Monday, June 15, 2009

TBG Eats: Doritos® Last Call Jalapeño Popper Flavored Tortilla Chips


Current Weight: 166.6 lbs.

Fellow junk food aficionados know that the Doritos brand is good for one or two new flavors each month. Some of these flavors are regionally test marketed and never heard from again after their trial run. Other times, Doritos will just throw something ridiculously gimmicky out there with no regard to how it tastes (I couldn't have been the only one to nearly gag on a bag of Mountain Dew-Flavored Doritos, right?)

The fine folks at Frito-Lay have gotten caught up in the odd late night eating fad that has gripped the fast food industry for the past few months. (They do know this is NOT a new concept, right?) Doritos has released two new flavors under the "Late Night" sub-brand: "Tacos at Midnight" (too early!) and "Last Call Jalapeño Popper".

For the uninitiated, a jalapeño popper is a deep-fried, breaded jalapeño pepper stuffed with (usually) cream cheese. I've seen variants like cheddar cheese and bacon bits added to the artery-hardening equation, as well.

Doritos' take is surprisingly tasty. While the flavor is nothing like jalapeño, the chips are dusted with a good amount of spice and have more kick than you'd think from a mass-produced conglomerate-brand snack. Additionally, these chips have a toasted quality that's not unlike an evenly-coated and cooked bit of breading. My favorite part, though, is the awesomely creamy aftertaste that certainly isn't reminiscent of cream cheese, but lends a terrific texture from one handful to the next.

These won't knock the extinct Jumpin' Jack Cheese Doritos out of the snack food pantheon, but if you see the 99-cent bag in your local liquor store, take a chance on 'em. For some of us, it's the closest we'll get to 4:00 AM Friday night (well, Saturday morning) eatin' ever again.

Sigh.

Grade 4 (out of 5) 150 calories, 8g of fat per 1 oz. serving

5 comments:

SHough610 said...

When exactly does that 4:00 AM thing end? I'm 23 and still stumbling home (less than at 19, admittedly) to make a DiGiorno.

Aaron C. said...

That's the thing: you'll never see the end coming. Even after marriage and fatherhood, I was still - occasionally - flying up to San Francisco to hang out with my boy until the wee hours of the following morning.

Oh, wait...that all stopped when HE got married and had a kid. Well, then, there's your answer, Sam. It ends, when your friends turn heel and choose their families over you.

Tom said...

Pretty sure it's a marriage thing. I'm 30 and still make use of the 24-hr McDonalds.

SHough610 said...

Your prediction has me worried, Aaron. I'm headed to Vegas next Thursday for a long weekend for a buddies bachelor party. I feel like Homer with the Krusty doll salesman:

We're staying at the Encore at the Wynn -- more mature
We're cramming four guys in a sweet -- immature
We're not drinking on Sunday -- mature
We're bringing our own liquor (including a buddy of mine and I who are bringing a bottle of Castillo rum to mix with root beer) -- less mature

Aaron C. said...

My friend and I used the exact same Homer/Krusty doll salesman gag for some drunken laughs after the Dodgers/A's game on Tuesday.

FREAKY~!

Or, just an amazing coincidence.