mangosquash

I am a salty foods person, through and through. I’d prefer a bag of chips to a bag of cookies. I’d prefer another entrée helping to desert. When I’m in a grocery store, I don’t look for sweets. I am always on the hunt for new bags of chips.

Enter this bag of chips from Mission Foodswith a mouthful of a name: Summer Lime with Cilantro (other descriptive words that might be part of the name include “Restaurant Style” “Tortilla Triangles” and “Limited Edition

For pure snacking purposes, Tostito’s Hint of Lime Chips are among my favorite in the Tostito’s line of corn chips (and are much better than their Hint of Jalapeño and Hint of some kind of cheese followups), so naturally I was drawn to this bag of chip. I picked up the bag and upon further inspection, I noticed a one main thing: The chips are green. Not the color of a frog, but kind of like the color of green popcorn you might have had on St. Patrick’s Day. This was a little off-putting, but by no means a deal breaker.

So I took the chips home, and opened them up. My expectations were for them to be a little overbearing and not quite as enjoyable as Tostito’s Hint of Lime. Wrong and wrong.

These chips are certainly more potent than their Tostito’s counterparts, but are not overbearing. While the Hint of Lime chips, as advertised, have a hint of lime flavoring on an otherwise uninteresting Tostito, Mission Summer Lime chips could be called “Punch of Lime, hint of Cilantro”. It is fantastic. These knock Hint of Lime out of the park as far as I’m concerned.

Some other thoughts’s:

This is an incomplete primer on a complicated subject. It is by no means definitive. I will make 3 guarantees: First, there are incredible places that aren’t on this list because I have never been to them, forgotten about them, or didn’t feel like writing about them. Second, I have never had a bad meal at any of the places on this list. Finally, this list is useless for vegetarians.

Lunch

Blues City Deli is my #1 Lunch recommendation in St. Louis right now. They do sandwiches. I normally get the Italian Beef, but everything is incredible. Get Billy Goat chips. They have live music Thursday nights.

Crown Candy Kitchen is a St. Louis classic. It’s in a shit part of the city, but it’s a classic. Expect a wait. I get the chili cheese dog. It’s made with a staple St. Louis product: Edmund’s Chili. They are also known for their BLT which has a mountain of bacon on it. Get a shake. They also make their own chocolate if that’s your thing

Papi’s BBQ is the #1 BBQ place in St. Louis right now. (also good, spinoff Bogarts). Get here early (11:30 or earlier) for lunch. There will be a long line. It moves pretty fast. I only ever get pulled pork at BBQ places, but I’ve heard everything here is good.

Burgers

Years of consensus say that the best burger in St. Louis can be found at Blueberry Hill. Thick burgers. Get it with scoop cheddar cheese. Grilled onions, bacon, whatever. It’s all good. Next door: my favorite record shop in the midwest, Vintage Vinyl.

For a less touristy experience, and some (though not me) would say a better burger, get O’Connells. Just American cheese. They cook your burger to by-the-book definitions, so medium rare has some red in the middle. I also do grilled onions here.

For a foodie burger, there’s a new place called Bailey’s Range. They also have booze milk shakes and a generally cool atmosphere. Really enjoyed this place the one time I went there.

Carl’s Drive-In. This isn’t in St. Louis proper. It’s probably a 20 minute drive from downtown. They make flat burgers. Also with Edmund’s Chili (see: Crown Candy). Get a large root beer. They are closed on Sundays.

Beer

Drink local! Schlafly Brewing Co (2 syllables, first one pronounced last “shaft” with an L in it and no T, 2, “Lee” “Schlaf-lee”) has two locations. Tap Room and Bottle Works. Tap Room is more down-towny. Get any beers there. They are all good. They both have great food too (but different menus at each).

Buffalo Brewing Co., Parrenial Ales, and Urban Chestnut Brewing Co. are also all St. Louis breweries that have their own bars. I’ve never been to these places, but they all make good beer.

For the widest selection in town, hit up iTap in Soulard. 500+ beers or so. Good place to watch sports. (not sure about WiFi situation though).

Taco Bell, like other fast food locations, has pretty tasty food at very reasonable prices. What I find interesting about it is their ability to crank out new products on a monthly basis, and also advertise them. So throughout the year/as long as I continue this blog, I will do my best to review new Taco Bell products. Reviews will fall under 4 segments: “The Commercial”, “What’s New Here”, “Taste & Volume v. Price” and “My Current Order” I hope that you enjoy this segment 1/4 as much as I enjoy Taco Bell.

Product: Beefy Crunch Burrito
Release: December 2010
Price: $0.99 (varies by location)

Commercial

Plot: A dude is sitting at a Taco Bell by himself, eating a Beefy Crunch Burrito. He is admiring these two good looking women who are at a different table, and thinking about how they are probably pretty impressed that he is eating something so adventurous. He is playing out a monologue in his head, pointing out the benefits of the burrito and by association, him. When the ladies finally do look over at him, he is predictably embarrassed and awkward. Cut to product voiceover.

Analysis Eh, it’s alright. Stays pretty safely within the bounds of standard Taco Bell commercials, making the assertion that hot girls like guys who eat Taco Bell. Strong message. But, it isn’t very memorable. I had to go back and look up this commercial in order to remember what it was about.

What’s New?

Everything else in this burrito already exists on the menu.

Taste & Volume v. Price

This thing is a steal. It is the Taco Bell trifecta, delicious, filling and cheap. This is the gold standard for which future Taco Bell products should be measured. Granted, I am not a huge eater, but 2 of these is more than enough for a meal. The Flamin Hot Fritos add a unique spice that can’t be found anywhere else on the menu, and also give it almost a crunch wrap supreme mouth feel in burrito form.

The other things in the burrito are pretty much what you’d expect, but I can’t overstate what a great value I think this is. This item will stay in my order as long as it stays on the menu.

My Current Order

(don’t know if this still exists, but this is what I was getting after this product debuted)
$5 Touchdown Box: