Stiegl Radler Grapefruit

When I got this, I didn't realise how low in alcohol it actually was (2%!!)! Now I know, radlers be low. That said this is very sweet and it is tasty, although so is soda so I might as well drink that? I do like that it's in a fun tall can. It also made a solid mixer with vodka.

Overall
Cost: 4/10
Taste: 6/10

Vermont Nut Free Pumpkin Fudge

I know it's January, but this was for sale so I bought it. Whatevz, it didn't make me ill! This is white fudge and not chocolate fudge, which I don't actually know if I've had before this. But it was good. Very dense, soft, sweet and tasting like pumpkin spice flavor. A really creamy texture. I don't have a lot of fudge experience so it was nice to have a safe treat like this. It lasted a long time, too, because it's so dense. Didn't taste like an "allergy treat" at all, which is a big plus. I would try another flavor!

Overall
Cost: 5/10
Taste: 7/10

Vahdam Teas

This was a sample pack of 5 different teas, which is fun. I wasn't allergic to any of them (they listed the ingredients, thankfully) either!

India's Original Masala Chai Tea: At first I thought "this is too hot/this is too weak/blech/am I dying?" all at once, but after it cooled down it got to taste much more cinnamon-y and clove-y and just like a nice warm spicy juice drink. Not too shabby in the end. 6.

Turmeric Spiced Herbal Tea: This wasn't as spicy/sweet/flavorful as the chai tea from this pack. But, it didn't kill me and I couldn't really taste the lemongrass in it, which is good because I hate lemongrass. It was also yellow in color which was pretty fun. But the taste was very very mild. 5.

Himalayan Green Tea: This looks like water! Honestly it also kind of tastes like water. I.e. it tastes like nothing. A warm nothing, though, perhaps like a very watered down black tea. Did I make it wrong? Who knows! I guess it was OK. 5.

Darjeeling Summer Black Tea: Apparently, this is known as the "champagne of teas". Well, I do like champagne, and I do like black tea better than green or herbal tea, it seems. This just tasted like plain black tea, which is something I'm old hat at by now, so it was solid, comforting, and decent. Plus it has caffeine! 6.

Chamomile Mint Citrus Green Tea: This smelled pretty gross upon teabaggin', but it tasted mainly of mint with a touch of floral flavor. It was fairly refreshing. 6.

Turmeric Ginger Herbal Tea Tisane: This was loose-leaf, and it's just turmeric and ginger! (No tea at all, really). I made it in my cool see-thru brew bottle, and it's super orangey in color which is fun. Classic Turme I guess. The taste is fine, nothing crazy good but it mostly tastes like ginger to me, which I do like. Warm, watery, and a tiny bit spicy. 6.

Turmeric Pepper Herbal Tea Tisane: This was loose-leaf also, and has turmeric, black pepper, cloves, and cardamom. It ended up being a pretty orange-ish brown color. It had a little bit of spice flavor, which is nice, but it could use ginger and cinnamon in my humble opinion. A little plain for my taste. Can't really taste the pepper, which is probably for the best. 6.



Overall
Cost: 5/10
Taste: 6/10, on average

The Fridge

This is a pizza cafe and bottle shop, which is cute and fairly unique concept. The whole alcohol situation in PA is absurd, so it's nice to be able to buy fun individual bottles or cans of beer. I should look them up beforehand, since it seems like they have a decent website. What else do they have? Well they usually have something with nuts, too, which is scary. But I've gotten the Margherita pizza before and it was fine, decent 'za. I recently tried the poutine which was not really poutine, it was like potato wedges with melted cheese and some gravy, but it was still good of course. This place seems oddly trendy/popular and I'm not really sure why, but it is fun and small and they have a parking lot which is appreciated.

Overall
Cost: 5/10
Taste: 7/10

Horse Inn

I feel like hipsters would love this place. Unfortunately, my allergies prevent me from being a true hipster. I can never truly be free. You feel me, allergy brethren? Anyway, this is a speakeasy on a quiet residential street in Lanc. Pretty cool. When you get inside, it's crowded and has an intimate feel despite the decently large population inside and the bar/dining/little bar games. My boyf's friend brother works here, so we had like, special treatment, which was cool because they don't take reservations and it looked pretty crowded. They serve boiled peanuts (!!!) as an app, so it was scary, but the dish I got (chicken) was tasty, and the waiter said he'd make a note of my allergy and he seemed pretty aware, because he told me the apps other people ordered weren't safe. So I felt decently safe, and the food really was good (although not super huge, especially for the price - guess that's how you know it's fancy!). They also have a lot of eclectic cocktails which I was scared to order, and only canned beers, which is cool. I got an Anderson Valley Blood Orange, Gose, which was good. If I didn't have nut allergies I'd probably rate this place higher, but even as is I enjoyed it overall.

Overall
Cost: 4/10
Taste: 6/10

Vermont Nut Free Chocolate Covered Pretzels - Assorted

Yum, dude. I got these at an allergy-friendly store in Lancaster, and I thought these were super expensive (8$) but that's how much they are online, too, and at least I didn't have to pay shipping. Just that whole "don't die" tax I guess. Anyway, these are delicious. All three kinds of chocolate (milk/white/dark) are tasty and what you want out of a choco pretzel. They weren't super crunchy, but it wasn't distracting. I ate these over like 2 days. It was glorious. I wish I had more now.





Overall
Cost: 3/10
Taste: 8/10

Sensible Foods - Sweet Corn (Crunch Dried Snacks)

This sure is dried corn all right! I guess it makes a nice change from the sometimes overly sweet dried fruits. But this tastes pretty much like how you'd think - it's dry, it's filling, it's boring. Not a huge thrill to nosh on dried corn kernels. Cute package though.

Overall
Cost: 6/10
Taste: 5/10

2017 Hidden Vineyards Pinot Blanc

This was decent. Of course I pretty much always think whites are tastier than reds, so this was indeed better than a red wine -- but it wasn't very sweet, to be honest. It was more acidic than I expected. I was supposed to make some radish top aoili with this, but I didn't get around to it yet, so I can't say how delicious it is to pair with this wine. It's probably fine.







Overall
Cost: 5/10
Taste: 6/10

Dave's Gourmet - Ginger Citrus Creamy Hot Sauce

I was hovering between rating this a 4 and a 5, but because I really only ate it on raw veggies (brocco/cauli) I rounded up. They recommend trying this with chips (?!) and I think I should try it on some chicken, my go-to sauce sponge. I just haven't gotten around to it yet. Anyway, this is "creamy" but also vegan, so you know it's gonna be a little bit funky. I found it to be quite hot/spicy, with a vinegary flavor. It got to be a little too much for me after a short while, not in terms of heat but just in terms of the flavor. I guess the combo of vinegar/cumin(warning for nut allergy people?)/hot pepper isn't my favorite. I will say I emailed the company to ask if this was safe for me, since they also sell nuts, and they said that basically the nuts were a separate line and I'd be fine. I wasn't super convinced but at least they answered me quickly, and indeed I didn't die, so I guess the story checks out.

Overall
Cost: 5/10
Taste: 5/10

Uncle Dougie's Sweet & Snappy Small Batch BBQ Sauce

BBQ sauce is a good sauce to have around, for cooking and dipping. This is more of a cooking-only sauce, though, I think. Compared to Sweet Baby Ray's BBQ sauce (the holy grail of BBQ sauce) this is much thinner and less sweet. I cooked chicken in it and I still thought the sauce was a bit too watery. But, when I left the chicken in the fridge it kind of firmed up and was tastier and more BBQy. So it could work in a long term marinade situation. Probably good in the slow cooker, too. The taste was fine, but not as sweet or tomatoey as I think I like. It was more savory/smokey, but not super strong either. Overall fine, I'll probably finish this off eventually since it keeps for a long time. Nice jar/packaging too.


Overall
Cost: 5/10
Taste: 5/10

The Three Monkeys

Whew. Went to this place after walking all around NYC trying to meet up with friends, so I was very sweaty and relieved to arrive at a normal bar with a cool group of people (Sandy & co!). This is called a "beer hall" on Google, and I'm not really sure what that is, but it was in effect a slightly hipper BWW-esque sports bar. It might even be a local chain, I'm not sure. They had a cool selection of eclectic beers and a fairly standard pub menu. It was a big place, 2 stories, with fun 90s mashups on the TV as the hour got later. I ordered a Margherita flatbread which was 14$ but actually decent sized, like 6-7 long bread slices. It was decently tasty and filling and also didn't kill me (I didn't ask about allergies here as it was too loud/awkward). For beer I got the Stillwater Insetto, which was a great sour beer (fun pinkish color even) and I'd definitely get it again if I ever saw it. Generally this seemed like a cool place to hang out, and not too ~wacky~ for allergy folks.

Overall
Cost: 6/10 (Very reasonable for NYC)
Taste: 7/10

Goetze's Caramel Creams

To me, this is a classic candy - and nut free, too! These have such a uniquely firm texture - like a Chuckle, but thicker. None of that chewy or runny caramel here. Which I like. The taste is nice and sweet/creamy/starchy, but not overwhelming or tooth-hurty. Plus they're individually wrapped for your convenience and portion control! Always happy to nosh on a few of these.



Overall
Cost: 8/10
Taste: 8/10

SunRype FruitSource - Apple Mango Mangosteen

What the heck is a mangosteen? I was too lazy to look it up, but whatever it is, it probably tastes a lot like mango, because this (thick) fruit bar tasted a lot like mango. I like mango, so that's good, but this bar was also really sweet. Too sweet for my preference. Very dense, sticky, sweet thick snack. It is filling, which is good, but not overall my favorite kind of fruit snack.




Overall
Cost: 7/10
Taste: 5/10

P.J. Carney's Irish Pub

I like pubs and I like P.J. Whelihan's sports bar, so how could I not like the P.J. pub? Indeed it was a nice solid eating experience, which is hard to come by in New York City with a massive group, because the group will always want to go to a trendy Indian/Thai/Korean/Chinese/vegan resto where I won't be able to eat a single thing. SIGH. Anyway, this was nice and safe. The bartender/waitress when I asked about nuts was even like "I've checked before and it's safe", which was nice. I got a BLTA (BLT with avocado), which was big and filling and tasty enough. Came with fries too. I ate it all and then was super full! I also got a Corona because it was one of the cheaper drinks. I will say this place was pretty expensive, although IDK if it was expensive for New York or just expensive for me. Dunkin had the same prices as they do in DE, so I blame everyone else!

Overall
Cost: 3/10
Taste: 6/10

Ciro's Italian Bistro

I love pretty much all Italian restaurants, so I'm into this "Ciro's" as well. However, I went here with my boyf's family (like, 11 people) and I had only met half of them before and it was before Christmas and I had a stomachache and was sweaty and anxious. So, the meal I got (Penne alla vodka) didn't sit that well with me, and I didn't really like the taste that much (probably a 5 or 6 of a pasta dish). However they have a ton of other menu items that sound really tasty, including pizza, pasta, chicken, and veal (if you're into that), it's just I had to balance the price and messiness and and and and. Anyway I also got a coffee and that was pretty decent. The environment seems friendly and low-key yet classy, and it's a pretty big place. I would surely go back if invited. They were fine with my allergy request too.

Chicken Marsala: This was much better than the penne thing I had gotten before (although it was still consumed at an awkward event with my boyf's fam, sweat sweat sweat), 7/10.


Overall
Cost: 5/10 (a bit pricy)
Taste: 7/10 (assumedly)

Marie Callender's Lattice Apple Pie

I'm a big fan of apple pie, and my last attempt to have it was on a cruise in October where I was sadly disappointed. So this Christmastime nut-free pie was a godsend! Sure, I got sick (flu sick) after eating a bunch of it, and it isn't good for you, but it really was tasty. The top is sugary, but not JUST sugar crumbles like the Dutch Apple Pie, instead it's an actual crust. Nothing weird or standout about this pie, just solid sweet apple filling and normal bready crust. Yum.




Overall
Cost: 5/10
Taste: 8/10

Made Good Granola Minis (Apple Cinnamon)

This flavor was a winner! I guess I like all the flavors, the real difference in them comes down to moistness (which might just be random and not about the flavor at all...woah). In any case, this particular bag was good! It was moist, grainy, apple cinnamony. Still can't taste the mysterious veggie powder that's included. I really like these Made Good snacks in general and I wish they were more widely available near me, instead of just online!






Overall
Cost: 5/10
Taste: 7/10

Crispy Fruit - all cantaloupe

They've changed their packaging! It used to look like space food, now it looks like fun chips or something. I think it's nice. It's also clear now that the company is called crisp green (who knew) and not Crispy Fruit. Whatever. Anyway, I generally like these crispy fruits. They're really low calorie and have a strong fruity flavor. For instance, this tasted sweet and good like a real cantaloupe. It's a pretty small serving size for me, but tasty, especially when the fruit in question is out of season or hard to access.




Overall
Cost: 5/10
Taste: 6/10

Knorr Selects - Spinach & Artichoke Rice

Ooh, Knorr "selects". These are new and this was on sale, so I was excited to try it. I figured it'd be fancier than just your standard Knorr rice packets, which are already quite good. Unfortunately this bad boy was worse than the unfancy ones. It was like bad orzo instead of rice, with a way too strong bad cheese flavor (possibly asiago?) which was not a flavor I enjoyed. It also didn't really cook down well; there was a bit of a crunch remaining. It didn't taste to me like a spinach/artichoke dip at all. I added veg to this to try to mute the flavor, but then it became like eating a chunky nothing-paste. A chore almost. There were little tiny bits of spinach in the rice, and those did add some small moments of joy. I recommend you get a regular rice pack instead of this! Although I will probably still try out the other new fancy ones sometime. . . obvi.

Overall
Cost: 5/10 [On sale for 2$]
Taste: 5/10

Halls Cherry Coughdrops

Look, I know this isn't really FOOD per se, but I get sick a lot and put these things in my mouth, so they're kind of like food. They definitely have sugar in (which is actually a plus, the sugar free ones freak me out). These were an OK choice; they didn't really help my throat that much, but they didn't hurt either. The taste was OK, not too sweet or too mentholy. I think it's good at least for placebo reasons, to moisten things up or whatever. One big plus is that these have little inspiring messages on the wrappers, just like Dove chocos. E.g. "You're going to be OK!" type stuff. Cheers me up when I'm sick-presso'd.




Overall
Cost: 5/10 [about 3.50$]
Taste: 6/10

Pirate's Booty - Aged White Cheddar

I first discovered Pirate's Booty in college, where it was all the rage. Even though it's not so trendy anymore, I still think it's a great snack. They even have a sneaky line on the back of the bag that says "Made in a facility where nuts are NOT present" which I find delightful. The taste is good, a nice white cheesey powder on a very light puff. They're kind of in funny small twisty ball shapes, very unique, but they mostly just taste like a standard light cheese puff. A pleasant snack and safe for most eaters, plus a funny pirate logo. Who could dislike such a product?




Overall
Cost: 6/10
Taste: 7/10

Signature Kitchens Harvest Vegetable Blend

This is pretty good! I didn't expect to find a nice, cheap veggie blend without peas or beans or onions, yet here we are. It has lots of corn, and then a mix of broc/cauli/carrot and some red pepper. Because of the corn, it's kind of high in calories compared to other veggie options, but listen, it's still veg so I count it as a win for my health (and wallet). Plus it's colorful. This is a good mix-in for when the noodles you're dealing with are particularly plain, since it changes things up. Plus it steams in bag if you like.


Overall
Cost: 8/10 [1$]
Taste: 6/10

Knorr Garlic & Olive Oil Pasta

You know me, I love a good noodle packet. Yet sadly, even with the caveat that all Knorr side dishes are pure and good, I can't reaaally call this a "good noodle packet". I am sick, and this didn't require milk, which is good because my car is fucky and I couldn't get to the store. So there is a convenience benefit. But when I bought this at my parent's grocery, excited to try a new noodle flavor, I was hoping it could become a new healthier favorite to bring in to the rotation. Alas. First, this doesn't make as much as other flavors. Second, it is really boring - just plain soggy noodles, watery "sauce" that's vaguely garlicy, vaguely balls-of-soy-protein-y, supposedly parsley-y. Not amazing. I did add a veggie bag to this, which bulked it up a lot, and ultimately made it all taste like a frozen Birds Eye side dish. At least it was cheaper than that and didn't give me a stomach ache, but not what I'm looking for in a delicious noodle meal. Will not rebuy.

Overall
Cost: 7/10 [1$]
Taste: 6/10