Sun Chips – French Onion

I still remember the first time I had French Onion Sun Chips as a kid – it was like a flavour and textural explosion that I had never had up until that point. The fact that they were multigrain chips didn’t matter, they taste good. I still remember my grandpa would take me with him to his walk to the convenience store and let me grab a bag, and for a period I would only get the French Onion flavour. After a while, I got tired of it, to the point that I never wanted to even be near it, but boy was that brief period fun.

Fast forward to high school and university and I’ve overcome that burn out on Sun Chips and I regularly include it back into my roster, because it’s that good. After I got older though, I noticed I was getting it less and less. I realized it wasn’t due to not liking it or some other moral or ethical consideration. Instead, it was simply that it was hardly ever on sale compared to the other big brands, and I had a difficult time overcoming my programming to pay full price for what I consider a big brand or evergreen brand. And so I waited, and waited, but the sale never came. Until now – after what has been close to a decade long dry spell, I have finally found it on sale.

I’m so old I remember when the bag was black, and closer to a normal chip bag. This new style seems slightly different somehow, but I can’t pinpoint why. Maybe it’s the matte texture of the colours. The aroma greeting me as I open the bag is like a long awaited return home.

The flavour is largely what I remember from my childhood, though slightly less salty which I appreciate. It has a strong distinct onion flavour accompanied by a dairy like tang which reminds me a bit of sour cream, and is capped off with an overall sweetness that mixes well with the seasoning to deliver quite a unique flavour experience. If I were to try and oversimplify, it’s sort of like a sour cream and onion flavour but with less of the cream and more of the sweet. It works well with the flavour of the corn and wheat that makes up the chip base.

The texture is undoubtedly a wheaty one, where the texture has a nice crunch and unlike say a purely corn or potato chip, it leaves behind a bit of grit. Some people may not like that, but I find the way they make these, while it’s still there it’s fairly negligible compared to something with a higher wheat or grain content like crackers. These are also quite thin so while you do notice you’re eating something wheaty or grainy, it’s not as noticeable. The grains also help make you feel like you’re eating something healthier, when really it’s not. On the bright side you get a decent amount of fiber compared to other chips.

All things considered I’d say that these are a timeless snack, and still hold up after all this time. They’ve been around for a pretty long time and I still haven’t seen anyone even try to make a knock off or competitive product, which makes me wonder if they are just that hard to make. Either way, a snack for the ages that you should try if you haven’t already at this point.