Growing up as a first-generation Asian American, my pantry is constantly stocked with snacks from the local market. I munch on these snacks through my day-to-day activities, and they help me from my easygoing elementary school activities all the way through to my high school AP tests. I want to share these comfort snacks with Paly and hope that these snacks may brighten your day.
GGE Wheat Crackers (Spicy Flavor) 9/10: As an avid lover of spicy foods, these ramen chips really hit the spot. The presentation of these chips is strange, though, as they are shaped like dried, cut-up ramen noodles, but they taste exactly like ramen noodles too. Not the American cup noodles — the ones you’d find at the Asian supermarket with different levels of spice labeled on its packaging. After a while, the chips did leave my mouth feeling dry, but if I had some water, I would not have been able to stop eating these.
Yan Yan (Vanilla Créme Flavor) 4/10: Despite its cute packaging and eye-catching presentation, I was severely disappointed in this snack. The vanilla creme, intended to complement the breadstick, had a thin, unappealing consistency, and lasted only five breadsticks before it ran out. The taste of the creme was bland, and I could pretty much only taste the breadstick and none of the vanilla flavoring. The real kicker is that this snack was 310 calories, which is a waste of junk food and left me feeling scammed. As a huge fan of junk food, I’d rather eat fruit than this, which is yummier than this joke.
Black Sugar Milk Tea 10/10: The only thing missing from this delicious bottle-packaged drink is the boba pearls, but this is the perfect cheap alternative to the popular Tiger Sugar milk tea, which is a brown sugar-flavored boba that comes from their shop. The bottle is decorated with tiger stripes with the label pasted on the front. This refresher would be great served chilled on a warm summer day or great served hot on a chilly fall or winter evening. The brown sugar taste of the milk tea dissolved in my mouth; I’d highly recommend it, especially for sweet tooths. warm summer day or great served hot on a chilly fall or winter evening. The brown sugar taste of the milk tea dissolved in my mouth; I’d highly recommend it, especially for sweet tooths.
WangWang Xue Bin 8/10: The chips are uniquely flavored with hardened, sweet, and white splotches sprinkling the top of the chip; the chip was somewhat salty. “Xue Bin” means snow cracker, as the sweet white splotches cover the chip like snow. Though the combination of those two flavors seems unappealing and unorthodox, the taste is not only delicious, but one-of-a-kind and hard to come by in American foods.
