Reviews: Pocket’s Chocolate Takes On Dubai Chocolate Trend; Plus: Siete, Porta

In this reviews roundup, we nosh on Pocket’s Chocolates’ riff on the Dubai chocolate trend, Porta’s line of premium pizzas and Siete’s new potato chip flavors.

Siete Habanero Hot Honey and Sour Crema & Onion Kettle Cooked Potato Chips

Siete has debuted a pair of additions to its line of kettle-cooked potato chips. The two new offerings – Habanero Hot Honey and Sour Crema & Onion – join a collection that includes Spicy Dill Pickle, Queso, Chile Lime and Sea Salt flavors and are among the first post-acquisition product launches since the brand was purchased by PepsiCo for $1.2 billion earlier this year.

Things that stand out:

• The packaging features a prominent callout to avocado oil, tapping into the growing demand for products made without seed oils.
• Like all other Siete products, both items are made with mostly organic ingredients and draw inspiration from the founding family’s Mexican-American heritage. The Habanero Hot Honey potato chips are a nod to “beloved snacks like chili-covered lollipops and gummies and bags of spicy bocadillos preparados drizzled with chamoy,” according to the package.

Things to consider:

• The Sour Crema & Onion chips contain milk, marking the first item launched by the brand that is made with dairy ingredients. While the inclusion of dairy is prominently labeled on the front of the packaging, it’s a curious swerve by a company that built its brand promises on grain-free and dairy-free formulations.
• The Habanero Hot Honey potato chips feature a somewhat overpowering kick that crowds out the sweetness of the honey.

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Pocket’s Chocolates Dubai Style Crispy Pistachios & Dark Chocolate

Marking its first expansion beyond almonds, Pocket’s Chocolates’ take on the Dubai chocolate craze combines pistachios coated with crispy pistachio cream and dark chocolate. The limited-edition item stands out as a well-timed, on-trend and incremental addition to the brand’s line of coated almonds in globally inspired flavors including Matcha, Mango Yuzu, Ube, Black Sesame and Vietnamese Coffee.

Things that stand out:

• A delicious interpretation of the trend, incorporating shredded phyllo dough to capture the light crispiness of kadayıf with the roasty, nutty notes of pistachio, wrapped in a layer of not-too-sweet dark chocolate and finished with a sprinkle of sea salt.
• Like all other Pocket’s Chocolate packaging, this item features colorful and eye-catching graphics and callouts that clearly explain the product’s value proposition.
• The use of pistachios represents an exciting extension for the brand, paving the way for many more possibilities for flavor innovation.

Things to consider:

• It’s a limited release with availability exclusively in Costco stores in Southern California and Hawaii – an incredibly smart and strategic move by the brand but a bummer for everyone else in the country who’s desperate to dig in.

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Porta Roman-Style Pinsas

Porta has executed a meticulous focus on clean-label, high-quality ingredients bringing premium pizza to the frozen aisle with its 4-SKU line of Roman-style Pinsas in Margherita, Pepperoni, Mushroom & Fontina and Sausage & Caramelized Onion varieties. The products have achieved national distribution in a year since their debut, now available at over 2,000 stores including Whole Foods Market, Sprouts Farmers Market and Gelson’s Markets for between $11.99 to $12.99.

Things that stand out:

• The crust tastes as if this pizza was made to order. It is soft, airy and one of the best executions of an authentic crust we have seen in the frozen pizza set.
• Varieties offer something for everyone with ingredient inclusions serving as a point of differentiation within a primarily conventional-dominated category

Things to consider:

• We would like to see more of the toppings on the pizza as some varieties featured minimal of the marketed inclusions.
• Alternative packaging methods like a cryovac film would hold toppings in place as most were loose within the box plastic cover rather than on the pizza itself.
• The price point is fairly high, even for a premium product in this category.

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