Dirty Chips

Update Review, 2022

I've reviewed Dirty Potato Chips before, back in 2013.  You may recall that I didn't really like them then.  But people change, tastes change, and so, I gave them another try in 2021-2022.  It was a year of a lot of stay-at-home lunches, which often included a side of chips.

"Dirty chips are kettle chips with attitude. We offer bold, disruptive, trend-setting flavors with authentic ingredients and small-batch quality."

As I geared up to write this update review, I learned something - it turns out that Dirty is no longer a standalone company, but rather, they are owned by ... Utz.  The same Utz that makes that crazy addicting snack mix ...  And why Utz?   Because Utz also owns Zapp's, yes another brand of kettle chip (that I like only slightly more), that bought Dirty a few years prior.  The snack food world, so insular!

Anyway, yeah.   Kettle chips, still not really my thing, and certainly not Dirty Brand.

Sour Cream & Onion.

"A creamy smooth taste with a hint of onion. "

Maybe I just don't like Dirty Chips.  Or most kettle chips.   I found these too fried,  with a flavor I didn't care for in the chip itself. 

The sour cream and onion didn't do anything for me either.  Meh-tastic.

**.

Mesquite BBQ.

"Everyone knows that mesquite wood makes the best bbq, and ours captures the true flavor of the old southwest. "

By mid-2021 I had a problem.  An addiction almost.  To snack foods, chips in particular, and bbq chips most of the time.  I wanted them every single day with my lunch.  I have *never* been a chips person like this before!

Even though Dirty chips aren't my favorite brand nor style, I still tried their bbq one day, when the local cafe I was picking up food from swapped out from Kettle brand to Dirty chips.

The bbq flavor was good, mesquite indeed.  A fairly complex taste, a mix of tomato and onion and spices, with a smoky nature to it.  Oh, and of course, salt and sugar to keep me addicted.  The chips were crunchy, more fried than I like, very, very unhealthy kettle style.  Not that any chips are particularly known as health foods, but Dirty chips really are higher up than many on the calories/fat/etc content.

Anyway, I easily finished my bag, and I liked the bbq flavor more than any other Dirty chip, but still not a brand I seek out.

***.

Funky Fusion.

"These funky fusion kettle-cooked potato chips are a little bit of everything. Deliciously spiced with smoky paprika, onion and garlic concoction, and blended hints of a sweet vinegar for the perfect tang. Your taste buds will thank you."

These were fascinating chips.  The name, "Funky Fusion", really is quite correct.  They were a little bit BBQ, a little bit Salt & Vinegar ... like a tangier, more grown up, very of a mesquite bbq.

I liked them.  The flavor was unique, they weren't too fried tasting.  Dirty brand still isn't my top choice, but this flavor was a winner, and I rank them above Kettle brand chips ...

***+.

Original Review, 2013

"Dirty" chips.  Not exactly the most appealing product name.  I was curious about the naming, so I looked it up on their website.  They explain "The name 'Dirty' comes from the process we used to prepare our chips. The potato slices are not washed, leaving more of the natural potato flavor."  Ok, so I guess they really are dirty ...

Anyway, Dirty chips are kettle style, crispy and oily.  They offer some standard flavors (salted, bbq, sour cream and onion, etc), but also some more exotic ones like maui onion.  They are all fine, but nothing special.  Meh.

I'm still continuing my quest to find chips I love.

• Cracked Pepper & Sea Salt.  Tasting notes: Eww.  Now, I would have never selected these, Ojan got them for some reason.  They were good standard oily crispy kettle chips, but I really did not like the pepper.
• Maui Onion.  Tasting notes: Kinda sweet onion flavor.  Good crispiness.
• Mesquite BBQ: Tasting notes: Same good crispiness, decent sorta sweet mesquite flavor, but not my favorite.
• Sweet Potato.  Tasting notes: Very sweet potato flavored, crispy, but something just seemed to be missing. I didn’t like them nearly as much as Terra or Food Should Taste Good ones.

Schöller Baked Goods, Germany

When I travel, although yes, I seek out desserts and baked goods galore, foodservice brands aren't generally the ones I seek out.  But during my recent trip to Munich, I discovered Schöller, a frozen baked goods (and ice cream!), distributor that my office used for catering and other desserts.

"Schoeller baked goods... is the home of high quality, high-quality optics and sophisticated recipes, for which our baked goods are known."

The items I tried really did look great, so Schöller's claim to "high-quality optics" really did seem true.  Sadly, most were mediocre and below average, even for mass produced frozen baked goods.

Donauwelle.

"Light and dark sponge with embedded sour cherries, covered in light cream. decorated with a hand-combed cocoa-based glaze."

The first item I tried was the Donauwelle.

This was actually pretty decent.  Moist vanilla and chocolate marble cake, loaded with sweet stewed cherries, a icing/whipped cream layer that was sweet and fluffy, chocolate ganache on top.

Not amazing, but decent for a frozen item, and in particular, I really liked the topping and cherries.

***.

Sachertorte.

"Chocolate cake made from Sachermasse with apricot preparation and cocoa sugar icing."

Next up, classic Sachertorte.  It didn't actually look that good, a bit dry even from the looks, but, I figured when in Germany, I should at least try it (although I think it is Austrian?).

It was ... ok.  Chocolate cake, not notable in any way.  Thin layer of apricot preserves in the middle.  Chocolate icing.  

It wasn't particularly chocolately, particularly rich, or really, particularly good.  Kinda dry, one note, and I wanted at least a big dollop of whipped cream with it.

**+.

Vegan Apple Pie.

"Shortcrust pastry base with apple filling and apple slices, powdered with sugar and cinnamon mix, glazed cake glaze and decorated with roasted almonds"

Schoeller baked goods makes a number of different apple pies, such as the "premium" with sultanas in it and almond slivers on top, another one without sultanas but decorated with golden butter crumbles, and another double crusted one also with sultanas.  My version didn't have sultanas, but did have almond slivers on top.  It was also vegan.  Basically, the last one I would have selected!

It wasn't good.  The crust was soft and actually tasted gluten-free, if you know what I mean.  Kinda odd texture and like sawdust.  I was saddened by this, as I do love a good, buttery crust.

The filling was equally disappointing.   It was filled generously with apple slices, and the apples weren't too soft or mushy, and did have a decent bite to them.  But they weren't really seasoned/spiced at all, the binding around them was equally flavorless, and although I could see a little cinnamon on top, I didn't taste it.

So basically, kinda flavorless apple filling, sawdust crust.  I had a number of mediocre apple desserts during my trip, but this was the bottom of the barrel.

*.

Münchner Stubn, Munich

After 6 years, I finally returned to Munich.  While I enjoyed a few things during my previous trip, it isn't really a city I have all much of a fondness for (not for the food, the culture, the weather, the architecture ...), but I recently visited for a week for work.  While I was there, yes, I ate my share of mediocre Bavarian (and French and Italian) food.  Mostly nothing was memorable, and I kept craving a great dessert to "make me happy".

Which led me, on my last night in town, to join a co-worker at Münchner Stubn, located right near my hotel.

"The essence of Munich is in a gut feeling."

While this may be the motto of Münchner Stubn, I also kinda feel that way about Munich in general.  So much heavy food, so much more meat and carbs, so few fruits and vegetables than I am used to.

Anyway.  Münchner Stubn serves all the Bavarian classics, and seems to always draw quite the crowd, both inside and out, every day.  Always a line to get in.  It sure seems like a tourist trap, located right below a hotel, adjacent to the train station, etc.  Menus readily available in many languages.  It wasn't particularly high on my list of places to go, although nearly all of my co-workers wound up there at least once, if not twice, just because it was easy and close by.  Their reports were all average, which about matches what I expected.  And for those who don't want German food, um, they also serve pizza.  Like I said, warning signs.

I was drawn in by one thing: their kaiserschmarrn.  It gets such rave reviews.  That said ... I suspected it was because it was the first time many of these tourists had kaiserschmarrn, and thus it was unique, different, and, even a mediocre version could be quite novel at first.  But the photos looked legit, and so, last night in town, I went, just for dessert.

Kaiserschmarrn. 10.50.

"Caramelized, rum raisins, almonds, apple compote. made fresh, approx. 20min."

Ah yes.  Kaiserschmarrn.  Truly a unique Bavarian dessert, and one I discovered early during my first trip to Munich (at Zum Dürnbräu, where it, and everything really, was so good we returned a few days later).  But I've come to realize not all kaiserschmarrn is created equal, and, to some extent, I think it is losing its appeal in some ways due to eating too many versions of it in a short period of time.

But I digress.  Let's get back to Münchner Stubn and their version.

It came served in a skillet (a good sign!) except it was clear immediately this was just for presentation, it hadn't been actually cooked in it, no caramelized bits clinging to the pan.  Hmmm.  Interestingly, their version comes with both apple compote and stewed plums, where everywhere else I've seen it comes with one or the other.  I appreciated this, but again, went, "Hmm...".  Finally, garnish of a few raspberries and blueberries, a sprig of currants, and mint completed the presentation.

This version had some good elements.  The pieces were nice size chunks bigger than bite sized.  They had decent caramelization, but lacked the lofty, doughy interior of the pieces at Zum Dürnbräu.  It was studded with some raisins (rum soaked it said, I didn't taste rum though) which were decent but not as plump as other versions, and pieces were covered with caramelized sliced almonds.  The candied almonds were quite nice.

So the base - decent.  Lacking in as much flavor (no spicing, base dough not particularly flavorful) as Zum Dürnbräu, and pieces not as moist/lofty, but, some points for the almonds.  It was lightly dusted with powdered sugar, not nearly as significant as the copious amount of sugar in the Zum Dürnbräu version.

Then, the sauces.  The apple compote really was more like chunks of apple than applesauce, which I liked more, but, it tasted kinda like nothing.  No spicing, which I know is traditional, and just not my thing, although I did appreciate the texture.

The stewed plum one was the least flavorful of all the versions I have tried.  Not sweet and fruity, not tart, just, well, not tasting like much of anything really.  Good texture again though, but I really wanted to taste the fruity, or at least tart and acidic, nature of it.

Overall, solidly average, and not one I'd go back for.  ***.

Kaiserschmarrn ... with whipped cream! 1.50.

I knew that Münchner Stubn had both whipped cream and ice cream available, normally options to add-on to the apple strudel for 1.50 each, and I also know that I really wanted whipped cream with my kaiserschmarrn.  And so, very well knowing it was not the Bavarian way, we asked to have some whipped cream too.

The whipped cream came in a bowl of its own, and was clearly just canned whipped cream.  It deflated quickly, and couldn't really stand up to the heafty kaiserschmarrn.  I was glad to have it, but, next time I'd opt for the ice cream ...

Korean Burrito Joint by Aria

Deep in the middle of the pandemic, I became a big fan of the 60 Morris Street Cloud/Ghost Kitchen that sprung up during the early covid days.  There are, literally, 81 different listings on Seamless.com for establishments located at 60 Morris Street.  I wanted to try them all, often picking up orders from multiple at a time.

Quick backstory, if you aren't familiar ... it is a big warehouse, not really a restaurant.  It is basically a distribution center for a bunch of the delivery companies.  They sell a combination of items they do source from actual restaurants and then sell from there (e.g. pizza they sell from Amicis), but they also created a ton, and I mean a ton, of totally random restaurant names and concepts, and just ... list them all, hoping to draw you in by one of them.  Many sell the exact same products.  They make these at the location, en masse.

One of the businesses that sprung up there was Korean Burrito Joint by Aria, an offshoot of Aria, a Korean chicken restaurant with a regular brick and mortar location in SF and down in LA.  As you can probably guess, fusion burritos and Korean style fried chicken are the basis of the place, but, I was drawn in for other reasons.

Side note: Stuck doing a lot of takeout and delivery these days? Want to try some free food and new pickup or delivery services?  Here are some codes for free money!

• Nextdish: ($10 off your first order) [ Delivery only ]
• Door Dash ($15 off, $5 each of your first 3 orders) [ Delivery or pickup ]
• Caviar ($20 off, $10 off your first 2 orders) [ Delivery or pickup ]
• Ritual ($6 off) [ Pickup only ]
• Delivery.com ($10 off) [ Delivery or pickup ]
• Grub Hub ($10 off) [ Delivery or pickup ]
• Seamless ($10 off) [ Delivery or pickup ]
• Allset ($5 off) [ Pickup only ]
• Nextdish: ($10 off your first order) [ Delivery only ]
• Uber Eats ($20 off - use code eats-lejw5 at checkout) [ Pickup or delivery ]

My order was via Seamless, and was ready quickly, easy to pick up from my assigned "locker" at the pickup station (if you haven't been to 60 Morris, it really is quite interesting, you are given a locker number, and your food is placed into it for contactless pickup).

Spoiler: Korean Burrito Joint by Aria was one of the top places I found in the ghost kitchens.

Korean Fried Dumplings. $5.

Um yeah.

I was really, really in the mood for crispy fried dumplings when I picked these up.  And, wow, did they satisfy.

So crispy.  I know some people complain in reviews that they are too fried, dried out, too crispy, etc, but I actually adored how crispy they were.

And yes, they were horribly oily.  No question.  Seriously.  So. Much. Oil.  But, uh, again, I was in the mood for exactly this.  Greasy, and crispy, and fried.

They didn't seem particularly fresh, and likely weren't.  Probably prepared in batches, and just heated up?  They were lukewarm even though I was there as the order came out, and ate them immediately on the street.

But again, I didn't care.

Korean Fried Dumplings: Inside.

I'm not sure what the filling of the dumplings actually was.

The regular Aria restaurant has fried mandu on the menu, and they say that they have ground beef, carrots, and onions?  Which didn't seem to be what these were.  I thought I found cabbage, and, there was some kind of meat, but it seemed pork?  Definitely not ground beef.

Anyway, the filling was juicy and fine, just, uh, not identifiable.  Again, something that probably should warrant a negative review, but, yup, I really, truly, didn't mind.

I devoured these on the spot, and loved every moment of it.

****, these really satisfied me.  I recommend with just soy sauce, or a mix of soy with a splash of their secret sauce mixed in.

$5 for order of 6 seemed quite reasonable.

Sauces

To go with most items on the Aria menu, you are able to select 2 sauces for free, and add additional for a fee.  The lineup of sauces to choose from was kinda funny if you think of it pairing with dumplings, but these are the same sauces offered to pair with the Mexican foods and fried chicken too: 3 kinds of salsa (roja, verde, or mild salsa), 2 kinda of aioli (chipotle or "spicy"), and then what seemed to be their signature sauces "green dipping sauce" and "Secret" sauce.

Aria Secret Sauce (Sweet & Spicy) / Green Dipping Sauce.
(Included with dumplings, $0.75 otherwise).

I went for the two signature sauces.  I was pairing with dumplings, so they also seemed more appropriate than salsas or heavy aioli.

Aria Secret Sauce (Sweet & Spicy)

The secret sauce, the red one, was ... definitely more sweet than spicy.  It was fine, but I found it overwhelmed the dumplings, and really was just far more sweet than I wanted.  I think this one likely is great with the actual Korean Fried Chicken.

**+.

Green Dipping Sauce

The green dipping sauce was actually really quite good.  Very vibrant and fresh tasting, rather ... Peruvian inspired perhaps?  I liked it, but, I didn't think it went with the dumplings that well.  I'm not sure what to pair it with actually, it made me wish I had some yucca fries!

***+.