My local Sprouts Grocery had a variety of chocolates on clearance a few weeks back and this bar was 7 or $8. dollars off so I thought I’d give it a try. It’s by a company called MAEVE and it has a long name on the front that reads Valentine’s Romance Classic – The Peanut-Butter Banana Affair. Then under that it reads Peanut Butter and Banana Dark and White Chocolate Truffle Bar –
Whatever-
I open it up.
I break off a section to try.
There’s a LOT of cream in the center………(bah)
Here we go.
WOW the dark chocolate really is very good. Not too bitter. Not too sweet with lots of GOOD chocolate flavor. It also melts in the mouth just right.
I’m not crazy about the filling.
I can taste peanut butter and bananas but it’s not a satisfying amount of either flavor and the chocolate overs powers those flavors. There are also same crunchy objects inside that are odd.
Maybe a different variety of this bar is very good but I’m not paying the Sprouts regular price for these bars.
Those were my FORKING Thoughts on MAEVE Peanut Butter Banana Affair Bars. Your Forking thoughts may differ.
These are Foods that YOU can make too. Most of the recipes can be found here on www.TheFORKINGTruth.com
up above are –
Non traditional tacos made with ground turkey and pico de gallo. Some have lightly pickled avocado on them and the others have home made Boursin type cheese on them.
Also home made crackers with sesame, poppy seeds, and sea salt that are topped with a swirl of cheese ball. (Cracker recipe is shaped different and called crisp bread under recipes)
WOW! Did these vegetable egg rolls go fast!
I did get compliments on the pickled beets with cinnamon spiced goat cheese too.
Here’s the recipe for the Thai Style Peanut sauce I served with the egg rolls. I also served spicy Chinese Mustard too.
Mac-N-Cheese stuffed potatoes
Tasty Cheesy Rice Balls (these were so good people were packing them up to bring home)
Mac-N-Cheese stuffed potatoes (people always love them)
Home made cracker with taleggio cheese and pistachio pesto
Fried Potato and Cheese Pierogi
Tacos made with ground turkey all are topped with pico and 1/2 have pickled avocado and the other half have a swirl of home made Boursin type cheese (always a hit)
Potato and Cheese Pierogi
Falafel Spiced Turkey Meatballs with Hummus
Nacho Potatoes (no recipe combo of my homemade salsa and a variety of cheeses)
Maple Bourbon Walnut topped spice Custard Filled Squash
People love these non-traditional tacos
Taco weenies (made with ground turkey) and potato and cheese tacos
These are just some of the FOOD that YOU can make too!
A Brand New Marketon Supermarket recently opened at 5831 W Craig Rd in Vegas. They offer your usual grocery store items and also Latino specialties that are hard to find.
Below is a bit of what I saw there. I saw lots of lard there.
I saw some things that I never have seen before.
I also saw these hard to find special peppers here fresh and not dried.
I saw different snacks here.
I thought produce was very expensive here. A smaller sized cauliflower was $5.99 today. Five pound bags of flour were also very expensive and were $8.00 today. But they also had specials to counter some of the higher prices like large grinders of pink sea salt for $1.99.
The Bakery Collection of M&M’s Candy recently came out so I had to give them a try even though they ALL contain artificial flavoring.
Lemon Meringue Pie – I open the bag. they smell like lemon soda. When you eat them they have a strange texture and don’t feel like a M&M in your mouth. More of a candy coated cereal ball. They have a bright refreshing almost lemon taste and do taste a little bit white-chocolaty. Not terrible but have very little resemblance to an M&M.
Cherry Chocolate Cupcake – These smell like chocolate when you open the bag. They are the most successful flavor of the three. They do have an M&M’s chocolate taste embellished with a Cherry Soda type taste.
Peanut Butter Cinnamon Roll – YUK! Worst of the bunch. They smell like peanut butter. It’s like they made peanut butter M&M’s and instead of adding cinnamon they added a chemical that doesn’t taste like cinnamon and is bitter with a chemical taste.
Those were my FORKING Thoughts on the M&M’s Bakery Collection. I do note that YOUR Forking thoughts may indeed differ.
This is most of the best from this past 2025 year. (I said most because I might have forgotten a few or a few of the best were so recent that I didn’t get to add them in yet)
Maybe the best Ceviche I tried was the Ceviche Pescado from Moia Peruvian Restaurant.
One of the very best plates that I tasted this year was the spicy chicken won tons from Din Tai Fung a Taiwanese Restaurant that is located in the Aria Hotel/Casino.
The sauce is FORKING AMAZING is a YUM BOMB!
The Best Bread that I tasted in Las Vegas this year was from Monzu Italian Oven & Bar.
The bread is made from a 300 year old natural family starter from apricots and the bread takes five days to prepare. They serve it was house made ricotta and seasoned oil.
One of the BEST Vegetable Dishes was The Winter Squash from The Pepper Club that kept changing their menus and is no more as of December 20TH 2025.
The Squash were embellished with brown butter, sage, pomegranate molasses and gorgonzola dolce cheese.
The Salmon Katsu from Ton Shou Katsu & Izakaya was Spectacular!
Their Pork Katsu was just as spectacular so I heard.
A really great unusual dish was the Japanese Baby Peaches from Bazaar Mar by Jose Andres.
Japanese Baby Peaches from Bazaar Mar
One of the Best Pastrami Sandwiches was this house made one from Wild Fig BBQ.
The other best Pastrami Sandwich was the one from Wexler’s in the food court in The Aria Hotel/Casino.
I do note that I had the Wexlers three times over the past year and each time it differed some. The Wild Fig Pastrami sandwich only differed in the amount of fat in the pastrami on different visits.
The Goat Cheese in spicy tamarind sauce with pistachios and fried pita breads are so darn tasty that I have to get it every time I go to Flecha Cantina. (Just thought of the Goat Cheese with onion Jam that French Restaurant Oh La La French Bistro makes. That one is also Bomb Delicious)
Another FORKING Tasty appetizer is the Golden Pouches from Lemongrass & Lime.
Golden Pouches FAMOUS Crispy Spinach Salad from Nittaya’s Secret Kitchen
The other most amazing Thai Appetizer is the Crispy Spinach Salad from Nittaya’s Secret Kitchen….It’s the spicy limey bright sauce with cashews that so crazy good.
Maybe the best Thai Entrees came from What’s Zaap Thai Food.
What’s Zaap Thai Food was Amazing. Best Spicy Basil and surprisingly Great Green Curry Salmon
The Salmon was so darn masterful in a great green curry sauce and the Pad Gra Pow was the best I’ve tasted in Las Vegas So Far.
(Just remembered the fish dish from Skye Thai should be here with the crispy basil)
Another BEST was the 4 course dinner from Ferraro’s Ristorante. Every Plate was spectacular and perfect.
The Wagyu Beef Sker from Ginza Izakaya Japanese Restaurant
The Wagyu Beef Skewer from Ginza Izakaya Japanese Restaurant was flavorful and melted in the mouth like no other…..(but the pork belly Skewer was all dried out)
Chicken Francese from Ciao Vino RistoranteThe Bundino from Ciao Vino
The Bundino was extra delicious and flavorful from Ciao Vino
Best Salmon came from Matteo’s in the Palazzo Venetian
best Salmon – Silky moist fresh medium prepared and Skin that was seasoned and cooked down like a tasty potato chip that stayed crisp. – From Matteo’s Italiano’s Italiano Ristorante. There were a few really great salmon plates but this one was the very best of all.
Also from Matteo’s –
Ligurian Focaccia from Matteo’s Italiano Ristorante
This is like a ballon bread filled with melted Crescenza cheese. It was amazing and light as air from Matteo’s Italiano Ristorante. This might be the most amazing plate of the year. Too bad that it is only periodically on the menu.
Shawarma Vegas is one of my favorites for casual Mediterranean Food that happens to be kosher.
So far they make the BEST falafels, Best fluffy Pitas, BEST Beef Kabobs, and every Chicken dish was as GREAT as Possible.
The other great Mediterranean (also kosher) makes the best steak and ultra good chicken came from a kosher restaurant called Tikva’s Grill.
They both had delicious deep flavors, were tender and so darn juicy. (Oh and the fries were notably great too!)
BEST Indian food came from Taste of Gujarat.
The other best Indian-ish Contemporary Food came from Tamba Contemporary Indian Restaurant.
Now I am spoiled. I want all Indian Food to be this perfect and layered with flavors.
Best Plates of the year from a Special Dinner Event from Crossroads Kitchen. It was their Vegan Italian 5 course Dinner with guest Chefs Michael Voltaggio, Rocco DiSpirito, and Tal Ronnen.
The Pasta Nero was insanely SCRUMPTIOUS! with Morel calamari, Sea Bean Powder, and Arrabiata emulsion.
Even the Eggplant Milanese deserves a spot here.
The flavors were so unexpected. Even the lemon was juicy like no other.
And the Croccante Alle Nocciole was such a layered amazing dessert like no other.
A Special Mention must go to Rang’s Cocina Moderne. We go there regularly and all the dishes and all the service is VERY GOOD each and every time we go there.
These were most of the VERY BEST Plates of 2025 from Las Vegas NV.
These are most of the BAD Plates from This Year. I may have forgotten a few?
These are the most Horrific Foods I tried since last year.
Louie Louie Fried Chicken Sandwich
The Louie Louie Fried Chicken Sandwich was over sauced and made with chicken that was so dry it could make you choke. (maybe that is why they over sauced the sandwich?)
This Coconut Chicken from Hawaiian Barbecue (pictured below) had a sauce on it that made me gag and the better chicken nuggets were dry and stingy. The dryer ones were hard as rocks.
The Potato & Cheddar Pierogi from Pierogi Village
The Potato & Cheddar Pierogi had unknown meats in it from Pierogi Village – BLECH!
Caesar Salad from Balla Italian Soul
The worst Caesar Salad was from Balla Italian Soul. Because NOBODY wants their Caesar Dressing to taste like Ranch Dressing with an anchovy garnish.
Broccolini from Balla Italian Soul
Also from Balla Italian Soul the spicy broccolini is very over seasoned and MUSHY…..NOBODY likes mushy smelly broccoli.
Reheated macaroni and cheese, red beans and rice without sauce Jerk Chicken and the toughest beef in the whole world came from Taste Budz Creole Kitchen. (Dang even a crocodile would have trouble here)
Also from Taste Budz Creole Kitchen was from the can deteriorating sweet potatoes and salmon that a fork can’t cut that is crusted with something like grill residue and taste horrible and is so hot and spicy that it is inedible. Maybe this restaurant is called Taste Budz because the owner lacks Taste Budz?
Ick! It taste how it looks – from NORMS
This next one doesn’t look bad but it was BAD. It was suppose to be a $24. ground in house prime rib burger …………But instead they served an over cooked nasty fast food tasting type burger from Carve Prime Rib at the Cannery Hotel/Casino.
From Chabelito’s Mexican Grill #3 I tried the Birria Ramen.
Birria Ramen from Chabelito’s
Then I almost turned into a pillar of salt from this non-edible salt bomb birria ramen.
Hot Garlic Szechuan Chicken from China Kitchen
So SWEET you can pour it on pancakes.
Kung Pao Beef from China Kitchen
The beef was so tough that you could BREAK YOUR TEETH.
When you need a steak knife to cut threw you snapper Florentine is pretty darn bad. (and they served it with a broken sauce too1)
Snapper Florentine Special from Bistro 57Unseasoned hard as tire rubber chicken from Sushi Neko Dried Out Beef Bulgogi from Sushi Neko
This next one doesn’t look bad but it was……The Hamachi Kama from Ginza Izakaya Japanese Restaurant was over cooked to the point where it was dry and stringy. (but their wagyu beef really was very good)
Hamachi Kama from Ginza Izakaya Japanese Restaurant
Also the Chicken Karaage was maybe the worst I ever had anywhere……..because it tasted unseasoned and floury and that you can see!
Chicken Karaage from Ginza Izakaya Japanese Restaurant
Cooper’s Kitchen & Tap served me the WORST Stir Fry Dish that was chuck full of Raw Dry Kale and a sauce that might have been created by a toddler.
The Stir Fry from Cooper’s Kitchen and Tap was awful and full of Raw Kale
Went back to the Hawaiian Barbecue because it actually used to be reasonably good and got this in my Maui Maui Healthier Salad.
It was scary awful and disgusting. If was like fried the fish and dripped oil all over the salad and egg. And WTFork is that BLUE on the egg?
Grizzle and Chicken joints from all the meats I tried from 8282 Korean BBQ
Those were the 2025 Horrific Foods of Las Vegas.
Just awful and NOT WORTH A FORK!
Not Worth a ForkThis is Forked Up!The Forking Truth
The thing that surprised me the most about dining in Las Vegas were the amount of Thai Restaurants here. GOSH there are so many! Nearly all of them are at least good and several of them are exceptional and offer those “Tip” “TOP” FANTABULOUS Killer dishes.
One is the Pla Rad Prik (Crispy Fish) with Crispy Basil from Skye Thai Grab & Go (9650 W. Skye Canyon Park Dr.) We are very fond of other dishes here and also are a fan of their unusual for a Thai Restaurant dishes like Brussels sprouts, a pumpkin and egg dish, and even chicken pho but this Pla Rad Prik is extra special.
Pla Rad Prik from Skye Thai Grab & Go
Tender mild white fish that is shattering Crispy but delicious. It’s savory, sweet, spicy, sour, and tangy. It’s delicious and topped with CRISPY basil, green beans, and bell pepper strips, and come with steamed Jasmin rice. This is so good that even my husband who often doesn’t like fish said that he would order this dish.
Lemongrass and Lime Thai Restaurant (8431 Fam Rd.) might have more than one can’t miss dish. You MUST get the Golden (potato) pouches.
Golden Pouches from Lemongrass & Lime
GOSH YUMMMMMMM! Crisp Crunchy Eggroll wrappers stuffed with mashed potatoes that sit in the BEST massaman curry adorned with some fried crispy shallots.
Lemongrass and Lime also really kills it with their curries. I think the FORKING best green curry, massaman curry, and pumpkin curry, also was from Lemongrass and Lime so those too are must gets if you enjoy Thai Curry.
Yet another YUM-DINGER Crazy great Thai Plate is the Crispy Spinach Salad from Nittaya’s Secret Kitchen (8427 W. Lake Blvd).
FAMOUS Crispy Spinach Salad from Nittaya’s Secret Kitchen
This is so great that even if you think you don’t like Thai Food you will love this. It’s Spinach Leaves that are carefully tempura battered and fried to a perfect crisp. The sauce on the side is what turns this magical….The sauce is lime-ee and bright, it slightly spicy, and has lots of cashews in it.
Those were three of the MUST GET Thai Dishes of Las Vegas NV.
These are foods that you can make too! The recipes or variations of the recipes can be found on this site (www.TheFORKINGTruth.com)
Up above are pizza, pizza rolls topped with ricotta, and lemon cakes (made smaller and called lemon bites in the recipes)
Lemon Cakes with added lemon curd, crumbs, powdered sugar
Pizza
Mashed Potato with hatch chili and cheddar tacos (no recipe published became this is easy)
Banana date and sesame cup cakes based on a Yotam Ottolenghi recipe on this site.
Savory Cocktail Potatoes (Actually Potato Knish filled mini potatoes)
My Famous – Chipotle Rice Corn Cheddar Stuffed Peppers (Recipe here is for Spicy Chipotle Rice Corn Cheddar Potato string wrapped peppers made with jalapenos but I’ve been using sweet mild baby bells lately)
Small rye rolls and mini rye rolls
Pastrami Seasoned Turkey Patties on mini home made rye rolls
Tacos (these are actually ground turkey that is taco seasoned and shaped like small hot dogs so they stay neat and don’t crumble.)
Potato & Cheese Pierogi
Falafel Spiced Turkey Meatballs – Then I reheated them in Wonton Wraps – Offered fresh whipped Hummus with them.
Also made crispy wonton cups and filled them with chocolate covered dates and dusted the cups with cinnamon and 10x sugar. (this I just winged)
Tomato and Cheese (Fresh Mozzarella, Fontina, Parm) Pizza
And I guess I’m wrapping it up here with –
Potato and Cheese Pierogi and Home Made Crackers topped with Green Chili Cheese Ball that I piped into roses.
Well These are food that YOU CAN MAKE TOO and all the recipes or variations of the recipes are here on The Forking Truth
I had to try this bag of Kettle Chili Crisp Potato Chips so I picked it up at my local grocery store.
I am familiar with all kinds of Chili Crisp. I made a few myself – Basically Chili Crisp was originally a Spicy Chinese Condiment that added flavors, heat, and textures to food. (the below chili crisps, and food recipes can be found here in the search.
Chili CrispCabbage and Chilli Crisp Dumplings Indian Inspired Chili Crisp FORKING Delicious Corn Salad made with Italian Chili CrispItalian Chili Crisp
Anyways back to the chips.
I open the bag and take a whiff….It doesn’t really smell like anything I know……maybe a wet potato smell that is mixed with oil and seasonings?
The chips are also all small and very thin and covered with some powder.
The ingredients look OK so I let one dissolve in my mouth.
It’s spicy but doesn’t taste like chili crisp to me.
It tastes very different when you just eat them……….More like spicy BBQ chips. With a little sweetness to them.
Not bad or awful but also not exciting. Just OK.
Those were my FORKING Thoughts on Kettle Chili Crisp Potato Chips your Forking thoughts may indeed differ.
