Review - Come Ready Cake Batter Bar

Brand:  Come Ready

Flavor:  Cake Batter

Where to get it: here @ SupplementsGeeks.com

                What’s going on? Another bro-bar that I had to MAKE myself stop eating! I will try anything that has the word “cake” in it. Alcohol, snack bars, actual cake…it’s my kryptonite. I’m not sure how much like actual cake batter this bar tastes, but it does have a pleasant vanilla flavor, and I didn’t get that nasty sugar alcohol flavor one bit! The wrapper stresses that it has “NO aftertaste,” and I found this to actually be true. As always, be careful – the whole bar is 320 calories, so if you’re on a weight-loss workout plan, this is not a snack that you would want to eat casually. I would actually, miraculously, DEFINITELY buy this bar again.       

                 

               

Tastes like:  A sweet vanilla protein shake

Taste rating:  8/10

What’s in it:

Review - FitMiss Vanilla Chai Protein Shake

Brand:  FitMiss

Flavor:  Vanilla Chai Protein Shake

Where to get it: here @ FitMiss.com

                I’m always leery about trying a new protein powder, especially when it’s one that I’m going to review, because I always try to drink them “clean” – just powder and unsweetened almond milk. Even my favorite protein powder really benefits from some PB2 and Splenda most of the time, or at least a banana, but this one really doesn’t need anything added to it. I didn’t get a strong, spicy chai flavor from this, but it was still really tasty. It had a great, true vanilla taste, and at 90 calories and 3 grams of carbs, you can pretty much have one of these whenever you want, even a couple times a day. If your tummy is good with whey protein, FitMiss is definitely a great option.

               

Tastes like:  A sweet vanilla shake

Taste rating:  9/10

Qualities:  Gluten free

What’s in it:

Review - Bricks Turkey Bar

Brand:  Bricks

Flavor:  Turkey Sweet Potato Cranberry & Pumpkin Seed Bar

Where to get it: here @ BricksBars.com

                 Well, at least I will never accuse Bricks of false advertising. Just about everything they put into this bar makes it onto the front wrapper in the form of the name. The pumpkin seeds are more for texture, I am assuming. I think the name, being filled with all these nice holiday ingredients, can lead you to think there might be a pumpkin taste to this bar, and there isn’t.  It’s very true to turkey flavor though, and the black pepper is a force, but not an altogether unpleasant one. It’s a funky bar, and also safe to share with your pooch, which is pretty cool.

                 

Tastes like:  TV dinner turkey with pepper gravy

Taste rating:  5/10

Qualities:  Gluten-free

What’s in it:

Review - Fuel For Fire

Brand:  Fuel For Fire

Flavor:  Triple Berry

Where to get it:  here @ FuelForFire.com 

                This is the best pre-workout squeezer on the market, at least as far as the ones I have tried. Low calories, great taste, and loads of protein (10g!) make this product a staple for me on workout days. The texture is nice and smooth, so you can really pound one of these if you were so inclined…and I have been so inclined during a sugar dip in the middle of a workout. I recommend putting them in the fridge, they are really yummy cold. I have the other 3 flavors (Tropical, Sweet Potato Apple, and Banana Cocoa) on order right now. If you work out AT ALL in any manner, these will give you that initial burst of energy when you’re struggling to get into the zone, right before the endorphins kick in. I highly recommend them.         

Tastes like:  A thick, fruity pudding

Taste rating:  10/10

Qualities:  Gluten free, vegetarian

What’s in it:

Review - Tiger's Milk Bar

Brand:  Tiger’s Milk

Flavor:  Peanut Butter & Honey

Where to get it: here @ Amazon.com

                Not to date myself, but I have been eating these for over 20 years. I still love them. I’m really impressed that you can still buy them almost anywhere – the grocery store, AM/PM, even at the fancy grocery store. The texture is PERFECT – a lot of the bars on the market could learn a lot from Tiger’s Milk. Chewy, but never tough – and the chocolate is the perfect accent flavor, not the overbearing guy in front who won’t sit down.

                I feel like they haven’t changed a thing in all the decades they have been making these little guys, and for once, I feel like that was the right call.

                 

               

Tastes like:  My childhood

Taste rating:  10/10

What’s in it:

Review - Coco Libre Protein Coconut Water

Brand:  Coco Libre

Flavor:  Chocolate Protein Coconut Water

Where to get it: 

                Believe it or not, this was my first time trying coconut water in any form. I have friends who love it, and friends who hate it. After drinking this Coco Libre chocolate protein coconut water, I will definitely be trying more coconut water products. It tasted a lot like chocolate milk that had been watered down a bit, and I don’t mean that in a bad way (it sounds kind of gross). It was just less rich than traditional chocolate milk. I also found this to be a very satisfying 130 calories, and it had a minimal impact on my blood sugar since it has no added sugars. I can’t wait to try the vanilla flavor.             

                 

               

Tastes like:  Weakened Chocolate Milk

Taste rating:  8/10

Qualities:  Fair Trade Certified, vegetarian

What’s in it:

Review - Ratio Cake Batter Protein Bar

Brand:  Ratio

Flavor:  Cake Batter

Where to get it: here @ Bodybuilding.com

                                I like a lot of the nutritional value/qualities that this bar provides, but calling it “cake batter” just sets it up for a horrible, horrible failure. When I knew nothing about nutrition, nor cared what I put in my body, I would literally make a box of cake mix, and not cook it. That’s right – this is what rock bottom looks like:  a plastic container full of cake batter in your fridge. Yikes. So anyway…you could say I know a thing or two about cake batter, and this is not that. Titular argument aside, it doesn’t really taste very good anyway. So…I guess that’s where I leave you with this one.

                               

Tastes like:  Vanilla cereal, then bland protein powder

Taste rating:  3/10

Qualities:  Non-GMO, Gluten free, All natural, Made in the USA

What’s in it:

Review - Caveman Cookies

Brand:  Caveman Cookies

Flavor:  Mayan and New World

Where to get it: here @ Abe's Market

                I love chewy cookies. I think most people do. My person doesn’t though, he will literally take a perfectly good cookie, and put it in the refrigerator with no covering so that it dries out and gets hard. WEIRDO. He would hate these Caveman cookies. They are SO chewy, I actually had a hard time tearing off a little piece to sample. Whatever these folks are doing to achieve this kind of texture, they are doing a great job and I hope they never stop. Taste-wise, I find these to be very unique in a sea of “breakfast/trail/power” cookies. The New World flavor tasted like a more natural, molasses-y (from the maple syrup, I assume) oatmeal cookie.  The Mayan has a bold, slightly bitter chocolate flavor, with a chili powder buddy bringing up the rear. Good little cookies, and if you can get the tiny ones (pictured), they are only 70 calories.              

                 

               

Tastes like:  Some oats and seeds went on a vision quest

Taste rating:  7/10

Qualities:  All-natural, Gluten-free, Kosher, Made in the USA

What’s in it: (Mayan)

Review - Ratio Peanut Butter Cup Protein Bar

Brand:  Ratio

Flavor:  Peanut Butter Cup

Where to get it: here @ Bodybuilding.com

                                Sometimes when I review a product, I eat the whole thing…but sometimes I only eat a bite or two. As I’ve mentioned before, I’m the weird kind of girl-creature who doesn’t really like chocolate. Unfortunately, chocolate and protein bars are pretty inseparable. As my civic duty placed upon me by no one at all, I figure that once in a while I need to try some mainstream flavors for the greater good of the internet.

                This bar actually wasn’t terrible, due almost exclusively to the layer of peanut butter substance across the top of the bar. I’m not sure what it really is, but it tastes like real peanut butter, and it’s stinkin’ delicious. I took one bite of the bar-proper, then shucked off the top layer with my favorite Santoku knife and gobbled it all up. This probably defeats the purpose, but I do what I want. And I’d actually do it again, in a pinch. It was really that good.

                 

               

Tastes like:  Real peanut butter and fake chocolate

Taste rating:  6/10

Qualities:  Non-GMO, Gluten free, All natural, Made in the USA

What’s in it:

Review - Boxed Water is Better

Brand:  Boxed Water Is Better

Flavor:  Water!

Where to get it:  here @ Boxed Water (or your local grocery, if they're cool)

                It’s water. It tastes like water. It has nothing in it, as per the norm with water. Why am I writing a review about water? Because I can, and I want to, and I feel like you should know about this water. Firstly, it gets SO COLD because it’s in a carton and not plastic. (The little bit o’plastic in the spout and cap are BPA-free, in case you were wondering.) So there’s that. Secondly, the packaging is way cool, the marketing is way cool, and the message is way cool. I love this stuff, and I’m probably going to spend way too much money buying it. I don’t care; you can try to stop me. I’ll trip you and let the zombies have you. We used to be friends.

               

Tastes like:   The coldest water in all the land

Taste rating:  10/10

Qualities:   Vegan, vegetarian, Non-GMO, gluten-free, Kosher, Organic, all natural, Halal…it’s water you guys!

What’s in it: Water.

Review - Detour Smart Bars

Brand:  Detour Smart

Flavor:  Whole Grain Oatmeal

Where to get it: here @ Bodybuilding.com

                I bought this bar for the package. I cannot tell a lie. I love the packaging so much. But then, only 130 calories per bar? Okay! I have been legitimized and it feels so good! Smallish bars, good for a snack, and the calories are right on the money for a casual snack that you’re not going to agonize over if you’re trying to be strict with your diet. They also have 10g of protein, which legitimizes me even more. LEGITIMACY, RAIN DOWN UPON ME! They taste good, fruity, oaty, nice and safe in your mouth. You don’t always have to get crazy to be special.

                 

               

Tastes like:  Fruit and oats, oh yeah-oats!

Taste rating:  8/10

Qualities:  Gluten-free

What’s in it:

Positive Energy Rocks My Socks!

Brand:  Positive Energy

Flavor:  Various

Where to get it:  here @ Positive Energy

                Um, how cool is Positive Energy? They saw my review of their orange juice, and just couldn’t bear the thought of me not being able to try their other flavors, so they sent me a box of them! They also sent some stickers (which my person promptly stole and put on his snowboard), a magnetized + orange, and a page-long HANDWRITTEN LETTER. Color me impressed, I looked at all the words on the page and calculated that, in this day of banging on keyboards all day long, writing that much with A PEN would have seen me take about 17 breaks for hand cramps.  

                Apple juice is my favorite juice, so I went for that first. It was just as good as the orange juice. I put vodka in the cranberry juice as well as the strawberry lemonade. SO GOOD! The rest I drank sans alcohol, like a good girl. I love this line, and I love this company. They really care about their product and the press they get, and they clearly take the time to pay attention to social media – which I’m pretty sure is crucial to being successful in the 21^st century, no shock there. So thank you, THANK YOU, Positive Energy, for the treats, the care, and just for being generally awesome folks!

               

Tastes like:   Juice with a sizzle

Taste rating:  10/10

Qualities:  Gluten-free, Kosher, Non-GMO

What’s in it: (Orange Juice)

Review: Think Thin Creamy Peanut Butter Bar

Brand:  Think Thin

Flavor:  Creamy Peanut Butter

Where to get it: here @ Think Thin

                Now that’s what I’m talking about! Just put a picture of a giant glob of peanut butter on your wrapper. I appreciate that. It keeps my expectations reasonable, and it lets me know what your bar is all about. Oddly enough, this is the least peanut-buttery bar of all the peanut butter bars I’ve tried thus far. I’m not sure if it was the coating, or the blend of whey isolate in it, but it tasted a bit like coffee. And of course, I hate coffee. This bar is not really for me, but I don’t think it’s a bad bar. The texture was pleasing, it has 0 g of sugar, and 20 g of protein, which is pretty darn good for this mid-size bar. If you’re into the coffee/chocolate/peanut butter thing, you might really like this one.

               

Tastes like:  A protein shake with coffee in it

Taste rating:  4/10

Qualities:  Gluten-free, Kosher

What’s in it:

Review: Detour Neapolitan Whey Protein Bar

Brand:  Detour

Flavor:  Neapolitan Whey Protein Bar

Where to get it: here @ BodyBuilding.com

                Another bro-bar with a delicious looking picture on the wrapper, I think I’m just a glutton for punishment for this blog sometimes. BUT WAIT! This one actually had a very similar look on the inside as the picture on the wrapper. Could it be?? Yes! There was a definite “Neapolitan” look to the cross-section of the bar. And the taste? Pretty good! Strong on the strawberry for sure, but in a good way… when they pack so much whey protein into these bars, they get “that taste”. I think the strong berry component helps to neutralize some of it, and that’s a very good thing. Just keep in mind that this IS a “bro-bar,” aka not a low-calorie casual snack. I advise us girls who aren’t looking to build competition-size muscles to either eat this in 2 servings, preferably after a workout, or as your entire meal if you’re strapped for time.

                 

               

Tastes like:  A chocolate strawberry protein shake

Taste rating:  6/10

What’s in it:

Review: 2 Degrees Cherry Almond Food Bar

Brand:  2 Degrees

Flavor:  Cherry Almond

Where to get it: here @ 2 Degrees Food

                Cherries and charity, this bar is a dynamic duo – but no one has to be the Robin. Not only does this Batman & Batman bar taste great, but 2 Degrees also donates meals to hungry children around the word. You can feed yourself while you feed a child who needs your help, what a fantastic business model. The bars have great taste, and aren’t overtly “seedy”, so you can actually taste the featured flavors. The bar I had was full of sweet and subtly tart cherries and I really enjoyed it. It’s dense enough that it won’t disintegrate in your pack or purse too, so have bar may travel, my diabetic and active lifestyle friends!

              

               

Tastes like:  Tart & soft yummy bar

Taste rating:  8/10

Qualities:  Vegan, Vegetarian, Non-GMO, Gluten-free

What’s in it: