Junk Fud and You - Milk Chocolate VS Regular Oreos (Or What Flavour Are Regular Oreos?)

 Today I decided I would try and do a fun taste test between milk chocolate Oreo cookies and the classic Oreo cookies, what happened next had me questioning everything I know about Oreo cookies.

Those Are Some Handy Facts!

 If you've ever wondered what was the first treat available in theatres, or maybe where ice cream was invented, then I have the perfect comics for you.

Pick up Snack Facts right now at candycritic.org/snackfacts/buy.htm or on Amazon.

A Very Confusing Puzzle

I really like interactive candy. Interactive candy is something that you not only eat, but also provides you with some kind of other activity. In the case of this latest review, it could be a puzzle, but it can also be a game or a toy as well. The problem I find with many of these interactive candies is that they often don't have instructions on how to use them. While some are fairly obvious, when you're given a container filled with coloured puzzle pieces and nothing else, it's not so clear.

Check out my latest interactive candy review.

Blue Orchid Is Here, So Go Buy It!

 If you like fun comics created by people who care about making cool things, then pick up the latest (or even past) issues of Blue Orchid.

You can pick up all the Blue Orchid comics and merch at bewarethecheese.com/blueorchid/ or on Amazon.

Australian Treats

I don't think I've ever written about how much I love treats from Australia and New Zealand. Much like the culture and wildlife, the treats are unique and a little strange. Unlike the wildlife, they're not trying to kill me at every opportunity. The treats while being different, are also very comfortable for a North American palette as well. There's just enough to make them odd and weird, but not so strange that I don't enjoy eating them. I can't say that I've tasted a treat from this part of the world that I didn't like, and there are many that I absolutely adore.

Check out my latest Australian candy review.

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. 

I Ate An Oil Cake, and I Didn't Really Like It

 I'm not saying that all oil cakes are the same, in fact, since shooting this video I've learned that they can be a tasty dessert. I didn't hate this cake, but it was way too dry.

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It's Treats and Beasts Time!

 If your interests are treats as well as beasts, and you love them in alphabetical order, then pick up my book called Treats And Beast!

You can get your very own copy right now at bewarethecheese.com/treatsnbeasts/ or on Amazon
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Fake Kit Kat Bars

The most common question I get from people when they find out I review candy is "what's my favourite candy". I give two answers, one is a British Kit Kat bar, the other is anything that's original. When I explain the "original" answer, I follow up with explaining how I don't want to eat another copy of a Snickers or Kit Kat bar. Well... this is another Kit Kat bar, only not as good. It's pretty common that fake versions of classic bars aren't as good as the original, and this bar is the perfect example.

Check out my latest Kit Kat bar knockoff review.

10 Seconds of Korean Desserts

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

Get Some Of Those Yummy Snack Facts

 If you've ever craved knowledge about the snacks and treats that you love. Pick up my fun comic series called Snack Facts.

You can pick up your very own copy right now at candycritic.org/snackfacts/ or on Amazon.

Is Taffy Fun To Eat?

After writing this review I've come to an odd conclusion, I'm not sure that taffy is actually fun to eat. I can't remember a time in my life when I said to myself, "that's some entertaining candy", while eating a taffy. I think there are other treats that aren't entertaining to eat, chocolate tastes great but it's more classy than entertaining. Chips are most certainly not fun to eat, but I would say they're satisfying. Taffy on the other hand seems to be trying to be entertaining, but really it's not. It's just a chewy blob. Chewing isn't fun either, it's mostly work. I don't think it's that I don't like taffy, I just can't figure out why I like it.

Check out my latest taffy review.

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.

Quick List - The Worst Candies For Each Letter of the Alphabet - G-K

 A quick list of the worst candies from each letter of the alphabet. This time we're going to be checking out G through K.

Check out all my review for every letter of the alphabet right now at www.candycritic.org/alphareview.htm