Back in April, when a new Lay’s chips flavor was announced for summer, we reported on the news with the appropriate amount of enthusiasm (i.e., a lot of enthusiasm). Salsa-flavored Lay’s? Sign us up. At the time, summer seemed so far away, but now it’s here and so are the new Lay’s Salsa Fresca. We finally got our hands on a bag—did they meet our insanely high yet perfectly reasonable expectations? Let’s find out.
New Lays Chips!
Lay’s Salsa FrescaWalmartAs soon as I finish writing this review and put Lay’s Salsa Fresca on the Sporked free shelf (the place we put products we have no intention of taking home), I’m going to forget this new Lay’s chips flavor ever existed. And therein lies the problem, really.
Pros: If you don’t mind a bit of acidity, these new Lay’s chips are perfectly edible.They’re light and crisp like the Lay’s you know and love. And hey, credit where credit is due: The chip bag design (pictured left) is kinda retro. The vibe is very “summer in the ‘80s.” If these new Lay’s chips tasted any good, the aesthetic would really work for it. Sadly, among all the new Lay’s flavors we’ve tried over the years, these barely stand out.
Cons: Other than a hint of sweet potato paste, these are flavorless. To quote our editor-in-chief Justine Sterling, “It’s a real nothing of a chip.” Where’s the lime? Where’s the jalapeño? Where’s… anything? I purposefully picked out the chips that had the most flavor dust on them, and I still couldn’t taste any salsa fresca. I could barely taste the tomato. What was the goal here?
Credit: Liv Averett / Walmart
3.5/10
Sporks
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