Hardbite – Rugged All Dressed
I’ve discussed my very un-canuck like behaviour in my distaste for all dressed flavours. It’s not an instant deal breaker because I tend to keep an open mind for most things, but the flavour just doesn’t do much for me. But alas, if you present me with it in a Hardbite package, I have no choice but to begrudgingly acquiesce and try it. I mostly get Hardbite for the textures anyways, so flavour isn’t AS important to me.
Hardbite does flavours very well, or rather to my liking. I like a good balance between strong flavour and being over seasoned or too salty. As expected, their take on all dressed isn’t an assault of flavour, but it hits all the right notes you want in a good all dressed flavour – ketchup, barbeque sauce and vinegar are all there. What I enjoy most about Hardbite’s take on all dressed is they don’t go too heavy handed on the vinegar flavour. I find a lot of all dressed chips tend to get too into the vinegar sharpness and it veers into territory I don’t like, as it’s too strong for my liking. Not the case here, where all the flavours work as an ensemble cast rather than having a distinct lead. Also the potatoes themselves have a distinct flavour that comes through, which is always appreciated.
Texture is what I expect from Hardbite – it’s hard. In all seriousness though, generally you would expect wavy chips to have a harder texture just due to the ridges, but these are fairly similar to their none rugged counterparts. Given that their regular chips are also harder than most brands, these might seem crunchier or more substantial to most people. I think these are good, but personally I prefer something a little harder or crunchier. As it stands though, these are still great. A firm “get again” choice for me.
So moral of the story here is, even if a flavour on paper doesn’t seem like one you would like, there’s always a chance it tastes better than what you’re used to or mentally imagining. And if you don’t give it a shot you might end up missing out on greatness. So give it a try if it’s not a complete deal-breaker. If only this logic applied to human relations…
