Lay's Southern Biscuits & Gravy "Do Us a Flavor" Chips

While I was at the grocery store today I saw a big display featuring the finalists of Lay's third annual "Do Us a Flavor" contest. In case you're not familiar, since 2013 Lay's Potato Chips has run a contest in which they ask customers to submit their ideas for new flavors; the best flavors are produced and consumers get to vote on which is their favorite. The winner gets one million dollars and their flavor added to Lay's "permanent" roster.

I find it almost impossible to resist trying new (and often "limited edition") flavors of popular snacks. Curiosity killed the cat, and it also goads me into buying a lot of disgustingly unhealthy food. However, I've learned from experience to stay clear of Lay's "Do Us a Flavor" chips. I tried all of the flavors from the first two contest cycles, and there wasn't one worth significant praise; as a matter of fact, the overwhelming majority were flat-out disgusting. Over the past two years, I've ended up shit-canning 7 mostly-full bags of potato chips--there was no way I was going to bring that number up to 11 this year.

However, old habits die hard and although I tried, I couldn't resist trying at least one of this year's crop. The flavors for 2015 are: Southern Biscuits & Gravy, New York Reuben, Wavy West Coast Truffle Fries and Kettle Cooked Greektown Gyro. I picked the one that seemed the least offensive--Southern Biscuits & Gravy.

 

While these chips are obviously supposed to approximate the flavor of Biscuits & Gravy, the biscuit part is kind of non-existent in the equation. The flavor is pretty close to ready-to-serve canned gravy, right down to being--befittingly of a potato chip--excessively salty. I was pleasantly surprised by how good these were; they're kind of like the astronaut food version of instant mashed potatoes and gravy.

While I do like them, I doubt I would buy them frequently if they were to become a permanent part of Lay's lineup. I'm morbidly curious to see how the other flavors stack up with this one, but I'm probably better off quitting while I'm ahead.