Lesser Evil Snack Foods

"Snacks that feel and taste good".

Do I really care if my snacks "feel" good?  Nah.  Am I a healthy snacker?  Ha.  But do I love snack foods?  Oh yes.  And do I jump at the chance to try new products and brands, even if they don't appeal at first glance (hey, this is how we discover some gems!).  Of course.

Lesser Evil makes several product lines, including my #1 snack obsession (popcorn!), along with Paleo Puffs, "Power Curls", Space Balls, "Moonions", and now, cookies.  All are gluten-free, certified organic, plant based, etc.

Most of the offerings I've tried are generally a bit too light for my style, but there are a few items that aren't too bad, and I do continue to try more products regularly.

Organic Popcorn (Previously branded as "Buddha Bowl")

"If you have heard of Buddha bowls you know the ingredients you are meant to put in them are healthy and beautiful. Like in a Buddha Bowl we only wanted to put healthy and beautiful things in our popcorn bags. Our popcorn is special because it's earth friendly (it's organic), so it's free of many of the chemical residues that exist on convention popping corn. Also, we air pop only the most tender kernels so we don't add unwanted fat and calories. We then use either coconut, avocado oil or ghee. The oils are cold pressed without heat or chemicals keeping the essential nutrients intact. We then dust with Himalayan salt which we think is the purest form of salt available. We think you will like the ingredients we use."

The popcorn is available in a slew of varieties, savory and sweet.  Classic Cheddah, Avocado-Licious, Himalayan Gold (e.g. "butter"), Himalayan Pink, Himalayan Sweetness, Jalapeno & Honey, Oh My Ghee!  They also introduced new seasonal flavors like, sigh, Pumpkin Spice.  I've tried many.

"We air-pop the most tender butterfly popcorn, making it lighter, fluffier and lower in fat and calories."

The popcorn all is ... fine.  It is fairly fluffy.

Savory

Oh My Ghee!

"The first organic popcorn made with organic grass-fed ghee. We tumble this popcorn in ghee with an amazingly silky flavor that is much easier on the digestive system than traditional butter."

This was a very simple variety, just plain salted popcorn, but made with ghee instead of traditional oil or butter.

It is ... fine.  

Simple, well popped, slightly salty, popcorn.  It doesn't taste any different than popcorn made with more traditional fats, so if you want simple salted popcorn that is possibly better for you ... try it?  For me it was too plain. **+.

Oh My Ghee! (June 2020).

I didn't seek it out again, but my partner's company sent him monthly snack boxes during the COVID working from home situation, so of course I stole any popcorn that came our (uh, his?) way.

It certainly isn't what I normally go for - very plain, savory, but, nice when I've had too much sweet.  Slightly almost cheesy flavor.  Nicely popped kernels.  Guilt free at 100 calories per bag?

I ate it happily (frozen) one night late at night when I was munchy, and had really overdone it on sweets.  It hit the spot, but again, I don't seek this out on my own. ***.

Classic Cheddah.

"The ultimate cheesy popcorn that will instantly enlighten your taste buds. Lovingly dusted with a specially crafted organic cheddar cheese blend."

This was ... also just fine.  Well popped, good salt level, but the cheesy nature was very muted.  Probably the lowest calorie cheesy popcorn I've had, and, it was clear it was a lighter style.  Not really for me.  **+.

"No Cheese" Cheesiness.

I was really craving cheesy popcorn, and so I tried the cheese-less cheesy flavor from Lesser Evil.  It uses nutritional yeast to create the cheese-adjacent flavor, which was fine, but not great.  However, like most of their popcorn, the coconut oil flavor was really quite strong, and I didn't care for that underlying taste.  Well popped popcorn, but, another that just isn't for me.  **+.

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Himalayan Pink

"Our original flavor is made with just three simple ingredients – organic popcorn, organic extra-virgin coconut oil and Himalayan salt."

Another very simple flavor, more well popped, nicely salted popcorn.  Somehow I liked this more than the others, I think because it wasn't trying to be anymore more than it was.  But still, not an exciting variety, and I don't really like the coconut oil base.  **.

Sweet

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Himalayan Sweetness

"For the sweet tooth in every household!"

Ok, so they tried to do sweet but not crazy decadent.

In this product, the coconut oil base works quite well.  Coconut and sweet are a good combination.  In particular, I liked this one frozen, the coconut oil provides a coating that gets crunchy.

This, frozen, was my favorite of all varieties I tried, no question.  I'd get it again. ***.

Seasonal

The seasonal offerings are definitely far more exciting than the regular products, although, still, healthy style ...

Dark Chocolate & Himalayan Pink Sea Salt.

"Your favorite Himalayan Sweetness flavor is all dressed up for the holidays. This subtly sweet, organic popcorn tumbled in luscious dark chocolate proves that indulgence really can be guilt free."

This is an interesting flavor.  

It is not nearly as decadent as other popcorn I go for that features chocolate - e.g. the kind that is drizzled in generous melted chocolate (like Salted Caramel & Fudge from PopWorks or Dark Fudge Peppermint Drizzlecorn from Popcorn Indiana), and usually is sweet crispy kettle corn under all that.  Or the kinds that are *entirely* coated in chocolate, such as Harry & David's signature Moose Munch (omg, so good, but soooo decadent) or the equally ridiculous Zebra Caramel Corn from Popcornopolis (yes, fully coated rich caramel corn, with both white and dark chocolate coating in addition!).

It is not a decadent style, and I didn't expect it to be.  This brand is about better for you options, and, they call this one "guilt free" and "subtle sweet".  Which it was, more the style like Johnny's Popcorn (chocolate chip) or Skinny Pop (chocolate), a lighter style, cocoa dusting rather than melted chocolate.

This was the best of the lighter styles I've tried though - a more intense chocolate, richer, real cocoa flavor (at least on some pieces), than other brands.  I did find myself hunting for the kernels with more coating though.

It had decent salty component as well, and the kernels were fluffy and well popped.  It was definitely good, not the kind of popcorn that I crave usually, but, for the style, the best I've had.  

Over time, it really grew on me, particularly once I froze it! ****.

White Chocolate & Matcha.

"Behold the un-matcha-ble combination of white chocolate and matcha! Turn any space into a cozy teashop with a bag of this lightly sweet, vegan, seasonal treat."

Another holiday only variety, although I really don't understand why.  There is no reason not to enjoy matcha and white chocolate in the summer!

I have long been a fan of matcha white chocolate popcorn, although usually go for, as you likely suspect, a much more decadent version.  One covered in tons of white chocolate and matcha.  This was, like all Lesser Evil popcorn, very, very lightly dusted, just a little sugar, salt, matcha powder, and ... "organic flavor".  No actual white chocolate.

But it was good, again, for a lighter style.  You just have to be ready for the lighter style.  Sorta sweet, sorta matcha flavored.  Again not what I generally go for, but I liked it enough.  I wouldn't get again though.

***.

White Chocolate & Matcha (Seasonal).

"We're spilling the TEA on what makes our snacks so awesome - clean ingredients! Our limited edition White Chocolate and Matcha popcorn will satisfy your sweet tooth this holiday season! Creamy white chocolate and herbacious matcha create a melt-in-your mouth flavor combination that is simply zen-sational."

I forgot that I had tried this last winter holiday season (when Lesser Evil has dubbed matcha & white chocolate appropriate).  I didn't dislike it then, but, I probably would not have gotten it again if I had re-read my review first.

The base popcorn itself was fine.  Big puffy kernels.  Well popped.  Unlike most of their flavors, I don't taste the slightly odd coconut oil much here.  But ... it really is a quite light popcorn.  Very very very mild chocolate flavor, and really barely any matcha.  I easily could have believed it wasn't matcha flavored at all.  As you can see, it isn't even green colored to give it away.  It was lightly sweet, and good for a healthy popcorn, but certainly no decent white chocolate drizzlecorn like most other brands.  Fine for what it was, ***, but I generally want something more decadent, sweeter, and, well, that tastes like matcha if I buy something matcha.

Pumpkin Spice (Seasonal).

"Tis’ the season(ing)! Our Pumpkin Spice Popcorn is a superb autumnal treat. Our signature blend of coconut oil and Himalayan Pink Salt gets cozy with Organic Pumpkin Spice seasoning. It’s a sweet, spicy, salty snack you’re sure to Fall in love with."

This is the tale of two popcorns.  First, we have the popcorn that made up the majority, probably 75%, of the bag.  This was lightly pumpkin spice seasoned plain popcorn.  A little sugar, salt, cinnamon, and a touch of something else, but nothing aggressive.  Fairly plain popcorn, really, with a hint of fall if you really searched for it.  

And then, the bright orange glazed popcorn, <25% of the bag.  These were a light caramel corn, that just happened to be oddly orange, and seem to have been kissed by a touch of pumpkin spice.  Blindfolded, you'd likely think it was just light caramel corn, maybe cinnamon caramel corn.

Put them together, and basically a very, very mild pumpkin spice lightly sweet experience.  Rather boring really (not that I wanted a punch in the face of nutmeg!).  I ended up breaking this bag down entirely, eating all the orange glazed popcorn first, which of course made putting the bag down impossible, as I got rather obsessed with finding all the pieces.  Eating just those pieces, in quantity, made for a sweet treat, which became cloying by the end, but, they were my favorite.  No better nor worse though than average light caramel corn.  ***.

Then, the plain lightly spiced ones, even more boring.  **+.

Overall, fine, but, not remarkable, and if you are looking for strong pumpkin spice vibes, they aren't here.  ***.

Pumpkin Spice.

I had this the first time a few years ago, and thought it was decent, but I didn't remember my specific thoughts when I had it again this pumpkin spice season.  I was glad to try it with a fresh perspective.

I basically liked it. There were 3 different types of pieces: plain, spiced, and orange glazed.  They seemed to be in about equal distribution.  All the popcorn was well popped, fluffy.

The orange glazed pieces were definitely the sweetest, and although they were my favorites (I think), I quickly realized that I didn't want to just pluck all of those out, as it got a bit cloying fast.  Definitely sweeter than most kettle corn, less candied than caramel corn, more akin to the glaze on a candied apple, if that makes sense.  ***+.

Then there were the "spiced" pieces, basically, the ones that had lots of brown spices on them.  I didn't taste too much nutmeg (possibly not even any?), which delighted me, as I don't care for aggressive nutmeg.  They were definitely spiced though, nice warming spices, and it somewhat reminded me of gingerbread.  Once I got over loving the sweet glazed pieces, I liked these the most.  ***+.

And finally, the more plain pieces, that still did have flavor, lightly salty, and mostly you could taste the signature coconut oil in these pieces, which is the aspect of Lesser Evil that I don't generally care for.  This flavor was entirely masked in the other pieces, and only came out in these. **+, just because I don't like that coconut taste.

Add it all up, and it is quite balanced, and enjoyable.  Not too aggressive in the pumpkin spicing, but definitely spiced.  I'll get it again next "holiday" season.  ***+.

Grain Free Paleo Puffs

"Our organic puffed snacks are packed with nutrient-dense cassava, coconut, and sweet potato flours. We stand for the little things both in our products and in this life and it's the simple acts that make this world great."

The puffs are available in three varieties: Himalayan Salt, Apple Cider Vinegar, and  “No Cheese” Cheesiness.  I tried the later.  They ... weren't bad, actually.

 “No Cheese” Cheesiness.

Ok, these *really* surprised me.

The puffs are made of cassava flour, tapioca starch, coconut flour, and more, a fairly strange texture, but not entirely unpleasant, and they were light and airy.  Not a bad base, really.  The "cheese" came from a combination of garlic, onion, and sweet potato powder, plus ground mustard (?!), and nutritional yeast.  It was a kinda cheesy, kinda zesty mix, and, well, I was fascinated with it.  It paired well with the base puff.

Overall, I don't want to run out and purchase bags of these, but, I did actually find myself enjoying the ones I had.  Well, huh.

***+.

Fiery Hot!

"When you're craving something smoky and spicy, our Fiery Hot Paleo Puffs, pack all of the flaming hot flavor you love without all the bad stuff."

It had been several years since I had Paleo Puffs, and somewhat forgot that I had tried them before (in another flavor).  I was drawn in again by the form factor, and the promise of heat.

I tried a few, and was somewhat put off.  But I was also a bit fascinated, and had a few more.  Which quickly turned into nearly half the bag.  Gulp.  At least these are, after all, "Lesser Evil", even if I quickly went way past a normal serving size.

The puff is super crunchy, yet a bit airy, which I find really compelling.  It is that great crunch that keeps me going.  They look ugly, but, hey, something about it really works.  Great form factor and eating experience: ****.

The base flavor is where they start to seem a bit odd.  The combo of cassava flour, sweet potato flour, tapioca starch, and coconut flavor leans in the direction of tasting too "healthy"ish, or hearty perhaps.  And then the coating?  That's where things get confusing.  I don't care for the nutritional yeast very much.  But onion, garlic, salt, vinegar, and habanero?  Sure.  Very savory, and some slight heat.  I actually wanted, and expected more heat from the habanero, but, there was some.  So flavor wise, I couldn't tell if I liked them, tolerated them, or disliked.  I think probably somewhere in the "tolerate" spectrum, with an appreciation for the slight heat.  **+ flavor.

I easily finished my bag, but there were enough little misses here that I wouldn't purchase again.  Low *** overall.

Space Balls

Space Balls are puffs, but in round ball form.  They come in 3 flavors all with cosmic names: "outer planet pizza", "ranch ship ranch", and "interstellar cheddar".

Interstellar Cheddar.

"Want legendary cheesy flavor without the guilt—and the side effects? These are the healthy snack puffs for you. This organic, vegan snack is made with seasoning that brings the cheesy flavor to your new favorite functional snack, without any of the other questionable ingredients."

I was going through a cheesy snack phase, so the Interstellar Cheddar flavor jumped out at me.  That said, these are vegan, so I knew the cheddar flavor was going to be limited to some nutritional yeast and spices approximation of cheddar flavor.

The space balls were reasonably enjoyable.  Good crunch level, puffy form factor, very snackable.  They had a mild cheesy flavor, that did taste sorta healthy and a bit bitter on the finish.  Not bad, but not great.  

Overall, "fine", but not something I'd seek out again.  ***. 

Maison Georges Larnicol

Maison Georges Larnicol is a French bakery, patisserie, and chocolatier.  They have 32 stores throughout France, and also distributed some of their goods wholesale, which is how I was able to try them.

"The Kouignette® (Pronounced “kween-et”) was created in 2003 by Meilleur Ouvrier de France Georges Larnicol. The Kouignette® was inspired by the the Kouign-Amann and has become their flagship product."

If you are unfamiliar with kouign-amann in general (you've been missing out!), these are much like a basic kouign-amann: 

"The Kouignette® could be described as a richer, more indulgent version of the croissant. It can be enjoyed as a breakfast pastry, a dessert or simply a treat alongside a cup of coffee or tea. It is a delicious pastry that is produced in Brittany, France."

Maison Georges Larnicol makes the Kouignettes in 3 sizes: mini, medium, and large (ok, technically 4 sizes, as they make a party size tray version that is 6.5" diameter as well).  They come with assorted fillings (almond, salted caramel, raspberry, chocolate, candied orange, pistachio, rum raisin, Contreau), or plain as "natural" flavor.  They recommend serving them warm with whipped cream or ice cream "for a delicious, sweet dessert".  You don't need to tell me twice to add either (or both!) of those.

Mini Raspberry Kouignette®.

"Miniature handmade pastries produced in Brittany using French flour & butter, and homemade raspberry jam."

First I tried one of the smallest pastries, the mini.  These were basically the size of any other mini pastry (1.5" diameter).  They didn't really look like kouign amann, but I know they are taking liberties with these "kouignettes".  The form factor was a bit odd, with the rolled shape, which isn't what I normally see with kouign amann, even filled ones.  It looked more like a cinnamon roll style or any other rolled danish.

I tried at room temperature first.  The pastry was a bit soft, not the crispy caramelized exterior that I know and love from fresh kouign amann.  But there was caramel (it was just soft), and the base dough had a very rich and decadent flavor.  Clearly lots of high quality butter and sugar at play here.  

The raspberry jam was incredibly flavorful and fruity.  Real raspberries used, clearly, lots of seeds.  It was very good, but very intense jam.  It made the overall pastry very sweet and fruity.  I liked it, but you definitely needed to be in the mood for a lot of jam.

Overall, this was good - clearly quality base ingredients, but a different spin on a kouign amann, and, clearly not a fresh item, so go in with those expectations.  If you found it in a hotel breakfast buffet, you'd think it was slightly above average, if that helps.

***+.

Medium Chocolate Kouignette®.

"Small pastry made from puff pastry with pure churn butter and chocolate ganache."

Next up, the medium, this time with chocolate filling.  These were still smaller than a standard kouign amann, but still big enough to feel like you ate a reasonably full size treat (2.3" diameter).  For context, the large are 3.5".  

I tried this at room temperature first too.  Same basic review: strangely soft, but great caramel and butter levels, very good tasting. Non-standard rolled format. Minimal chocolate between the layers, but what was there was deep, dark, and seemed high quality.

I heated it up, and the chocolate got slightly melty, which was a nice improvement.  Paired with a scoop of ice cream, it was an enjoyable treat.  Still not as good as fresh, but the quality taste of the base pastry is quite notable.  High ***+.

Fresko Fresh Kosher

Updated Reviews, 2022-2024 Experiences

If you keep kosher, there is a good chance you are familiar with Fresko, a specialty prepared foods company that serves many airlines, hospitals, food service establishments, and  airport concessions.  They hold Kosher and Halal certifications and pretty much dominate the industry the best I can tell.

"Freshness At Your Fingertips! Welcome to Fresko, Where innovation meets nutrition – offering an impressive selection of prepared foods for a wide range of tastes and dietary needs. Explore our comprehensive menu, from our gourmet sandwiches and salads to our hearty entrees and snacks."

Fresko’s product offerings include sandwiches and wraps, salads and sushi, side dishes, entrees, and baked goods.  They offer a surprisingly large vegan range as well.  Some are frozen and others are fresh.  Fresko is based in Hackensack, NJ, but distributes nationwide.  I've tried a huge variety of their products at this point, and in general, I find it just highly variable.  There are some dishes I've been blown away by how good they were.  Many that were average, "fine", but not something I'd seek out.  And then, nearly as many that were pretty horrible.  I haven't really identified a formula for predicting which will be hits, and which will be flops, and thus, I just keep trying ...

Chilled Lunches: Sandwiches, Salads, and Sushi

Fresko offers many chilled lunch items: sandwiches, salads, and sushi.  Sandwiches always come packaged with pickles, a small side of slaw, and two cookies.  Salads are nicely packaged with individual components separated out. I have mixed feelings on these offerings, as they never seem quite as fresh as I'd like, but, sometimes have some tasty bits.

Good Shiitake.

"Mushrooms are a powerhouse of flavor and nutrition. When designing this salad creation, we have incorporated the best of the fungi kingdom - Hon-shemji, Shiitake, and Portobello. Each mushroom is marinated and prepared to perfection. Mix in charred edamame, ancient quinoa and heirloom carrots. Top with our house made balsamic vinaigrette. This salad is elegant, sophisticated and scrumptious. "

Like all Fresko salads, the Good Shiitake salad was nicely packaged with different components separate.  It had a base of mixed greens, and then three kinds of mushrooms: roasted portabello mushrooms, shiitake mushroom "bacon", hon-shimeji mushrooms, along with carrots and charred edamame, and quinoa, plus balsamic viniagrette.

The base was good, fresh crisp greens.  Good quantity.  But the rest ... eh.

The edamame was quite shrived ("charred" I suppose), and the carrots were steamed but crunchy still, somewhat of an odd texture.  The big pieces of portobello mushroom were slimy, the hon-shimeji seemed pickled, or at least, had an odd taste to them.  The shiitake mushroom bacon nice chew I guess, but I wasn't into the flavor of it either, which is odd as I really do like mushrooms.  Quinoa and balsamic vinaigrette I never care for.

So, yes, fresh nice greens, but everything else, meh.  **.

Heirloom Tomato Salad.

Next up, a seasonal special: heirloom tomato.

I got this excited for heirloom tomatoes, but, these really didn't seem like anything special.  Just grape tomatoes with some marinade.  Also in the box was a few tiny bits of shredded carrot, strangely packaged alongside chickpeas, chopped red onion and non-specified cheese, and cucumbers.  The packaging said it also contained croutons, but mine did not.  

This was all fairly average.  Not much to say about it at all.  ***.

Salad Greens.

The base salad for the heirloom tomato was a mix of baby spinach and assorted baby greens.  There was also a container of dijon dressing under it all.  This was all fine.  ***.

Artisan Deli Salad.

Next up, the "aritisan" deli salad, which sounded a bit fancier than it was.

The toppings for this included cubes of turkey and turkey pastrami, along with a chopped mix of cucumber/red onion/tomato, some shredded carrot, croutons, and ... a comical amount of dried cranberries.  So, so many dried cranberries.

The croutons were fairly soggy from being in the fridge, the tomato/cucumber/red onion mix was pretty harsh.  The shredded carrots were fine, as were the cranberries, but, wow, so many of them.  The base was just plain lettuce, not particularly interesting.

The cubes of turkey were kinda meh, but I don't tend to like turkey.  The turkey pastrami was better, more flavorful.  Neither seemed particularly fresh however, a bit slimy.  Reminded me a bit of Lunchables, not that I've had those in many years.

Overall, a sorta different take on a deli salad, which I wouldn't expect to have the cranberries at least, but didn't seem very cohesive.  **+.

Taco Taco Salad.

"Impossible beef / black bean corn salsa / sweet potato crisps / shredded cheddar / avocado / summer crisp greens / chipotle lime dressing."

Next up, the "taco taco" salad.  Why double the taco?  I have no idea.  This one was fairly interesting - relatively well composed and thought out.  

It came with a small amount of Impossible brand beef crumbles, which was a bit odd to eat cold, so I wondered if I was supposed to remove it and microwave it first?  The crumbles were actually fairly tasty though, indistinguishable from say Taco Bell beef crumbles.  To add a bit more protein, there was also the "black bean corn salsa", which ... was really just some black beans and a little corn. I really wanted tomato and red onion in here somewhere. 

I had to ignore the avocado because I'm allergic, and the cold shredded cheddar was fine but not particularly interesting (cojita or something would be more Mexican-ish).  The little pieces of lemon were nice for a bit of acid, but, I kinda wanted lime instead of lemon to stay in theme ...

I did like the random two pieces of watermelon radish (yay crunch!), and the sweet potato crisps were quite tasty (and somehow still crispy, even though in the fridge).  The dressing I even enjoyed, sorta a zesty ranch (they called it chipotle lime, so I expected a vinaigrette, but this was definitely a creamy, mayo based style, and I don't generally like the precise flavor of chipotle, but I liked the zestiness here).

So, overall, some interesting bits, but I felt like they missed a few opportunities (tomato, onion, cheese type, lime, and even, it probably would be more cohesive with tortilla chips or strips, but I did quite like those sweet potato crisps, so, not complaining on that one).  Still, it really was tasty.  ***+.

Taco Taco Salad: Base.

The base of the taco taco salad I liked, big huge hunks of fresh bibb (?) lettuce.

Taco Taco Salad (2024).

"Impossible beef / black bean corn salsa / sweet potato crisps / shredded cheddar / avocado / summer crisp greens / chipotle lime dressing."

I had this once a few years ago, and kinda liked it, so I grabbed it again.  It was much the same as before, I think, but I did like it less. There were a few changes: fewer chips, no radish (even though the ingredients listed it), and the black bean corn salsa had far more corn this time, and the addition of all the peppers, rather than mostly just black beans.  But otherwise, much the same.  

The Impossible crumbles were ok, but not great, the cheddar fine but not exciting, and the black bean mix slightly more interesting, flavorful, and vibrant, but not really my thing.  I really wanted fresh tomatoes as a topping. Avoided avocado as I'm allergic. **+ toppings.

I again really liked the sweet potato chips, whatever brand they are, I enjoy them quite a bit, even though they get soft in here being refrigerated. **** chips.

Taco Salad Base, Chipotle Lime Dressing.

The base was good, just simple greens, but fresh enough, good size pieces.

I again liked the chipotle lime dressing more than expected as I don't tend to care for chipotle, but it was nice and zesty, mayo based, creamy. ***+ base and dressing.

Balsamic portobello mushroom & beef salad
w/ carrot-ginger vinaigrette.

Next up, a more hearty salad, the balsamic portobello mushroom & beef salad.

In addition to the expected hunks of portobello mushroom and beef, this also had lentils (boo) and shredded carrots, pickled red onions, and sliced almonds and candied pecans.

The shredded carrots and pickled onions were as expected, decent enough.  I quickly tossed the lentils as I don't care for them.  The namesake mushrooms were fine, I didn't taste balsamic, but they were soft and slimy in a marinated way, not a gross way, if that makes any sense.  These elements all pretty standard quality, ***.

The beef however was really not very good.  It was incredibly chewy, very fatty in places, and also didn't seem marinated in anything itself.  Very, very tough flank steak it seemed.  I did not like it at all.  *.

The base was fresh, crisp butter lettuce.  I like to have a mix of lettuces, but this really was quite good, and the salad had enough other ingredients it wasn't needed. ***+.

The carrot-ginger vinaigrette was reasonable - not the strongest carrot nor ginger flavors, but, flavorful overall.  It was however a vinaigrette, which isn't my thing for salads.  ***.

The nuts were a highlight for me.  The slivered almonds were great for adding crunch, and I adored the candied pecans.  ****.  I'm not sure they made sense with the lentils and beef, but, since I discarded those, they added to my salad nicely.

Overall, I had a nice salad base with carrots/red onions/mushrooms, and nuts, and enjoyed it, but the beef was a real letdown.  ***.

Mushroom Salad w/ Balsamic Vinaigrette.

This salad was a mixed bag.  Like many Fresko items, the ingredients on the label didn't match at all what it was (e.g. it said it would have pears, blueberries, and other fruit?). But it was a base of quite fresh and crisp greens, with mediocre grape tomatoes, two pieces of sorta sour cooked broccoli, way too sour pickled onions, mushy quinoa, a slew of slimy but flavorful cooked mushrooms, and a ton of cranberries.  I liked the base, tolerated the tomatoes/broccoli, and did enjoy the mushrooms (but not ALL those mushrooms), but overall, not really a winning salad for me.  I didn't try the balsamic vinaigrette as that isn't my style of dressing ever.  **.

Shaved Vegetables w/ Orange Vinaigrette.

Many of the Fresko salads come loaded with toppings.  This one had a rather laughable small quantity.  A few shavings of carrot, beets, radish, and fennel.  This was it for ingredients, besides the lettuce (all one kind).  No juicy veggies, nothing for crunch, no protein, nothing.  The label said it should have navel orange and candied walnuts, that certainly would have added to it.

The veggies were all fine, but being thin sliced with no other ingredients made this really have no textures at all.

Salad Base.

The base of both of these was very fresh crisp greens.  ****.

Egg Salad Sandwich Deluxe Box.

This is the "Deluxe" egg salad sandwich box, which came with packaged pickle chips (yay!), a *tiny* thing of cole slaw, and two cookies.  

The slaw I've had before as a full size side, and it was about the same - very dressed, lacking seasoning, but, decent enough.  ***.  The cookies I'll review separately below.

The egg salad sandwich ... well, the bun actually looked pretty good, soft, fluffy, lightly shiny, but it didn't taste like much, and was pretty mushy.  Lack of freshness was an issue here.  Meh.  The egg salad mix was as expected: eggs, mayo, mustard, along with onion powder, sugar (!).  It was very mashed, contained very little in the way of hunks of egg white, and seemed very egg yolk heavy.  Not very good filling either.  **.

Onion Crunch Roll.

I got adventurous and decided to try the sushi.

What is an "onion crunch roll"?  It turns out to be a vegetarian roll, filled with tempura onion, and topped with regular mayo.

It was not good.  The rice was hard and tasted, well, not fresh, the tempura onion was soggy and had no crunch, and the mayo was just regular mayo, not even Kewpie.  No seasoning, no furikake on it, nothing.  Really boring, and just not good at all.

*.

Spicy Kani Salad.

I gave another sushi roll a try when I saw a quasi-fav of mine: kani.  This one is the spicy kani.  The ingredients on the package said it had cucumber, which not a single piece did, and ginger and wasabi, which weren't included in my package.  It really was just shredded kani with a touch of mayo.  The kani was standard, nothing to say about it.  Rice was fairly stale, even though fresh that day.  Meh.

*+.

Sides

Side dishes offered by Fresko run the gamut of chilled or heated dishes, mostly all veggies and carbs.  Some have been major flops for me, but I've also really enjoyed some, so, very hit or miss, and thus I continue to try any that sound appealing.

Cole Slaw.

The cole slaw didn't look great.  It was clearly VERY dressed. Runny.  And mostly just green cabbage, a tiny bit of carrot.

As you could expect from so much liquid, the cabbage was not crispy.  It also had no real seasoning. 

But ... it was not bad actually. I did want more carrot, and prefer it crispier, but, the dressing was flavorful, and it went well on top of a salad.  All I needed to do was add a little pepper.

***+.

Cole Slaw #2.

A few weeks later, I got it again.  I again found it better than it looks - yes, it is very over dressed, and yes, it is basically just cabbage, but, I like it.  

***+.

Mashed Potatoes. (Vegan).

The mashed potatoes were ... lumps.

I took one bite of the mashed potatoes cold, and immediately felt a touch of nostalgia.  I knew these potatoes.  They tasted *exactly* like a staple of my childhood: Potato Buds.  Yes, the instant mashed potatoes.  It was uncanny.  They had that same kinda pasty consistency.  Wow.

Undeterred, or, perhaps just fascinated, I heated them up to see what would happen.  Yup, still Potato Buds.  I thinned them out, added salt and pepper, but, wow.  These were kinda gluey instant mashed potatoes.  Which, have a time and a place, e.g. my 10 year old self being very proud to make lunch of cheesy Potato Buds with hot dog slices and bbq sauce, but I was shocked that Fresko made these.  The ingredients list is just potatoes, margarine (and all its sub-ingredients), salt and pepper,  so I guess it was real potatoes, but no milk nor cream to make them creamy, which was quite obvious.    

Um, interesting and a bit shocking, but not actually tasty.  *+.

Scalloped Potatoes. (Vegan).

Next, scalloped potatoes.  Specifically, as I discovered, scalloped *sweet* potatoes.

This ... looked weird.  I was not expecting sweet potatoes, but clearly, given the orange nature of the base, this was sweet potato.  And ... it was mashed?  The other ingredients were equally odd - non-dairy creamer and potato flakes, along with salt, pepper, and garlic, and that is it.  What about ... slices of potato?  Actual cream?  Isn't that what makes scalloped potatoes?

It was actually considerably better than it looked, but, fairly different from what I expected.  Once I heated a hunk in the toaster oven, the top was actually my favorite part.  I think that is where the potato flakes were, and once lightly toasted, the top crisped up, and that was a rather unique very top layer (the top 10% of the dish). 

Under the potato flake top was indeed slices of white potato.  I guess these must have been some form of white sweet potato, although they tasted like regular potatoes, as the ingredients did not list regular potatoes.  There was a bit of non-dairy creamer in there making it lightly creamy as well.   Fairly average, and this layer made up about 50% of the dish.

The remainder was the mashed sweet potato, which was fine.  

Overall, three different styles of potato, and it all worked together pretty well.  I found it very under-seasoned however, and had to add a lot of salt and pepper, and onion and garlic powder.  I think sliced onion would have done wonders inside the layer with sliced potatoes.  

An interesting dish, but, certainly needed seasoning, and would have benefited from some cheese or additional cream component, e.g. not being vegan.  ***+. 

Broccoli & Cheese Casserole.

I moved on to one I was excited for: broccoli & cheese casserole.  I love a good casserole.

As this came, chilled, it certainly didn't look appealing.  And I did try a bite cold just to sample it.  I was immediately let down by how soft the broccoli was.  Heating it wouldn't improve the mushy broccoli situation.

This was basically elementary school cafeteria quality, a casserole of sorts with some roux binding it together, and a big glob of cheese on top (that at least melted nicely), but, it was mushy broccoli, and just not very good.  I did like the big hunks of broccoli, and the inclusion of stems, but it was far too overcooked for my taste, and needed seasoning (and perhaps a breadcrumb topping?).

*+.

Sautéed Mushrooms. (Vegan).

A simple dish, sautéed mushrooms.

These mushrooms were really quite good.  I think they were baby portobellos.  Sliced to a nice thickness, sautéed with onions, and, given how flavorful they were, likely lots of oil, along with basic spices.  Not too soft, not too firm, not too slimy, just right.  I was surprised by how enjoyable they were.

****.

Garlic Mushrooms. . (Vegan).

Fresko has had some really good mushrooms in the past, but these were pretty boring.  I only tasted a tiny bit (if any) of the garlic.  Just kinda greasy/oily.  Simple sliced shiitakes.  Eh. *+.

Wild Mushroom Gratin. (Vegan).

Another try at a mushroom side dish, this time the gratin.

This was not good.  First, it was named "wild" mushroom gratin.  I thought that would mean some interesting types of mushroom.  This was button and cremini mushrooms, all the same size, sliced in half.  Where were my hen of the woods? Enogi? Anything more than simple button mushrooms!  But that aside, the taste is where this got horrible.

The mushrooms were a slimy style. Ok, fine, not what I was hoping for but still, not the bad part.  The bad part was the gratin element, the sauce-like paste they were coveed in.  This was a vegan dish, so non-dairy milk was used, but it didn't seem to be something like normal soy milk, rather, a mix of corn syrup, soybean oil, soy protein isolate, and a whole pile of chemicals, plus margarine, almond milk, and way too much flour.  The taste was pretty bad, and the consistency was awful, just gloop.

Awful. *.

Creamed Corn (Vegan).

I really enjoy corn - fresh corn on the cob, creamed corn, raw corn.  Love it.  I grew up in a family that really took advantage of local summer corn, and I still greatly appreciate it to this day.  And when it isn't fresh local corn ... no better way to prepare than creamed corn (ok, corn cheese might be even better ... #iykyk).  

This creamed corn didn't look great chilled, but I still tried a bite, before warning it up.  It turned out, the chilled factor was the least of my concerns.  One bite and I was confused enough to look at the label.  Ah.  It was vegan.  Which is fine, except, that this tasted like almond milk.  So strongly of almond milk.  Not remotely creamy.  Thick, yes, and it had kernels of corn, but, wow, it was just almond milk.  And margarine, although I didn't taste that.  Too much cornstarch to thicken it too, and slightly odd spicing from star anise, paprika, and garlic.  I couldn't even muster a second bite of this.  *.

Baked Beans. (Vegan).

The baked beans were ... interesting.  Remarkably bland.  I really like more bbq flavor or something to my beans.  It was a vegan dish I think, so no bacon to add extra flavor.  I did like the few bits of soft onion in the mix.

But really it was the sauce that was bland and not really appealing.  I'm all for saucy baked beans, but this was oddly gloopy and murky, kinda like it had too much corn starch or something.  The beans were cooked nicely though, not too mushy.

So, I liked the beans themselves, but bland and gloopy does not an enjoyable dish make.  **.

Green Beans: Ingredients.

This dish was listed as "green beans".  The ingredients label said it had green beans and garlic, nothing more.  This label was lies.

"Green Beans".

I was pretty amused to open the package to find, yes, green beans, but actually, even more tomatoes than green beans, and it clearly was all sautéed in oil.

I didn't really mind the poor labeling however, as it was actually pretty good.  The green beans had a nice snap, the tomatoes were soft and juicy (they clearly had been lightly cooked), and the garlic level was high. I had some as a side with fish, and later I combined the rest with some leftover pasta, Italian sausage, shallots,  kale, and truffle parmesan sauce to make a lovely dish,  ***+.

Baked Sweet Potatoes.

Well, these looked boring. Yes, just baked Sweet potato hunks.

And that is exactly what they were.  Not too soft, not too firm, but just sweet potatoes.  No seasoning at all.  Fine for what they were I guess?  **+.

Sweet Potato Soup.

It was winter, I was craving comfort food, and was going through a sweet potato phase (generally, fries or chips, but hey, I could go for soup?).

I took my first bite and I was confused.  Why was there ... corn (!) in here.  Just a surprise, not a bad thing exactly, but surprise (although the corn tasted like simple canned corn, not particularly great).  The soup itself was thick, tasted I guess like sweet potato a bit, but was entirely devoid of any seasoning.  No salt, no onion, no garlic ... just, such a very, very, very flat flavor.  It seemed like what baby food sweet potato must taste like (and was a similar thick consistency!).  

The ingredients list red peppers, onion, celery, and garlic, but it really didn't have any of those things.  They also list cayenne, paprika, cinnamon ... which again, yeah, didn't tase any of that at all.  

Bland.  Just, bland.  And the corn really felt out of place. I added copious amounts of spices, and soy sauce, and red pepper flakes, to give it something, but certainly wouldn't recommend unless you were feeding to a baby. *.

Main Dishes

The variety of dishes for entrees is where Fresko really shines.  Many vegetarian and vegan options, comfort foods and heavy carbs, lighter proteins, seafood, red meat, and more.  I've really enjoyed a few of these.

Baked Penne w/ Vegetables.

Carby comfort food.  Mmm.

This was basically like a hybrid mac and cheese + baked ziti + cheese ravioli/manicotti/stuffed shells/lasagna all in one.  Let me try to explain that a bit better ... basically a dense block of mac and cheese, but with penne as the pasta instead of traditional elbows, so more like a baked ziti, but with cheese sauce rather than red sauce, and small bits of carrots, corn, and peas randomly integrated in. But then, amongst the noodles was a ton of ricotta, like you'd find between the layers of lasagna or inside ravioli/tortellini/manicotti/stuffed shells.  So cheesy, but not a classic mac and cheese sauce at all.  It had a unique blend of cheeses, with ricotta, Parmesan, and mozzarella, but mostly ricotta inside, and clearly, tons of mozzarella cheese on top.

At first, this seemed a bit plain (even with the random veggies in it), but, it actually was pretty tasty.  Once I heated it in the toaster oven, the cheese melted nicely, the ricotta gave it a nice consistency, the top got super crispy.  The pasta was cooked well.  

This was a huge, dense block though, and was easily two portions (with some side veggies).  I enjoyed it more than expected, particularly once I added a little bit of bbq sauce one night (I know, it sounds weird, but it worked) and sambal another night.  I expect that it would be good with a little marinara added too.  But still, a surprising **** overall.

Macaroni and Cheese.

"Experience Authentic Mac & Cheese. A crowd pleaser for both young and old alike. Rich, creamy and delicious."

Next I had the traditional macaroni and cheese, given the success of the previous cheesy pasta.  This used a blend of cheddar and American, and had dijon mustard, garlic, and onion powder to boost the flavors.

It was fine.  Not particularly remarkable - a nice blend of cheeses, the cheese melted well, the ratio of cheese sauce to pasta was about right, the pasta wasn't too mushy.  Reasonably creamy, reasonably cheesy.  Basically, decent enough, standard mac and cheese.  Not something to go out of your way for, but no reason not to eat it either.  ***.

Mushroom Ravioli
w/ Sage Cream Sauce.

This was a bit of a mixed bag, but generally, a really nice surprise.  One part that let me down was the lack of mushrooms in the sauce, I had expected some sliced mushrooms.  I also didn't taste any of the promised sage in the sauce.  But the cream sauce was really quite good - thick, rich, exactly what you want from a cream sauce, with heavy cream, white wine, parmesan, butter, shallots, garlic.  I loved the sauce, sageless and all.  But there was so little of it.  So, sauce-wise, totally delicious, even if not really sage cream sauce as described, and woefully small amount of it.  **** for taste, but I'm docking at least half a star for lack of quantity.

The ravioli themselves were better than average.  Pasta cooked well, not mushy.  The filling inside was chopped mushrooms (portobello, cremini, and button), very flavorful and mushroom forward, which did make up for the lack of other mushroom in the dish.  ***+ ravioli.

The portion size was fairly small, only 5 average size ravioli, so not quite a complete meal, and it definitely needed side dishes to go with it (I made a veggie saute with green beans, broccoli, kale, garlic, shallots, and that was perfect pairing).

I enjoyed this, and would get it again.  I'd consider it average quality for an actual Italian restaurant, but considerably better than any airline meal, frozen grocery store dinner, etc. ***+.

Fettuccini Alfredo (frozen).

The ingredient list for this was pretty simple, as you'd hope.  Pasta.  Cream & parmesan.  Roux of flour and butter.  Milk.  Garlic, onion, salt, pepper, dijon mustard.  Technically, I think roux has no place in alfredo, it should be just the butter and cheese, and thus this was more of a mornay or cheesy béchamel.  It was tasty though.  The pasta was nicely cooked, not too soft.  None clumped together.  The sauce was good too - nice creaminess, properly seasoned, coated the pasta well.  Ratio of sauce to pasta was correct.

Basically, a pretty decent fettuccini alfredo.  It reminded me a tiny bit of Lipton Noodles & Sauce (which have been re-branded as "Pasta Sides"), which I mean in an endearing way, as I used to make that fettuccini alfredo for myself as a teenager as I learned to "cook" a tiny bit.  I was quite happy with this meal, particularly when I paired it with green beans, broccoli, and swiss chard to round it out. ***+.

Miso Chilean Sea Bass
w/ Black Rice, Cauliflower & Lemon Brûlée.

I got brave, and moved on to seafood.

This was a tasty entree.  I'm not really a rice eater, so the rice (blend of white and wild rice, not really black rice as advertised) was lost on me, but it seemed reasonably well cooked, not clumped together.  The dish contained no cauliflower, even though listed in the dish title, and in the ingredients.  The bruleed lemon was a nice classy touch, and I enjoyed drizzling it over the fish.

The fish was the main appeal for me of course.  A nice size piece of Chilean sea bass, with tasty miso-soy glaze.  It was well glazed.  The fish was cooked well - not dried out, and the fish was remarkably flaky.  It was quite buttery and decadent.  

Overall the dish did seem a bit greasy, I'm not quite sure why, as oil is not an ingredient, and I really wanted a green vegetable, but, the fish really was the star.  Not quite up to par with a similar nice restaurant dish (e.g. Nobu's famous miso black cod), but certainly better than expected or what you'd get on an airplane.  ***+.

I'd be happy to get this again.

Miso Chilean Sea Bass w/ Black Rice, Cauliflower & Lemon Brulee.

A few months later, I got it again, and this time, it actually was as described.  The rice was actually black rice.  There was actually cauliflower.  I still didn't really care for the rice, as I'm not a rice person really, but it seemed well cooked, not too mushy.  Cauliflower was huge hunks, a bit soft, but fine.

The fish was a very thick hunk, nicely moist.  Not quite as delicate, flaky, and buttery as last time, but still well prepared.  The miso glaze was again good, although not quite as flavorful as the previous time.  ***+.

Basically, this time it matched the description, and was overall enjoyable, but not quite as magical as the previous time.

Meatloaf w/ Garlic Confit Mashed Potatoes (Vegan).

The vegan meatloaf actually looked good.  Moist, with a touch of veg in it, some glaze.  The potatoes too looked significantly better than the previous side of what seemed to be instant mashed potatoes.  These had a slight rustic nature.  I was a bit confused by the random pickled radish, but, ok.  On looks alone, this seemed to be trending positively.

The meatloaf was made with real Impossible meat, or at least, they called it Impossible meat.  Impossible ground beef I do generally like, but I can't say I liked this.  I tried a bite cold (everything is pre-cooked, you just normally heat in microwave to serve), and it was pasty and really odd.  Like meat glue.  I was worried for a moment that perhaps this wasn't fully cooked, so, I put it in the oven to warm it up.  It didn't get any better.  The pasty nature sorta went away, but what remained was bits of very clearly fake meat.  The bits of carrot and pepper in it didn't help.  The glaze was fine, but there wasn't much of it.  But really, the texture was just all wrong, and it didn't taste very good either.  *.

The mashed potatoes were only slightly better than the instant mashed potato version I had before as a side.  Yes, these were a bit more rustic, they did have bits of potato skin, and lots of lumps.  Slight garlic flavor, but not much, and not nearly as much as you'd want from something named "garlic confit".  They weren't really creamy, and were fairly gluey themselves.  So, a touch more "real" seeming than the others, but, not actually much better.  **.  I really wanted more of the meatloaf glaze, and gravy, or something for them.

And then, yeah, why was there a random pickled, very sour, radish?  I don't know.

Overall, not a winning dish at all, one of the worst I tried. *.

Meatloaf w/ gravy
Roast fingerling potatoes, garlic green beans.

I had tried the vegan meatloaf previously, and that was not a success, but I had more hope for the regular meatloaf.  It came smothered in gravy, with a small portion of garlic green beans and fingerling potatoes.  It looked a bit blah.

I didn't try the potatoes, but gave them to my father, who said they were fine.  The green beans were fine too, a bit softer than I'd like, but not super soft.  Good garlic on them.

The gravy was fairly average brown gravy.

The meatloaf was a soft mushy style, with certainly a fair amount of filler.  It wasn't particularly good nor bad. Better once I put it into a toaster oven and got a bit of a crust on it.  I added ketchup to make it more my style.

Overall, an acceptable, but average, meal. ***.

Vegetable Rollatini
w/ Béchamel & Garlic Cauliflower. (Vegan).

Another vegan entree.

This dish sounded fine on the menu: vegetable rollatini with béchamel and garlic cauliflower?  Sure!  I opened the package to have one big question: where was the béchamel?  I'd by lying if I said that wasn't the main draw for me.  Hmph.  Also, I didn't realize it was vegan, which may have made the béchamel, if it had existed, not my style anyway, as the ingredients listed only almond milk and margarine as the likely elements.

So what did we have?  Very greasy/oily slices of yellow squash, rolled and stuffed with onions, red peppers, eggplant, and sundried tomatoes.  And ... dried cranberries.  And capers.  And olives.  What an odd assortment of items.  Sorta Mediteranean, but, uh, cranberries?  It was all just very oily and not appealing.  The two random pickled radish pieces from the meatloaf dish also showed up here, even more out of place seeming.

Oh, and the giant hunks of "garlic cauliflower"? No garlic to be found.  Just very big hunks of roasted cauliflower, with lots of the oil/sauce on it.

Not much positive to say about this one. *.

Lasagna (Vegan).

I saw "lasagna" and went for it.  I didn't realize at first that it was vegetarian.  Ok, not a big deal, I do like a great vegetarian lasagna (particularly a butternut squash one, and/or particularly one with a white sauce instead of red, and obviously full of ricotta and topped with melty mozzarella).  Then I saw it contained zucchini and summer squash, which I'll admit are rather low on my list of vegetable favorites, but did seem seasonally appropriate.  I used to love (way way way back in high school) the Smart Ones frozen florentine lasagna with those squashes, so, hey, maybe it would channel those memories.  It was only then that I realized that it was also lacking ... cheese.  Any cheese.  No ricotta inside, no mozzarella on top.  This was vegan lasagna.  Hmm.  In addition to the summer squashes, the ingredients also listed eggplant (fine), marinara sauce (eh, but expected as it was lasagna after all), and a bit of flour, white wine, almond milk, and margarine, I guess a vegan béchamel of sorts?

I opened the package and forgot to take a photo, as I was so confused / unsure of what I had in front of me.  I expected, well, a lasagna: layers of pasta, the aforementioned veggies, and I guess no cheese, but covered in sauce.  What I found instead was two separate roll ups, sorta like the rollatini but with pasta noodles as the outer layer.  It seemed to be a big long slice each of eggplant, zucchini, and summer squash, plus one big long lasagna noodle, rolled up in that order.  The pasta formed the outer 2-3 layers, the veggies the inside.  There was absolutely no marinara sauce, even though listed on the ingredients.  There may have been a tiny, tiny, tiny bit of a white sauce, but, not really.

Undeterred, I stuck one in the oven with foil on top, which is what you see here (this is actually only half of one of the roll ups).  I expected to hate this, and got to preparing a backup meal and some additional sides that could go with either (sautéed rainbow chard, fennel, and asparagus with garlic, balsamic roast sweet onions).  I pulled it out ... and it smelt actually really good.  Huh. I put it back in under the broiler to crisp it up a bit, and tentatively tried a bite (which, was harder than expected, as the big rolls of vegetables were a bit hard to actually bite reasonably).  This definitely required a knife.  The veggies were good - they were soft but not mushy, well cooked.  Skin on.  Seemed vibrant and flavorful, well seasoned.  The pasta was as expected, and did get nicely crispy.  I did end up sprinkling some cheese on top as I put it under the broiler, but I'm not sure I needed to. I think it would work great with a pesto sauce, or yes, a basic marinara sauce, or a white sauce.  But shockingly, it didn't really need it.  Well, huh.  With my reset expectations, this was a reasonable dish.  ***+.

Cauliflower & Fingerling Potato Gratin (Vegan/Parve).

"w/ breadcrumbs."

Beware of the vegan gratin!  I should know better.  When there is no cream (only almond milk) and no cheese, it really won't please me as a gratin, even if I really enjoy cauliflower and potato gratin normally.

 

Hmm.  The ingredients listed on this, and what I got, definitely didn't match.  The ingredients said cauliflower, fingerling potato, almond milk, and breadcrumbs, which, yes, all were there.  But it also said there was carrots, tomatoes, and quinoa ... (along with onion, garlic, margarine, flour, and rosemary, which I can believe were there even if I didn't taste them).  What it was a base of thinly sliced potatoes, just a single thin layer.  And then lots of big florets of cauliflower.  All coated with a bit of an odd tasting savory ... almond milk paste.  The breadcrumbs were dry and not toasted.  

The potato was cooked fine, not too soggy.  Same with the cauliflower, and I liked the big hunks.  I almost sorta kinda could like the potato with almond milk sludge, but not really.  I really didn't like the dry and way too covered in the sludge top part with the cauliflower.    

This was listed as an entree, but it really seemed more side appropriate to me.  

*.

BBQ Cauliflower Wings w/ "Arugula".

This was almost great.

It was very clearly lacking a dipping sauce.  Buffalo or BBQ wings need a dip, regardless of if they are the cauliflower or chicken form.  The entirely undressed greens on the side also screamed out for something to drizzle over them.  So, minus a point for no dipping sauce / dressing / etc.

But the cauliflower bits themselves were decent.  Nicely crispy, well coated in fairly flavorful coating.  There was a tiny bit of BBQ on a few pieces, but certainly no extra.  Without a dipping sauce, it ate too dry though. They mostly tasted like a generic grocery store frozen breaded item.  **+ cauliflower.

On the side was some not particularly fresh romaine.  It was floppy and dried out on the ends.  Also, it was clearly romaine, even though the dish name said "arugula", as did the ingredients listed.  It tasted strangely sour.  I discarded it. * greens.

Baked Goods

Fresko makes a variety of baked goods, mostly muffins and few other assorted breakfast cakes, along with cookies for dessert.  I've tried many, because I just can't resist baked goods, but for the most part, they just weren't very good, and tasted highly processed.

Chocolate Chocolate Chip Muffin.

This muffin had a pedigree I like - crispy top, pearl sugar on top, visible chocolate chips.  But the cake itself was just blah - not moist nor dry, just, eh.  Chocolate flavor was there, but, it tasted ... stale? Does chocolate taste stale?  I liked the top, but nothing else sadly.

**.

Corn Muffin.

The corn was the best muffin I tried.

This was not a bad muffin.  It was also not a good muffin.  It was about as generic of a muffin as you can get, of the highly processed variety.  It tasted like it could come from any grocery store bakery department, any hotel breakfast buffet, or the like.

The top was somewhat gummy, which I didn't mind.  It was overall fairly moist.  Not overbaked or burnt.  Slight grit from the corn.  If it wasn't for the very preservative forward taste, I'd even say it was a good muffin.  I liked it best topped with a touch of sugar (sorry, I grew up with sugar top corn muffins) or with a little jam slathered on, but I suspect warm with butter would be good too.

Basically, a very average, but not bad, mass produced muffin.  ***.

Corn Muffin. (2024).

Last summer, I tried a bunch of the muffins, and didn't particularly like any of them, but found the corn to be the best of the bunch.  So when I was craving a corn muffin one day, I tried another.

It was less good than I remembered.  There wasn't really any corn grit or corn flavor, it was quite dense, oily, and plain.  Very processed tasting.  Gummy top.  Eh.  **.

Chocolate Chip Muffin.

Do I learn?  No.  Not when there are options drizzled with appealing chocolate on top.  But sadly, even the chocolate was not very good.  It was somehow not creamy like milk chocolate, nor dark like dark chocolate, so I guess it was just mediocre semi-sweet chocolate.  The top of the muffins, like others, was gummy. *+ chocolate, sadly, just not very good.

Chocolate Chip Muffin: Cross Section.

The body of the muffin fared no better.  Yes, it was well studded with chips, evenly distributed.  But the muffin itself was strangely greasy and oily, tasted highly processed, and not fresh.  Like, well, all their muffins, and like I should have known it would.  Do not recommend.  *+.

Raisin Bran Muffin.

After the success of the corn muffin, I gave another muffin a try, this time, a bran muffin.  

The muffin was much like the others - slightly gummy top, that wasn't actually a problem, fairly moist inside.  It was fairly bitter though, which threw me off.  It had a nice grit to it, but didn't taste particularly wholesome.  Bran muffins usually trend healthier tasting, and this mostly tasted highly processed.  It was studded with a few scattered raisins, not many.  Meh. **.

Plain Muffin.

I still kept trying the muffins.  I had no idea what kind this was, but the best description I can give is ... plain?  Vanilla?  It really was like a cupcake, but not frosted.

And the cake?  Not very good.  Again, I did like the slightly gummy top with pearl sugar, but, the base just tasted far too processed and full of preservatives.   Must. Stop. Trying. *.

Lemon Poppyseed.

The lemon poppyseed muffin was exactly as I had come to expect from Fresko: pretty moist, nice crisp top, loved the pearl sugar on top.  Quite strong lemon flavor, great crunch from the poppy seeds.  A very reasonable lemon poppy muffin, but, like all their muffins, it did taste overly processed, and that was its downfall.  Flavor and texture were good though.  **+.

Apple Raisin Spice Coffee Cake.

Giving up on muffins, I moved on to another breakfast cake, this time, coffee cake.  It was a fairly moist spice cake, with one single bit of apple and some raisins near the bottom, and a slight crumble topping.

This wasn't particularly good nor bad.  The raisins had all clearly fallen to the bottom, but they were plump and moist.  I only had a single bit of apple, which was a bit sad.  Crumble top was nice.  Light spicing throughout.  Didn't taste quite as processed as the muffins.  I wouldn't want it again, but, better than most of the muffins.

**+.

"Assorted Danishes": Cheese Crumble?

It is hard to tell from this photo, but this was a massive danish.  The container it is in is the size you use for a big salad, not a side dish or pastry.  That alone was quite impressive ... or terrifying really.  The  label just said "assorted danishes" so I couldn't tell exactly what kind it was, but the answer seems to be cheese crumble?

It was actually quite tasty.   Maybe I was in the mood for it.  No, it wasn't a fresh, flaky, buttery, amazing pastry from a local patisserie.  It was more akin to a good grocery store pastry.  It wasn't stale, and although the pastry wasn't flaky, it also wasn't spongy as sometimes happens with mass produced baked goods.  The crumble was nicely sweet and had a great texture, the cream filling was, well, creamy and tasty, and the icing was super sweet but really did accent it all nicely.

It was an unhealthy processed sugar bomb, but sometimes, that turns out to be what you want, and at the time, I really did like it.  It reminded me of Kringle a bit.  ***+. 

"Assorted Danishes": Crumb?

Another day, another "assorted danish".  This one was nearly as large, but an entirely different shape, and actually very different, even though at first glance they were similar.  It too had icing drizzled over the top, and a crumb coating, but the crumb style was quite different.  This one had a crispy crumble made up of smaller bits, almost as if it was made of chopped up nuts, whereas the other was softer, sweeter, and blonder, more like you'd find on top of a fruit crumble.  I expected it to have a filling layer under the crumble as the previous one had the creamy cheese filling, but it did not.  I expected it to maybe have a filling within the center, between the layers of pastry, but it did not. No filling at all.

The pastry itself wasn't quite as good either, even less flaky and really quite firm, but I did still sorta like it.  I can't explain it.  I did wish for some kind of filling (apple, almond, chocolate, etc), but it was again better than expected.  ***.

Assorted Danishes: Chocolate.

Ooooh, a new one!

I hoped this was like a cream horn, perhaps even filled with chocolate cream.  But alas, it was not.  There was a thin layer of chocolate between the folds, and lots of folds, but no cream layers.  Just pastry and chocolate.  It ate pretty dry, and the pastry itself was not remarkable (not buttery, not flaky, not well laminated, etc).  The powdered sugar added to the dryness.  The chocolate drizzled over the top broke off easily, but was decent chocolate.  About what you'd expect in a hotel buffet. **.

Marble Soft Biscotti?

I picked this thinking it was chocolate babka.  I expected this to be light and fluffy, rich, broiche dough, rolled with dark chocolate.  When I looked closer as I opened it, it nearly looked like biscotti.  But it certainly wasn't crisp like one.

It was more like a cross between the two - not hard and crisp like biscotti, but, not airy and breadly like traditional babka.  Still not quite sure what it was supposed to be.

As for the taste, it was average.  Not particularly rich, buttery, sugary, etc.  The chocolate was visible, but didn't taste like much.  I did like the little pockets of sugar crust on top.  It didn't taste very fresh nor homemade.

**+.

Red Velvet Chocolate Chip, Sugar Cookies.

I didn't seek out the cookies, but, they came in a sandwich box as part of the "deluxe" meal.

The cookies were two different sizes, even though packaged together, which gave a homemade, mom packed lunch, kind of vibe to them.  Both were quite soft.

The sugar cookie tasted exactly like grocery store slice & bake cookie dough.  I was impressed by just how generic it tasted.  And not particularly fresh.  But, the softness was perfect.  **.

The red one I think was red velvet.  It had small chocolate flecks in it as well.  No particular flavor though, just, another sweet red cookie, slightly chocolate flavor.  Meh.  **.

Linzer Cookie

This wasn't bad.

The shortbread cookies crumbled nicely, clearly had TONS of powdered sugar, and the raspberry filling was tasty.  A decent version of a linzer, and I enjoyed it with an afternoon coffee.  Best baked good I've had from Fresko. ***+.

Black & White Cookie.

The black and white cookie was really quite large.  It was well glazed with both white and black icing.  The icing was sweet, sweet, sweet, and didn't have any real flavor besides sweet.

The cookie itself was the soft cake style I expected.  It too had no real flavor.  It was pretty dry.

Not a very good product on any level: dry, flavorless, too sweet icing.  *.

Original Review, December 2019

I have no reason to seek out kosher foods, but, sometimes it happens, like when I tried products made by Kosher Catering by Andrew, and found some truly delicious.  Fresko is another such company, although with a significantly larger distribution channel.

“The best in fresh, STRICTLY KOSHER & HALAL CERTIFIED, quality & delicious, Grab n’ Go."

Fresko was founded in 2003, and has grown considerably, providing catering to several airlines, partnering with hotels and schools, producing for convenience stores and grocery stores, and now operating their own stands inside airports.  I believe they are a dominant player in the Boston area Kosher food scene.  All Fresko products are certified Star-k and adhere to the highest Kosher standards.

The Fresko line up is vast, with ready-to-eat sandwiches, salads, wraps, entrees, side dishes, and desserts, over 100 products total.  I tried a few different items, all were ... mediocre.

Salads

Salads were the first item to catch my eye, as I was just looking for something simple for a flight.  Fresko makes a wide variety, most containing grilled chicken, so I had no choice but to select items that had a protein I intended to discard (I gave to others, don't worry, no waste!)

Herb-Grilled Chicken Caesar Salad with House Croutons.

First up was a Caesar, generally a fairly reliable choice, particularly when I can see the dressing through the packaging to ensure it is the creamy style.

This was a decent salad, although not really a traditional Caesar - it looked more like a garden salad, just without cucumbers, as it lacked any Parmesan, and had some unexpected toppings.

The base was torn chunks of romaine, plus a scattering of shredded carrots.   This was all relatively fresh and crisp, decent quality, although it didn't hold up even a day.  The two cherry tomatoes were mealy and fairly awful.

Croutons were separate to prevent them from getting soggy (good!), but were just a small style, moderately seasoned, not particularly good.  Highly generic.  I prefer larger ones, and less crisp.

I didn't eat the chicken, but it did look nice - white meat, tender, lots of herbs.  My mom enjoyed it when she had it later.

And finally, the dressing.  Good portion, creamy, nicely seasoned, but not particularly ... Caesar-y?  Again, lacking the Parmesan cheese, and sans anchovy for more depth.  I really liked the herb seasoning in it, but given the lack of cheese and fish base, it pushed it more in the ranch direction, which, was more fitting with the other ingredients anyway. 

I originally quasi-wondered if this was just mislabeled?  In particular, the lack of Parmesan ... but I was later informed by a friend that this is one of the key rules of keeping kosher - do not mix cheese and meat, so alas, the chicken in here prevented the cheese.  I wished they had left off the chicken instead ...

Once I discarded the tomatoes, picked off the chicken, and set aside the rest of the croutons, I did enjoy my salad, but it is hard to fully endorse it as a Caesar, if that is what you were expecting.

Japanese Sesame Noodle Salad with Grilled Chicken and Candied Nuts.

Next up, a noodle salad, Japanese inspired, according to the dish name, which is why I selected it (well, and because of the candied nuts!).

It also came with grilled herb roasted chicken, a generous portion of what did look like nice white meat, which I set aside and gave to my mother as well.

The noodles were ... fine?  Not too mushy, not stuck together, but ... just soba noodles.  They were tossed in a soy sauce/sesame oil mix, not particularly complex flavor, but at least not over-dressed.  Also in the mix were some bits of red pepper, and lots of sesame seeds (I guess the Japanese element?)  Pretty meh.

I did like the candied nuts (sadly all peanuts), but they were heavily candied, and I think would be kinda odd mixed into this salad.  I used them on an ice cream sundae instead.

This was not a winning dish for me, although I acknowledge the chicken looked fine.

Desserts & Baked Goods

Dessert.  Baked goods.  Now we were talking.

The Fresko line up isn't all that exciting to me in general, basic cookies, brownies, fruit salad (not a dessert), but I did find one to try.

Hand Rolled Chocolate Ruggulah.

The ruggulah though were fairly ... blah?  The chocolate was good quality dark chocolate, and they were decently chocolately, but the pastry itself was somehow both dry and moist at the same time, and was too dense, in a seemed-underbaked-but-not-really way.   Very hard to describe.  Perhaps just not very fresh, likely having been frozen, and not handled well?

Regardless, I didn't care much for these.