Review: Limited Edition Waffles & Syrup Oreo & Pancakes: Big or Little?
JFG Nation, whenever I think of waffles or pancakes, I always think of this Jim Gaffigan bit:
Pretty much – I love waffles and I love pancakes and I never have any delusions about how unhealthy they are. “MMMM SOPPING WET SUGARY PASTRY DISCS; GET IN MY BELLY.”
That brings me to a question that was discussed on Deadspin a couple weeks ago: when it comes to pancakes, which size do you prefer? Do you prefer Silver Dollar Pancakes, which are about the diameter of a tea cup coaster? Do you prefer the large, plate covering stack of pancakes that you get at some diners? Or somewhere in between – flapjacks that are maybe the size of CDs?
Actually, forget what you prefer – which size is the CORRECT SIZE for pancakes? That’s right, let’s up the stakes – you state, once and for all, what the proper size of a pancake is, and defend it in the comments below. Me? CD-size pancakes are the correct size. You go to Hades with your gigantic pancakes that are weird and puffy and aren’t crisp enough on the edges. No one wants to eat essentially a deflated tire. And Silver Dollar Pancakes? I’m trying to eat breakfast, not serve a pizza to the Indian in the Cupboard. I shouldn’t have to eat ten of these things to get full.
Take your pancake size stand below, and forever hold your peace.
Today’s junk food: Limited Edition Waffles & Syrup Oreo!!
These Waffles & Syrup Oreos are the exact result of what I’ve always stated on the Nosh Show – at some point, Oreo just comes up with flavors, and then reverse engineers the name. I guarantee you these just taste like maple Oreos, and the name was added AFTER the fact. They needed something to compete with the amazing Maple Leaf Cookies from Trader Joe’s and have a name that would catch people’s eyes. The result? Waffles and Syrup Oreos.
DO THESE TASTE GOOD? Yes.
WHY OR WHY NOT? The aroma that wafted out of the open package reminded me of graham crackers – it had that sort of honey-ish smell, backed by a strong cookie smell. However, the cookie here is a Golden Oreo, not a graham Oreo like some of the recent novelty flavors have used.
The creme inside is a very good, very sweet, maple brown sugar flavor. I tried to taste the two colors individually to see if it made a difference – NOPE. Both off-white and light brown cremes were strong maple in flavor, which probably explains why they didn’t try to name the different colored center anything on the front of the packaging. It reminded me of brown sugar ice cream flavor, and still carried a hint of graham taste.
Eaten altogether, there’s nothing NOT to like about this cookie – except the fact that it tastes NOTHING like a Waffles and Syrup combo. The Golden Oreo is sweet and vanilla like a Golden Oreo – there was no attempt to cover that flavor. This is a Golden Oreo with maple filling. Which, as I said, is tasty – but completely fails the branding. If the execs truly did try to reverse engineer a name, as I speculated, this was a poor naming choice. Maple Syrup Golden Oreos would’ve worked. “Waffles” promises something more, maybe butter? Got none of that here.
Delicious cookies. Poor naming. Does that matter? Probably not – Nabisco already has my $3.
ANYTHING ELSE I SHOULD KNOW? These are available here in Maryland, and I’ve seen pics of people finding them near Philly, Boston, and Chicago.
PURCHASED AT: Safeway, Germantown, MD.
WHERE FOUND IN STORE? Standalone displays in front of the register.
COST? $2.50 on sale.
Sincerely,
The JFG
Discuss - 9 Comments
I prefer my pancakes thick and fluffy, which tends to rule out silver dollar size. It doesn’t matter beyond that. I’ve just got to cut them into smaller pieces anyway.
The silver dollar sized pancakes have the advantage of not requiring many cuts to get them to an acceptable size (or any cuts, if they truly are the size of a silver dollar).
I’m pretty ambivalent about size, but I like texture in my pancakes. My favorite recipe uses a blend of whole wheat, AP, and corn meal. I top mine with a syrup made from melted butter, honey and cinnamon.
I’m with you on CD sized pancakes, and there is a simple reason why. I like my pancakes stacked high. When I think of pancakes, I think of a nice stack of three with syrup dripping down the pancake. The silver dollar ones would fall over if I stacked enough to fill me up. The huge plate sized ones fill you up after just one so no stacking there. Plus, if you have a plate-sized pancake, there is no where for the extra syrup to drip except onto the table. And many times, it just seeps into the plate-sized pancake because it’s not crisp enough. Anyways that is my analysis of the pancake types. I agree with all the way on size. Also, your conclusion about the Oreos is also happening with the Thomas’ line of bagels. I swear it is sometimes the same bagel flavor, but they change up the name to catch your eye and think it’s something nifty. After all, how many times can cinnamon be redone?
It’s been awhile but I could not stay out of the great pancake debate. You are spot on with the CD-size as the rightful king. But folks miss the most important comment in your analysis – “…crisp enough on the edges.” That is the key to a good pancake. There has to be that little bit of crispness else it’s just cake. And cake that gets soggy with syrup such that you eventually abandon the idea of eating that plate sized disk of goo. (OK, I have only heard rumors of people giving up)
And I never see good alternate choices in the Oreo department unless its the holidays. I need a better junk food emporium besides Harris Teeter.
I’m going to be a rebel and say boo to pancakes all together. I am a waffle woman. Crisp on the outside, fluffy on The inside. I’ve never had a pancake I’ve liked.
Totally agree on the CD-sized pancakes.
I am wondering whether it would work to take off the filling of these Oreos and put it between Chicken in a Biskit crackers for a Fried Chicken & Waffles thing.
KN is on the right track. Waffles rule, pancakes drool. Except for crepes, they also rule.
FRENCH TOAST. No pancakes.
I did try these and I agree with you about them tasting more like just a competitor of TJ’s maple cookies (but obv not close at all). I disagree on the filling however, the brown and white did have a difference in flavor and perhaps sweetness, and definitely difference in texture. I should know, I didn’t eat a single complete cookie. I only ate the fillings, like always.