Calbee Honey Butter Potato Chips: Back when I lived in Cambridge, I frequently saw honey butter flavored potato chips on the shelves at HMart, and despite my proclivity for odd snacks, this is one I left untouched. Little did I know that in late 2014, honey butter chips set off a frenzy in South Korea, with convenient stores frequently sold out and single bags going for as much as $50 (a 2500% markup) on eBay (google the Munchies article to learn more). After hearing about this craze, my sister and I bought a bag from 99 R... (read more) 1.5/5.0
korean honeybutter chips avoid calbee honey butter potato 1.5
Haitai honey cheese snack: This snack was an impulse buy solely based on the unique honey and cheese flavor; I honestly didn't look closely at what exactly it was, so I was surprised to find four individual snack packs containing biscuit sticks that resemble coating-less pocky or salt-less pretzel sticks. The sweet flavor has a distinct funky undertone, which, according to the ingredients list, may come from cream cheese. It had a dessert-like vibe but also a savory bite. It's actually fairly good and definitely a fla... (read more) 3.0/5.0
haitai korean cheese honey bizarre hmart 3.0 biscuit creamcheese crackers snack
Choripdong Digestive Cream Sand Biscuit: Individually wrapped Korean sandwich cookies with a mildly sweet, crumbly biscuit flavored with sesame seeds and a light cream filling. I like how it's not crunchy and thick like many digestives, and the snack overall feels mostly healthful although it's a dessert. 3.5/5.0
choripdong korean hmart 3.5 recommended cookies digestives sesame biscuits digestive cream sand biscuit
Bibgo Seaweed Crisps: I broke the first rule of purchasing snacks at an ethnic grocery store (buy products with the least amount of English). Still, Bibgo is a Seoul-based company, lending it some credibility. This snack is unique with its combination of normally soft seaweed with a crisp rice cracker backing. The chips are surprisingly sweet, and initially, I liked the snack a lot. The more I ate, though, the more the rice flavor dominated. I would have preferred better balance with more seaweed flavor. A bag ha... (read more) 3.0/5.0
bibgo seaweed korean hmart 3.0 crisps instafood
CW mini sesame snack: Basic sesame flavored biscuit that's more sweet than savory, but remains fairly neutral nonetheless. I purchased an alternative version of this snack in the past that comes in a plastic container and has a long stick form factor (similar to Pocky). I recommend that version over this one for its convenient packaging, though they taste exactly the same. 3.0/5.0
cw korean crackers biscuit sesame hmart 3.0 mini snack
Korean wheat flour crackers: When I saw this bag on the shelf, it reminded me sachima, a Chinese pastry composed of soft fried flour, butter, and sugar (and often raisins). I purchased this bag to see what the Korean version would taste like. Despite the nutrition facts, which state that this contains 0g of sugar, the snack is very sweet. (Also, sugar is one of only four listed ingredients). The crackers are dense and quite hard to bite into, a factor that could be an issue for anyone with dental problems. Some pieces a... (read more) 3.0/5.0
korean ricecracker sachima hmart 3.0 wheat flour crackers