Go Phillies, Go Sports! - Big League Chew Triple Treat

I had a bizarre craving for grape Big League Chew out of nowhere. Super weird, since I've only had it maybe twice before in my life, ever. My 30+-year old body just decided that we needed it. I could only find original at Five Below, my least favorite flavor, but the foodie gods shined upon me. Because Lidl had a cardboard display at checkout with tons of flavors. I guess they have really expanded since I was like, 9. I grabbed grape, strawberry and the new-to-me blue raspberry. (I left original and sour apple on the cardboard stand where they belong. Apparently there is also watermelon, cotton candy, and hot cocoa versions?!) 

Time for a jaw workout! 

Crushing It? - Crush Soda themed Swedish Fish and Sour Patch Kids

Crush Soda Candies - Dollar Tree

Since the branding, flavors, and pretty much everything about these two Crush themed candies are the same, I thought it would be fun to compare them and find any differences. (Other than one being sour, obviously.) Will all four flavors be the same, just with a sour-coat of paint? Or will the flavors actually differ in their Fishy or Kid forms? Let's find out!

Tiny Burgers, Fries, and Fruits, Oh MY! - 4D Gummies

4D Gummies - Dollar Tree

I bought these because I wanted to photograph them. I mean, look at them! They're little 3D gummy shapes of fruits and burgers and stuff. It's like, my kryptonite. But, I know what I'm getting into. After my experience with 4D Gummies (which were also from Dollar Tree) I knew these would likely be more of a fun visual novelty than a decent candy. 

So I am going into this with a healthy amount of skepticism and very low expectations. (Kind of like dating in your 30's, am I right? Self-burn.) 

Let's jump right into it!

Sneaking Easter Candy into the Year-Round Scene

Big Chewy Nerds - Dollar Tree

I spotted these at Dollar Tree and thought they looked awfully familiar... I'm pretty sure they're just Nerds Jellybeans, rebranded, for year-round snacking. They have the same premise: chewy center, crisp candy shell, and they come in the same flavors/colors. 

Even if they are a re-packaging, I've never reviewed Nerds jelly beans, and for a dollar? Why not check them out?

Bon Bon BUMMER - Black Tongue Lollipops

Black Tongue Lollipops - Dollar Tree

I grabbed these at the Dollar Tree because they reminded me of the Tongue Painter gumballs my teacher used to use as incentives for good behavior back in the 90's. Did anyone else's teacher create a fake currency that could be earned inside their classroom and used to purchase candy, pencils, or free "No homework" passes? Or was that just me? (Also, my fellow 90's Jersey kids, no one else did fluoride rinses in their classrooms. That was a weird program think that only happened to us!)

Anyway, I thought it would be fun to try some candy and paint my tongue black but I was wrong. So, so wrong.  

 

Watch the video above to see what happens, or keep reading below for the written post and close-ups. 

Taste The Rainbow of Nostalgia

Mentos Rainbow- Five BelowThe 

When was the last time you bought Mentos? At one point, back when their catchy theme song ruled the world, they were one of my favorite candies. If Tic-Tacs and Starbursts combined to create a crunchy, chewy, minty baby, it would be Mentos. One day I just stopped buying them. No rhyme or reason really, but they seem to be doing just fine without me. I see them in every checkout aisle, and they keep releasing cool new flavors overseas (which make me incredibly jealous.) Why not jump into the wacky flavor market here in the States? 

Anyway, I saw this fruity rainbow variety pack at Five Below, and I thought this might be fun to check out to get a little taste of what we've all been missing.

Kari Poké! - Confessions of a Pokemon Hoarder

Kari Pori Pokémon Candy Sticks - Empty Boxes Being Sold HERE on eBay

Confession time, I haven't played a Pokémon game since the original Gold and Silver on Gameboy Color. Well, I have played a bit of Pokémon Stadium (love those mini games) and Pokkén, but I don't think those really count. 

I still consider myself a fan of the franchise, and I keep up with all the new Pokémon being released, but I just don't have time to play games like I used to. In spite of my lack of integration in the bread and butter of the fan-base, I still buy tons of random Pokémon merch! I have all of these boxes you see above, some regrettable gum that came with collectible stickers (as seen on my Instagram), some laser cut Pokémon seaweed sheets, and a box of pouches containing (what I believe to be) children's curry in my pantry. I just can't help myself. I see that sweet little electric rat's face and into my cart it goes. (I'm also hype for Detective Deadpool Pikachu.)  

I have a lot of Pokémon stuff piled up in my home...and I am running out of places to put it. A lot of it sits forgotten in bins that never see the light of day, and that is a shame. So, to fix all that, and to get hype for the upcoming movie, I decided to review it all and get rid of it. Time to Marie Kondo this b*tch! But...in true hoarder fashion, I don't want to just get rid of it all, instead I'll be putting all the packaging up on eBay so it'll hopefully find a new, loving, home where it can be displayed proudly. If that fails...I guess it'll go in the recycling bin, The circle of Poke-life and all that, but at least I tried!~

First up, these Kari Pori sticks. The candy is expired, but I'm going to review it anyway! 

I've Got Grape News! (Seriously)

Senjaku Pione Grape Gummies  - ???

No need to hear it through the grape vine, I'm engaged! 

My boyfriend fiancé whom you may remember from such posts as The Week My Boyfriend Went Keto, or driving me crazy at the end of THIS youtube video, proposed to me on Valentine's Day inside the Dunkin' Donuts from our very first date. (This donut review is actually from that date!)

After 3+ years of having him try all kinds of weird foods, it seems he's in it for the long haul. We've got a lot of planning ahead of us, but in the meantime....let's eat some candy!

Tempted By The Fruit of a Pocky! (Grape & Mango Pocky?)

Pocky Squeeze (Grape & Mango) - Asian Food Market

(Made it in! Just before Midnight EST!) I am 100% sure I've used this song lyric as a title before, but this was too perfect to pass up. I mean, this is "Squeeze" Pocky, and it's fruit flavored! It's a match made in pop-culture-foodie heaven. (Or Dad-joke level hell, depending on your sense of humor.) 

When did I buy these? I have no idea. My foodie backlog is way out of control. I've joked about it in the past but due to my failure as a blogger in 2017, it overflowed big time. I'm just going to write this off as a foodie gift from my past self and leave it at that. (Yay!)  

It might be hard to tell in photos, but these are half sized boxes that contain mini Pocky sticks. For something so small, the packaging sure is stylish! The cardboard boxes have a high gloss finish, beautiful food imagery, and a fairly luxe feel. They even photographed beautifully! So far, this packaging as me falling in love with Pocky all over again, but what about the flavors? 

Thanks to the context clues on the packaging, I'm guessing these chocolate coated bread sticks are flavored with 70% real fruit, which wounds great...if these were gummies, but they're chocolate coated bread sticks. That being the case, mango was more of a safe bet for me, since I've had a decent amount of mango flavored chocolates from Japan, but grape flavored chocolate? I sense a red flag...

I Chews You! - Korean Pokemon Candies

Pokemon XYZ Crown MyChew Fruit Chews - H-Mart

Howdy, strangers! 

I apologize for my sporadic updates. (Or lack there of.) Life just keeps throwing me curve balls. (Says the food blogger with very limited knowledge of sports.) Anyways, quick life update: I started a new job last week! It's kind of food related, and a lot closer to home, which means I gain an hour and a half of my life back every single day. Yay!

Once I settle in to my new routine I plan on dedicating that hour and a half to the blog so I can finally get back to posting daily. Which will be extra awesome because my food hoarding problem is only getting worse. (I'm one box-full-o'-food away from Hoarders banging down my door.) So, let's knock out some candy!

10 Dollar Skull Suckers and Fizzy Brains (Skull Chupa Chups from Japan)

Skull Chupa Chups from Japan -  eBay 9.99

$10 for a tiny bag of imported lollipops? What can I say? My frugal foodie nature was thrown out the window the second I laid eyes on this packaging.  

I nearly talked myself out of them, but it was the last bag on eBay, so I quickly rationalized this purchase as being a little treat to celebrate my birthday (last Friday) and my new job (starting Tuesday.) Turns out, they were worth every penny...

Cute Packaging AND Pear flavored candy? SHUT UP AND TAKE MY MONEY!

Pop Candy Peko Chan Lollipops (Pear Flavor) -  Asian Food Market $3.99

Peko chan is back with more lollipop flavors! Well, just one new flavor, but it's an interesting one! 

Last year I reviewed the insanely adorable Halloween version of these lollipops which included the standard grape, strawberry, and orange flavored candies which are also included in this bag. To see my thoughts on the original fruity trio, check out last year's review. This time around I'm only going to focus on the new, green-colored flavor addition: Pear!

Grape Fettuccine Gummi - Asian Food Markets

Grape Fettuccine Gummi - Asian Food Markets

Check it out! The blog got a (very slight) facelift! I don't have enough time to dissect all the coding and give this place the complete update it deserves, but hey, it's a start!

One of my goals for 2017 was to update the blog, and another was to be less of a food hoarder. I've been cleaning through my stash (slowly) and honestly, it's pretty bad. I completely forgot what I had already purchased, so I've found a few repeats, along with a bunch of products I never knew I had, like these Grape Fettuccine gummies.

When did I buy these? I don't know! But they look yummy, so I'm going to quickly review them before they disappear into the pantry-void, never to be seen again.

Cauldron Skittles - Target Halloween $2.49

Cauldron Skittles - Target Halloween $2.49

It's finally Halloween! I'm going to savor every delicious moment of it. I've got a bunch of written posts going up throughout the day and 3 different YouTube video reviews! So be sure to check back periodically to see what spooky goodies I've scrounged up. 

It's like Trick-or-Treating, but online, and none of you get to eat the candy. Actually, two of you can! I have my giveaway going on from now until 11:59PM TONIGHT (10/31/16.) On November 2nd I'll announce the winners, so be sure to enter, you've still got time left! 

While you're busy entering the contest, I'm going to start munching on some spooky seasonal Skittles. 

FINALLY! A new VIDEO REVIEW

#TBT Pop Candy Halloween Special Lollipops - H-Mart

Pop Candy Halloween Special Lollipops  #TBT - H-Mart

Things are getting spoopy! (And that's no typo.) 

The day before Halloween I went to H-mart and found a bunch of freaking adorable Halloween goodies. This is pretty rare, because the Asian markets in the area typically don't usually carry seasonal products, and when they do they're usually really out of season, but this was right on time! I was so excited about it that I recorded a Halloween Haul video right before hosting my Halloween party. 

One of the candies I picked up back then were these lollipops, and I absolutely loved the packaging. While at H-mart this week, buying more kitchen staples like hoisin sauce and seasoned rice vinegar, I saw that they were still in stock, and better yet, on sale!

Cute fruit lollipops that are Halloween-themed AND cheap? Needless to say...I bought 2 more bags, so I figured I'd post a more in depth review.

Sour Patch Fruits - Walmart

Sour Patch Fruits - Walmart

We have a lot of candy around the office (surprisingly it's not my doing) and one of the sweets we always have in stock are Brach's fruit slices. They're big, citrus-segment-looking gum drops with a sweet sanding sugar coating that come in a big plastic tub...and I hate them. They're one of those candies that look way more appealing than they actually are. I don't hate ALL of the flavors, the orange and lemon ones are pleasant enough, but the rest taste like sugary petroleum jelly. Bland and unsatisfying. I usually eat them as a last resort and they're barely worth the tooth-decay. 

I was buying the new Sour Patch Strawberries at Walmart and spotted this. I had never noticed it before, but they seem like Sour Patch's answer to the bland Brach's slices. Will sourness save these colorful fruit jellies? Or will these be another candy that looks better than it tastes? 

Teddy Pop - Asian Food Market

Teddy Pop - Asian Food Market

Happy Saint Patrick's Day everyone! (Well the few minutes left of it anyway.) The last two years I went all out and cooked up some fancy holiday-themed recipes, but...it's Thursday night and it's been a very long work week. I am barely sane as it is, so I'll be typing up a few reviews for some green colored packages in my food stash instead. It's win-win! You guys get multiple posts on the blog, and I clear out a tiny corner of my food haul. First up, something I've been looking forward to for months, Teddy Pop! (Plus this is not only green but RAINBOW themed. If that's not festive, I don't know what is.) 

PEZ Hedz Bearz - Dollar Tree - Cherry Hill, NJ

PEZ Hedz Bearz - Dollar Tree - Cherry Hill, NJ

Looking at this item, it's packaging, and the flavor variety, my gut told me, "do not buy it." I went months without ever seeing this on the shelves, and yet, here we are.

When I was buying some other items for our Candyology101 podcast, I saw this hanging in the candy aisle at Dollar Tree, and after passing it by a few times, I finally decided to give it the benefit of a doubt. Maybe my original assumptions were wrong and this will turn out to be a miraculously awesome candy. It's happened before, but today is not one of those days.

Chobani Concord Grape Limited Batch Greek Yogurt - Walmart: Berlin, NJ

Chobani Concord Grape Limited Batch Greek Yogurt - Walmart: Berlin, NJ

It's been a while since I reviewed a Chobani flavor, I think the last one I did was the deliciously refreshing Watermelon last August, and I saw that there are currently two new flavors in their Limited Batch line, Green Tea and Concord Grape. I'm sure those some like amazing flavors to some of you, but to me, they are foodie nightmare-fuel. I am not a fan of grape flavored anything due to my childhood experiences with grape flavored medicine, and green tea is a little too earthy for my tastes. (I prefer black tea.) Neither of these appealed to me personally, but my curiosity got the better of me. After all, I've never had a grape flavored yogurt before. Maybe it could be amazing! I decided to take a risk on this one and into my handcart it went.