Smith's Snackfoods, Australia

By now, you likely know that I love to eat snacks, and, in particular, chips.  I just love to munch on things, the crunchier and saltier the better.

On my recent trip to Sydney, I obviously had to try an assortment of "exotic" chips.  I was particularly excited, as I recalled the Australia has some of the most unique chip flavors ever, and eagerly dug into the offerings from Smith's.  Smith's was an independent company, but of course has since been sucked up by Frito-Lay, who's American offerings I've reviewed before.

"At Smith's we are very proud of our heritage and strive to ensure that we maintain our position as Australia's favourite chips - The Original and the Best."

Sadly, on my prior visits, my office didn't have that many crazy flavors. I still tried the offerings then, but sadly, there was no "Honey-Glazed Ham" or any of the crazy chicken, or seafood, varieties that I recalled. My next visit however the lineup improved, and in the summer of 2019, Smith's launched special edition flavors, dubbed "Taste of Summer". Of course I wanted to try limited new flavors, so even, gasp, went to a store to purchase some.

Crinkle Cut Smith's Potato Chips

"Our top quality Aussie potatoes are peeled & sliced to just the right crinkle cut thickness & cooked to perfection them sprinkled with our famous seasoning so you can enjoy the classic crunch & unbeatable flavour that only a Smith's potato chip can bring!"

 The flagship brand from Smith's Snackfoods Company is, well, Smith's potato chips.  All are crinkle cut.

Salt & Vinegar.

Next, a simple offering: standard salt and vinegar chips.

I liked the texture and wavy shape.  They were crazy salty, and super vinegary.  They certainly made you pucker up!

Still, just classic chips, but a decent version of classic chip.

Chicken.

Ahh, Australia and your fun flavors of chips.  Chicken chips are quite popular there, like the Chicken Kabob Pringles I reviewed a while ago.

These went much the same way as the Chicken Kebob chips.  Did they taste like chicken?  No.  Was that a problem? No, I don't like chicken.  Were they very seasoned? Yes.

The form factor was standard Smith's wavy thick crispy chips, clearly the unhealthy variety, with lots of seasoning, visible green flecks all over them.  I honestly have no idea what the seasoning was, but it was salty, it was ... ok, maybe like chicken ramen from a bag?  You know those seasoning packets?  Kinda like that.  Intense seasoning.

For a very flavorful chip, they were good, but again, not really something I'd want more of.

Cheese & Onion.

I feel like I can just copy-paste my reviews of other flavors here, and it applies to the cheese & onion flavor too.

Wavy thick crisp chips, kinda too heavy for me.  Very seasoned, flavorful chips, that don't taste anything like the promised flavor (literally, no hint of cheese in these!).

Meh.

Taste of Summer: French Onion Dip.

Wow, these really did taste just like classic french onion dip.  Exactly like the generic store brand dip.  It was uncanny, really, how strong the flavor was, inside that chip!

The chip itself was a standard chip, wavy form factor, that I just wasn't very into, but I think that is mostly because I was on a yucca/taro/plantain chip kick at the time, not potato chip.

Other offerings

But the Smith's Snackfood brand does have several other product lines, and I've tried things from all.

Burger Rings.

Ok, these sounded more fun. I'm not sure what I was expecting exactly.  What does burger taste like?

These just tasted like ... something.  I really don't have words for it.  Not really something I'd identify as burger though.  Not beefy, nor cheesy, nor the flavors of any toppings like tomato, lettuce, ketchup ... just a bit zesty?  The rings themselves were kinda like air puffs, not particularly interesting.

Twisties - Cheese.

Twisties come in several other flavors, like chicken and "wicked cheddar", but the office had only classic cheese.

They looked just like Cheetos, so my brain was confused with every bite, as they didn't taste anything like Cheetos.  The simple "cheese" name did not indicate that they'd be so zesty and spicy!  Much better than their American counterparts.

And of course, they did still leave cheesy fingers.

Grain Waves Sour Cream & Onion.

Next up, the healthy sounding "Grain Waves".

They reminded me of Sun Chips, which, not shockingly, are also made by Frito-Lay.

They were hearty from the multi grains, and shaped in a wave.  Yes, "Grain Waves".  Aptly named.

The sour cream and chive flavor was strong, and I actually quite liked these.  Somehow, an entire bag disappeared before I knew it!

I also tried the Sweet Chili flavor.  They again reminded me of Sun Chips, but I was disappointed by the sweet chili flavor, it was too subtle.

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Cheetos Cheese & Bacon balls.

How do you not try these?  Bacon!

These were like cheese puffs, light and airy, with a somewhat addicting slightly salty taste, which I guess was supposed to be like bacon.  Pretty good, and better than a simple cheese puff.