Junk Food Nation, it’s Friday. Thank God. It’s been a long week. Your comments have made me smile this week, but I will admit – it’s been a long week for personal reasons. Thanks for sticking by me, JFNation. Sometimes I feel like I don’t say that enough. Thank you.

Anyways, this isn’t new news (or news at all), but I JUST learned about a restaurant in Taipei, Taiwan that is hospital themed!  Now, as someone who is not a huge fan of hospitals, this seems completely off-putting for me. You can read all about it here on this travel blogpost (complete with great pictures!) and see what types of things they are doing at this place:

1. Waitresses dressed like sexy nurses

2. Tables made from hospital beds.

3. Beer served from large hanging IV drips.

4. Drinks served from test tubes and un-needled syringes.

5. Wall decorations of x-rays.

Um, while this may be an amine-lover’s wet dream, this seems not-appetizing to me. AT ALL. GET THAT IV AWAY FROM ME. But, what do I know? Apparently, it’s all the rage now, and other countries have tried it:

That restaurant has a gynecologist-themed dining room. For real. NO. NO. NO.

What do you think of this, Junk Food Nation? Horrifying concept or kind of intriguing? Let me know in the comments below. Are there any other restaurants that you’ve been to whose themes have left you shocked? At one point, LA tried a bathroom themed restaurant – not surprising that it failed. Anyways, comment below!

Today’s junk food: Kettle Brand Pepperoncini Potato Chips!!

Doctor Sis got me these Kettle Brand Pepperoncini Potato Chips, and it’s hard not to enjoy the bright lime green bag. I’ve reviewed lots of Kettle Brand chips on this blog, and I’ve started to notice a trend: these chips are ALWAYS tasty (because Kettle makes a tasty chip), but the flavors don’t go far enough. For example, these Sriracha chips weren’t garlicky/spicy enough, and these Maple Bacon chips weren’t bacon-y enough. But let’s backup for a second…

Kettle Brand Pepperoncini Potato Chips are flavored like pepperoncinis….ok, btu what IS a pepperoncini? Wiki defines it as basically ANY Italian hot pepper (red, green, dried, wet, etc), but I’m sure most of us recognize this name attaching to the jarred bright green/yellow peppers seen here. Because I grew up (1) not Italian, and (2) in a rural area, I never had pepperoncinis until I saw them come with a Papa John’s pizza in college. Eighteen years of my life without pepperoncinis! WTH.

Anyways, now I LOVE them – and I always get them sliced on my favorite pie:

Ah, #Vace. I love you – your pie with pepperoni, salami, and pepperoncinis is ridiculous. Anyways, the benefit of pepperoncinis is, for me, two-fold: that sweet/super sour tang of the pickled pepper, and the medium spice that comes along with it. Not super spicy, but not a sweet pepper. I need that kick. You have a lot to live up to, Kettle Brand Pepperoncini Potato Chips.

Kettle Brand Pepperoncini Potato Chips contain a lot of powders, including vinegar and citric acid. That’s right, you give me that sour, Kettle.

When I opened the bag and sniffed these Kettle Brand Pepperoncini Potato Chips, they basically smelled like Salt and Vinegar chips. Not a bad thing – I love that variety. Got a bit of vinegar nostril burn, which was nice. Wasn’t SUPER potent though. Slightly worried.

I crunched a bunch of these Kettle Brand Pepperoncini Potato Chips, and….sigh. NO. These chips cut both ways, and fell into the same category as the other Kettle Brand chips I’ve tried: tastes delicious, but not quite like the flavor that was advertised.

The crunch and kettle cook of these chips cannot be denied – they are very tasty. Not thin cut, the potato chip gives just the right amount of crisp/crunch/bite. The oil used makes them extra savory and not greasy.

The first flavor I tasted was actually a general savory taste with some tang – it was almost like a tangy sour cream / onion flavor. The combo of garlic and onion powders definitely came through, and the yeast extract helped round out that savoriness. The chip was almost…creamy? I dunno. Seemed like it.

The tang was there, but mild. DEFINITELY not the tang you get when you bite into a nice pepperoncini. It did not remind me of that nice neon liquid that comes along with a jar of pepperoncinis. Was there burn? As I chewed, a tiny bit of burn came out, with a bit of jalapeno flavor to add some vegetable-y taste to the overall profile.

This was one of those chips were the more I ate, the more the tang and burn came through. So, maybe by chip 15, I could feel the pepperoncini profile…but it definitely wasn’t immediate. If anything, these chips reminded me of a mix of sour cream / onion and salt/vinegar chips, with a bit of pepper vegetable-y burn. That’s the best description I have for you.

Pepperoncini-like? No. I wanted bold with these, and they were not. I’ve had PLENTY of salt/vinegar chips that kicked me tang-wise more than these. But, like other Kettle Brand chips, the flavor that was there did taste good…so it’s not like I spit these out. But they just didn’t go far enough to make me want to go back. Sad.

Check out Chip Review’s review here – they seemed to agree!

PURCHASED AT: Giant Food, Rockville Pike (Montrose), Maryland

COST: $3.99

Thoughts? Please comment below or hit me up on Twitter @junkfoodguy or LIKE my Facebook Page and message me there. I also have Google+!! Let’s hang out.

Sincerely,

Junk Food Guy