Are Name Brand Snack Cups Better? Rhett & Link Find Out

Is the name brand food always better? That’s what Rhett & Link set out to determine in today’s episode of Good Mythical Morning. The challenge: Identify the name brand item from a lineup of generic store brand items. The category: snack cups.  Did the names we know and love reign? Or is it time for someone else to claim the snack cup crown? Here’s how each category went down: 

Dole Fruit Cup

Rhett’s Favorite: Kroger

Link’s Favorite: Target

Rhett & Link struggled to identify the Dole fruit cup. The fruit cups they felt had the most classic, Dole-esque appearance were Walmart’s and Target’s. Link wasn’t a big fan of Walmart’s overpowering syrupy cherry flavor, admitting, “I want the cherry to stay in cherryland.” His “flavorite” was Target’s fruit cup, which he insisted had the softest fruit. Rhett enjoyed Kroger’s fruit cup despite what he felt was a “faded” and “not colorful” visual experience. The biggest loser was, unfortunately, Dole. Link claimed that the Dole fruit cup was too heavy on the pineapple, something they both felt was a more recent addition by the company. Their unexpected conclusion? Pears deserve more love.

Velveeta Shells & Cheese Cup

R&L’s Favorite: Kroger

Link entered the shells and cheese round feeling especially confident. He requested that Rhett perform an “ASMR stir” in each bowl to help him identify the Velveeta, but it’s safe to say that he didn’t learn much from his experiment. First up: Simple Truth. The healthiest option was also the blandest, with Rhett aptly claiming that, “The simple truth is it’s not very good.” Walmart was lacking too. As Link put it, “Cheese isn’t bringing it over here.” While Velveeta’s cup was a monumental increase in flavor from the previous two, it ultimately lost out to the Kroger cup, which was an instant favorite. Link let out a surprised “ooh” upon taking his first bite and the two were convinced that not only had they found the best tasting shells and cheese cup, but that they had accurately identified Velveeta. 

Jell-O Cup

R&L’s Favorite: Jell-O

For the strawberry gelatin snack cup round, Stevie explained that, “Virtually no generic store brands make gelatin to compete with Jell-O.” Jell-O is perfection. Rhett & Link immediately took interest in the Jell-O over the other gelatin cups, noting its deep red color. Even though Link claimed that he doesn’t like Jell-O—it makes him “think of hospitalization”—he was quick to admit that the flavor of the Jell-O was rich. Or, as he put it, “That’s a party in my mouth.” Competitor The Treat Life had a strange artificial sweetener taste, Winky Gelatin was bland (but Rhett insisted it tasted like grape), and Raymundo’s tasted more like bubblegum than strawberry to the guys. The contest was over before it even began.

Quaker’s Instant Oatmeal Cup

Rhett’s Favorite: Kroger & Target

Link’s Favorite: Not Kroger

As Link put it, “Oatmeal is so bland and mushy… I love it.” If you’re looking for the best, blandest mush, pretty much anything goes. The guys tried maple and brown sugar instant oatmeals from Target, Kroger, Quaker, and Walmart. Although Link especially liked Quaker’s oatmeal, he effectively enjoyed all of the options. Well, except Kroger’s. Rhett wasn’t too impressed by the oatmeals, but didn’t seem to mind Kroger’s and Target’s. He did say that Walmart’s oatmeal had an overpowering and unpleasant flavor. The general consensus of the round was that Kroger was on the bland side, Walmart on the other extreme, and Quaker somewhere in between.

Yoplait Cup

R&L’s Favorite: Whole Foods

The Yoplait round featured blueberry yogurts from Whole Foods, Kroger, Walmart, and Yoplait. Whole Foods had the most unique yogurt, with extra fresh fruit and a taste that elicited a series of exclamations from the guys. Rhett said, “Boy, that’s a tasty yogurt… That is a tasty yogurt.” Link echoed his sentiment, “That is a tasty YOGURT!” It’s safe to say that after that experience, the rest of the yogurts fell flat. Kroger’s was on the tangier side and had a slight artificial taste. Walmart’s fruit was too blended but tasted okay. After trying the first three, the guys admitted that it was pretty hard to go wrong with yogurt and that all of them were fine. However, when it came time to try the Yoplait, they both agreed that something “doesn’t seem right about it.” 

When the results were revealed, Rhett was in shock: “I don’t believe ya’ll.” Final Score: Brand Names 1, Knock-Offs 4.


About the Author

Navya Hari

Navya Hari is a writer, baker, and utter nuisance who would gladly take the salt out of every recipe and replace it with ten cloves of garlic. When she’s not whipping up some medieval pie, trying to create food from a video game, or covered in flour, you can probably find her asleep in bed dreaming about Indian mangoes.

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