways you could use this ingredient, and I think it’s about time Kit Kat came up with an ube bar.

When you first see this purple potato, it kind of shocks your system. It’s so bold and bright that you expect one of two things. You either expect it to blow your socks off with the flavour, or you expect it to be all show with no flavour. The good thing is it’s neither. Ube is a wonderful, slightly sweet flavour with a wonderful nutty kick. If you ever find yourself in the Philippines (or in the presence of a good Filipino cook) and they offer you something bright purple, go for it, you won’t regret it at all.

For The Love Of Swensen's

Have you ever had something that you were sure was a memory shared by just about everyone, only to find that you’re one of the few? I feel like Swensen’s ice cream is that for me. This isn’t a recent memory either, this is a deep rooted childhood memory. It’s also a memory of something that no longer exists, at least in the way I remember it. Taste and smells are said to be one of the most important ways of connecting people to memories, and everything about Swensen’s fits that bill for me.

When I was a little kid, my father used to take me and my sister to Swensen’s in the Eaton Centre in downtown Toronto. We would either get a large sundae and share it, or we would get several small sundaes and have our own. I feel like it was a very regular occurrence, and it was most certainly something that would happen on your birthday. I was young enough that I never really thought about where this business originated. In my head it was either a special place just for us or it could have been all over the world (like McDonald’s). I frankly didn’t care, but it was a place I figured would be around forever, but it wasn’t.

In my early teens the Eaton Centre went through some major renovations, and in these renovations Swensen’s was lost. There were no other locations that I knew of, so my assumption was that I would never have a Swensen’s Sundae again. At the time the internet didn’t exist, so there was no looking it up to find out if other locations existed. It was just gone, and while I was sad at first, I eventually stopped pinning for it and let it rest in the back of my mind as a fond memory. In some ways the memories got so faded that I wasn’t sure how real any of them were.

Time went on, the internet became a thing, but I never even imagined that this distant memory could have actually been more than just a single location that was gone, but still held memories. Then I moved overseas and I went to South East Asia, and I learned that Swensen’s still existed. Best of all, the decorations for the newly discovered locations where filled with nostalgic touches. These bits of nostalgia matched my memories perfectly. The first time I saw one of these restaurants (in Thailand I believe), I may have actually shed a tear.

I got some ice cream with Allison, she thought it was fine, I was immediately brought back to my childhood. Now that I lived in South East Asia (where most of their locations are), I was even able to enjoy a birthday or two at Swensen’s. People say that reliving memories as an adult can be dangerous because they never live up to what you remember. With Swensen’s that just isn’t the case. Sure I’m not with my sister or father, but being with Allison is pretty great, and the ice cream treats are exactly what I remember.

The good thing is that I don’t actually remember the quality of the ice cream or toppings. I don’t remember any one particular item on the menu that I loved. I just remember the old fashioned light fixtures, the classic ice cream bowls and spoons and just enjoying ice cream the way it was served it its heyday. I could say that everything I want is back, but that’s only kind of true.

While I’m still living in South East Asia now, it wont be forever. Our plans are to retire back in Canada, and that means my access to Swensen’s will be little to none. Sure I know it still exists, and I can double check that on the internet, but it’s not easily accessible on my birthday (it’ll take a good 15 hours to fly). So what I would love is what I always wanted. I want Swensen’s back in Canada, at the Eaton Centre, right where it belongs.

The Many Flavours of Tang in the Philippines

On a recent trip to the Philippines, I discovered what might be the greatest collection of Tang flavours offered anywhere in the world. I’ve tasted some pretty fun flavours of Tang in my life, but most places that sell a lot of Tang tend to offer 2 or 3 standard flavours, and maybe one or two unique flavours. In the Philippines however, they sell no less than 10 or 15 flavours, and it seems like they sell them at all times.

Best of all, they offer these flavours in small single serving packages. One of the biggest problems I have in sampling new flavours of Tang is that I often have to buy a giant bag of the stuff, and if I don’t like this new flavour I’m stuck with a lot of leftovers.

I decided on my recent trip to try and pick up a whole bunch of different flavours and taste test each and every one of them. The original idea was to try them on the trip, but I quickly realised there are just too many flavours, and not enough time on my vacation. So I decided to drink as many flavours as I could there, but would allow myself to take a few home.

I didn’t get to taste each and every flavour offered in the Philippines, but I did taste a lot. I also avoided what I deemed as common flavours that I think I’ve seen in other countries. I’ll be honest, I’ve never drank so much Tang in my life in such a short time, but I’ve also never had some much fun drinking Tang in my life either.

Four Seasons (pineapple, orange, mango, guava)

Colour - An ungodly orange.

Flavour - Imagine a fruit punch, only without any fruit that would give it a red colour. We always associate fruit punch with red, but logically many tropical fruits aren’t actually red, so this makes more sense. The problem with this mix is that the guava flavour dominates, with the other fruits being almost indistinguishable.

Honey Lemon

Colour - A cloudy yellow.

Flavour - It kind of works. I say kind of because honey is a really hard flavour to get right in powdered drink form. Tang is already very sweet, and while the sweet of this is a little different than classic Tang, I’m not sure I’d call it honey. The lemon is your classic Tang lemon flavour, and it dominates. This basically tastes like a super sweet lemon drink, with an odd flavour I just can’t place, but I guess we can call it honey.

Melon

Colour - A murky orange.

Flavour - I’m not a big fan of melon flavoured candies and treats, with the biggest problem being that they don’t offer the refreshment that real melon provides. I thought that maybe in drink form it might work, but alas there’s one giant problem, it’s too sweet. This is coming from a guy who runs a fairly prolific candy review website too.

Guyabano 

Colour - A murky green/yellow white.

Flavour - I should start by saying that I have no recollection of ever eating or drinking anything called guyabano before tasting this. I have sampled many tropical fruits and juices in many parts of the world, so maybe I’ve tried it under a different name. However, based on the flavour of this Tang, I would say that a guyabano tastes kind of like an apple and pear combination. As Tangs go, this one’s not that bad.

Apple Iced Tea

Colour - An appropriately reddish brown.

Flavour - I’m not sure that I’ve ever had a real apple iced tea in my life, so I don’t have anything to compare it to. What I can say is that this starts off with a hint of fake apple, but suddenly it’s stopped with something I can only describe and tea like. Neither flavour really dominates, but they also don’t really blend together very well. I’m thankful that it’s not just fake apple, but I'm not sure about the iced tea. It’s also very sweet for iced tea.

Mixed Berries Lemonade

Colour - A murky purple.

Flavour - I don’t think this really tastes like lemonade, but it does have a hint of berry. It also doesn’t just taste like a berry flavour drink either though. The best way I would describe it is that it tastes like a random berry lollipop made up of that compressed sugar candy. It’s very tasty, but I’m not sure I’d call it refreshing, mostly because it’s super sweet. I actually had to double check the directions to make sure I made it properly, because I was convinced I must have made it with too little water. It’s good, but it’s also a little odd.

Lychee

Colour - A murky white with a hint of pink.

Flavour - Before this day I had never even thought of Tang making a lychee flavoured drink before. Lychee (to someone who was brought up in North America) seemed like a flavour that was too exotic/fancy to make into a flavour of Tang. The thing is, it’s perfect. I’ve had lychee juice in the past, and flavour wise this is super close. The texture of the drink is a little different than lychee juice, but flavour wise it’s really close. It’s probably because lychee are super sweet already, so since Tang is a super sweet drink it just makes sense.

Apple

Colour - Surprisingly similar to real apple juice.

Flavour - In science fiction, food replicators are often described as making food that tastes similar to the real thing only just a little off, and not in the good way. That’s probably how I would describe this apple Tang. Your taste buds just keep hoping that it will taste like apple juice, but it just doesn’t get there.

Grape

Colour - Very, very purple… almost too purple.

Flavour - In the past I would describe the flavour of most Tang flavours to be sweet, maybe even too sweet. While this is a very sweet drink, it also has a slight (very slight) sourness to it as well. It’s very subtle, but it adds a nice counterbalance to the intense sweet flavour. The grape flavour itself tastes nothing like real grapes, but it has that fake grape flavour that I’m so used to by now that it doesn’t bother me that it’s fake.

Strawberry Lemonade

Colour - A murky pink colour, which is fine because it’s lemonade.

Flavour - Just before I took my first sip of this Tang, I wondered if this was going to taste more of lemonade or strawberry. As it turns out, kind of neither. I guess if I had a gun to my head I would say more lemonade, but lemonade with a really strong fruit like flavour that I wouldn’t really describe and strawberry. This is a tough flavour to get right since I’m a big fan of frozen strawberries in my lemonade, so I have some reference for what it should taste like.

Calamansi

Colour - A murky yellow.

Flavour - I have a bit of a beef with Tang, and it’s all about when they choose to make a flavour that’s orange adjacent. I’ve had a few flavours of Tang that are based on fruit that are very close to orange, but slightly different. For the most part I find that the flavour of these Tangs is very similar to their regular orange, only they’re dyed a different colour. This Calaminsi falls right into that category. I find it hard to believe that this is that much different than their regular orange flavour, except for the fact that it’s yellow instead of orange coloured.

Strawberry

Colour - A very bright pink.

Flavour - I’d probably say that this flavour is the least surprising of all the flavours I’ve tasted so far. It’s not a bad thing, but it’s also not a great thing either. It’s a perfectly fine fake strawberry flavour that works fairly well when it’s a really sweet drink. There’s nothing subtle about the flavour, even opening the package has a strong fake strawberry smell. It’s perfectly fine, but nothing unique about it at all.

Pomelo

Colour - A murky pink with a hint of orange (pretty close to the fruit to be honest).

Flavour - As with the colour, the flavour of this pomelo drink is pretty close to the original. The main difference is the sour/bitter flavour that sometimes happens with some pomelos is totally gone. They got the sweet flavour right, and the basic flavour is there, but I always feel like if I eat too many wedges of pomelo that my tongue might go numb, but I doubt that would happen with this drink. Having said that, this might be the winner for flavour I’d most like to try again in the future.

Orange and Carrot

Colour - Really bright orange.

Flavour - This Tang flavour unfortunately falls into the same category as many other orange based flavours of Tang, in that it generally just tastes like regular orange tang. There might be a slight difference, but I wouldn’t call that difference carrot flavoured. It could be that they’ve added real carrots to this drink, but I doubt it. I’ve only recently discovered carrot juice as a mixer with vegetable juice and one thing carrot juice gives fruit juice is a balance. The balance comes from the fact that carrot juice is not sweet. This Tang as usual is super sweet, so there really isn’t that balance.

Junk Fud in London

 In this episode Allison and Chris talk about a recent trip to London (and only London) where they bought some special tea and ate a lot of sandwiches.

Korean Barbecue in 10 Seconds

 Watching the meat rotate is so hypnotic.