NOW CLOSED Walkers Hoops and Crosses - tester review thread

[KatieBMumsnet]

This thread is for all the MNers who have been trying new Walkers Hoops and Crosses with their DCs. Below are some questions to get you started but please feel free to add other comments too.

Everyone who adds their feedback on this thread will be entered into a prize draw where one winner will get a £250 John Lewis voucher.

Q1 What do you think of the flavours you tried? Which one did you like the most? And how about your DC?

Q2 What do you think of the fact that Hoops and Crosses are a source of wholegrain? Would you choose them over another snack that isn't wholegrain?

Q3 What do your DC think of Hoops and Crosses as a snack? Would they be happy to get them in their lunch box?

Thanks and good luck with the prize draw!

MNHQ

We had beef and salt and vinegar. I liked the beef and so did dp, he loves monster munch beef flavour and said they were as good (a big compliment). All 3 dc preferred the salt and vinegar.

I liked the fact they were wholegrain and as the dc like them I would choose them over other products. I also liked the bags were smaller so I could put them in the dc lunchboxes for a treat. They don't really have time to eat a full bag of crisps but seemed to manage these.

The dc all enjoyed them and I have already bought more as they are on offer for a £1 a bag of 6 in our supermarket. I would give them in their lunchboxes for a treat.

I do have to mention what dd2 said, when I asked her if she liked the noughts and crosses she told me that they weren't called that they were 'hugs and kisses she said she had already given her sister a hug and offered me a hug or a kiss

Thanks for letting us try them.

Further to previous reply. My teenager has also taste tested (I.e. trying to tip a entire bag into his mouth at once, as teens ae prone to doing). He enjoyed them, liked that the salt and vinegar didn't taste too strong but said he preferred the beef ones. He felt the texture was like monster munch but better.

We received our crisps yesterday...and they are already gone!
However, this was due to lots of enthusiastic guest testers rather than a total pig out on our part .

Q1 What do you think of the flavours you tried? Which one did you like the most? And how about your DC?
We tried the Roast Beef and the Salt and Vinegar - The roast beef were definitely reminiscent of beef monster munch, but in fact tasted much nicer. The salt and vinegar were quite a strong taste but very moreish...DH and I had to resist hiding them from the children. DS loved the salt and vinegar too, as did our guest testers aged 5, 6 and 7. They all liked the roast beef, but the salt and vinegar definitely won out! DD, unfortunately, refused to try them at all (she is 3 and ill though...says it all )

Q2 What do you think of the fact that Hoops and Crosses are a source of wholegrain? Would you choose them over another snack that isn't wholegrain?
I think it is a positive point that they are a source of wholegrain, but I hope my children are already getting enough in their every day diet so it wouldn't usually sway me one way or the other. I would choose them over another snack that wasn't wholegrain mostly because the salt and fat content was fairly low and the wholegrain is an added benefit...plus, DS really loved them (as did we) so I'm sure we'll buy them again.

Q3 What did your DC think of Hoops and Crosses as a snack? Would they be happy to get them in their lunch box?
As I said earlier, they were a massive hit with DS and he would be hugely happy to get them in his lunch box. He took some to school today and apparently shared them around, with success.

Thanks very much for letting us take part !

We haven't received ours yet

Q1 What do you think of the flavours you tried? Which one did you like the most? And how about your DC?

We (me, dh, and 3 teen ds) all preferred the salt and vinegar. We felt the roast beef wasn't quite 'beefy' enough.

Q2 What do you think of the fact that Hoops and Crosses are a source of wholegrain? Would you choose them over another snack that isn't wholegrain?

I'm a bit sceptical tbh. Why do I feel I'm being a bit manipulated? Could it possibly be that Walkers are trying to make us mistakenly believe we are giving our dcs a healthy snack by the addition of microscopic amounts of roughage? Or is the wholemeal aspect just enough to assuage our guilt at giving our children so much salt? I'd almost prefer crisps to be totally up front about being downright unhealthy.

Q3 What did your DC think of Hoops and Crosses as a snack? Would they be happy to get them in their lunch box?

I tend not to put crisps in lunch boxes because of the salt/fat aspect. As a treat snack I think these are pretty similar to other wheat-based snacks. The dcs liked them but not enough that we'd choose them in preference to all the other crisps/ snacks out there.

PS My dss were very insistent that I fed back that the name is wrong and it should be noughts and crosses. (Guessing some copyright issues or something gong on there?)

1. I liked the beef (hate vinegar!) and dd tucked in to a couple (21 months) Dh and ds1 (8) liked both flavours, ds2 found the s & v too strong

1. They are still crisps so I am never going to be convinced they are healthy but I guess whole grain is a good thing. More concerned about whether they are full of additives to be honest. Having said that the whole grain may sway me to pick them up over something else.

1. Liked them and would be very happy with them in their lunchbox and probably will have tomorrow!

The kids had the salt and vinegar and husband and I tried the beef ones. His first reaction was they are like monster munch. Had to check they were suitable for veggies, it says it on big packet but not on individual ones. I tried a salt and vinegar one and thought it was very strong. Kids said they loved them though. Liked the taste but not the sticking to the teeth sensation for a long time after! Would prefer them in cheese and onion. Like the fact they are wholegrain but really only bothered about the price when doing a weekly shop. Like that they are not high in calories or fat. Kids have crisps twice a week in packed lunch and I would give them these as long as they are reasonably priced.

This has to be one of the most exciting parcels I've ever had! Thank you for choosing us.

Q1 What do you think of the flavours you tried? Which one did you like the most? And how about your DC?
All of us, without exception, preferred the Roast Beef. And all of us wanted cheese and onion! We are not generally salt and vinegar fans but we thought that these were still quite nice as they weren't too strongly favoured. They have a great texture - crunchy, but not as powdery as similar snacks. No bad after taste, like you sometimes get with similar snacks!

Q2 What do you think of the fact that Hoops and Crosses are a source of wholegrain? Would you choose them over another snack that isn't wholegrain?
I like the fact that they are whole grain and would definitely buy them. DH doesn't give a toss about whole grain but would buy them because they are nice! The DCs looked at me like I was stupid when I talked about whole grain. Oh well, it's a mum's job I suppose!

Q3 What did your DC think of Hoops and Crosses as a snack? Would they be happy to get them in their lunch box?
"Amazing!" says DD (9). She has had a pack in her lunch box today. A great alternative to crisps. We even had a game of noughts and crosses although DH kept stealing my crosses so I couldn't win!
DD (15) prefers traditional Walkers cheese and onion crisps, but it didn't stop her from eating a packet!

Q1 What do you think of the flavours you tried? Which one did you like the most? And how about your DC?

The roast beef ones are nice (DH said 'like licking an oxo cube', which I had no idea he did), we all liked them - salt and vinegar ones were grim, none of us liked them. I gave them to our childminder though, and she thought they were lovely :)

Q2 What do you think of the fact that Hoops and Crosses are a source of wholegrain? Would you choose them over another snack that isn't wholegrain?

I might occasionally choose these to get DCs to eat wholegrain, but it's not something I really think about.

Q3 What did your DC think of Hoops and Crosses as a snack? Would they be happy to get them in their lunch box?

DS loves them, and was very happy to have them in his bag! DD is a bit young, but we let her try one cross, and she thoroughly enjoyed it :o

Thanks for the snacks, nice to have a new treat to try!

Q1 - Roast beef were lovely, not so keen on the salt & vinegar. My DD 3 really liked the roast beef as did my 1 year old but didn't like the salt & vinegar. S&V made the 1 year old cry!! So think safe to say we probably wouldn't go for salt & vinegar again.

Q2 - like the fact they're whole grain and makes me feel a bit happier about feeding them to the children. Also felt they tasted less greasy than normal crisps so made me feel a bit less guilty about eating them!

Q3 - they're a bit small for lunch boxes yet but we'll definitely take them out on days for snacks.

Thanks for the opportunity to buy, we'll be buying again I'm sure.

Mmm mine arrived yesterday. I'll come back and review once we've opened the 2nd bag but the roast beef were yummy, even on a par with my all time faves monster munch!

1. My fussy son and daughter were not keen on either the beef of salt and vinegar flavour. Out of the 2, I would say salt and vinegar was top preference. I tasted both and was reminded of monster munch. They both thought the flavours were very strong.

2. I don't trust claims that they are a healthier snack. I think all crisp type snacks are similar in nutritional value. No, I would not choose these over other crisps because of this claim.

3. Both were not keen to have them again and asked for their normal (walkers bakes) crisps in their lunch.

1, we all liked both flavours. The crisps have loads of seasoning and the flavours are really nice.

2, the fact that they are wholegrain is good, but I would still choose snacks based on price too. If these were reasonably priced I would buy them over other crisps based on flavour alone. The fact they are wholegrain is just a bonus to me.

3, the kids have really enjoyed them, as have myself and my husband. My girls have taken them in their lunch boxes and really liked them as part of their lunch. My oldest said her friends had tried hers and liked them too.

Thanks for letting me test. We have all liked them and I will be buying the prawn cocktail to try too.

Q1 What do you think of the flavours you tried? Which one did you like the most? And how about your DC?

DD 3 and I liked both flavours, but DD 1 and OH found the salt & vinegar too 'stingy' and a bit of an odd, over-powering flavour. Made DD cough as the vinegary-ness was so strong. So overall the Roast Beef flavour was preferred, and good to see they are still suitable for vegetarians.

Q2 What do you think of the fact that Hoops and Crosses are a source of wholegrain? Would you choose them over another snack that isn't wholegrain?

I think lower fat and wholegrain would be a preferable choice when buying crisps and DDs wouldn't know/care either way, so yes I probably would choose them over other snacks/crisps.

Q3 What did your DC think of Hoops and Crosses as a snack? Would they be happy to get them in their lunch box?

DD 3 keeps walking for them, knowing they're in the cupboard, so seems to really like them. Would make a good addition to a packed lunch box.

All in all, it's very nice to see a slightly healthier crisp option, although a further reduction in salt content would be good too!

Q1 What do you think of the flavours you tried? Which one did you like the most? And how about your DC?

I tried the beef and the salt & vinegar ones. The beef ones definitely taste like Monster Munch but are easier to eat and less messy! The salt & vinegar ones reminded my of chipsticks in their flavour. My DD 5yo liked both flavours and she loved the fact that they were in Hoops and Crosses and tried to play a game with them

Q2 What do you think of the fact that Hoops and Crosses are a source of wholegrain? Would you choose them over another snack that isn't wholegrain?

As a wholegrain snack, they are very tasty. I would definitely buy them again. They felt more filling than a usual bag of crisps

Q3 What did your DC think of Hoops and Crosses as a snack? Would they be happy to get them in their lunch box?

DD would love to get these in her lunch box. At the moment I dont put crisps in her lunchbox at all, but if these are a healthy version of crisps, then I would be happy to put them in

Overall, very tasty, easy to eat and highly recommended

Q1 What do you think of the flavours you tried? Which one did you like the most? And how about your DC?

Well I can't say I've had a beef-flavoured anything for years and it was a very enjoyable nostalgia-fest for the grown-ups to taste that unique flavour again. Yum!

DD wouldn't even touch the beef ones (she has veggie leanings!) but loved the Salt and Vinegar ones. DS loved both flavours. They were a lot less artificial tasting (without that horrible, lingering acidy after-taste) than we would have imagined so we were pleasantly surprised!

Q2 What do you think of the fact that Hoops and Crosses are a source of wholegrain? Would you choose them over another snack that isn't wholegrain?

Well I like it in theory but unlike the Walker's Multigrain Snacks we product tested a couple of Summers' ago, the Hoops and Crosses didn't to my mind have the same wholegrain taste/texture. But for the children that's no bad thing!

I would choose them over and above a non-wholegrain snack although I would like to think that our family gets enough wholegrain anyway so it's not entirely necessary to be such a purist with 'naughty snacks'!

Q3 What did your DC think of Hoops and Crosses as a snack? Would they be happy to get them in their lunch box?

Well they were light and not very calorific and there were more than enough for DD (7), although left to his own devices DS (12) would probably eat several packets in a row....

I would occasionally put them in lunchboxes although as a rule we don't, as crisps and the like are frowned-upon at primary school. As I said in the pitch to get into the product trial, we are fighting a losing battle with DS about snacks. Now that he is at secondary school he seems to buy a salty snack everyday (well that's what the empty packets stuffed into his blazer pocket would suggest!) so I would rather these than some of the less healthy options.

We really liked them - all of the family - and will definitely be buying them as a treat rather than as a weekly item on the shopping list! I really liked the 'melt in the mouth' factor (sorry, I've never eaten Monster Munch).

Thank you for letting us have the opportunity to try them out! Yes, a great pity that someone else snaffled the copyright to the 'Noughts and Crosses' name. Perhaps you could have called them Tic, Tac, To (or whatever the other name for Noughts and Crosses is)?

So far they have been a big hit in my house :) I tried the beef ones, as did my dd and my ds tried the salt and vinegar. Both the children would be happy to have them in their lunchboxes. As someone said upthread the beef ones do seem similar to monster munch. An added bonus that they are wholegrain. I'm going to get some more feedback from the children later and try the other flavour , then post again.

Q1: We had beef and salt and vinegar. DS (3) definitely preferred the beef. The salt and vinegar ones tasted overpoweringly of vinegar (but I quite liked them anyway. As someone else said above, the fact that they seem to clag around your teeth is not very nice! But overall snack wise the beef were a hit.

Q2: The whole grain point would be less important to me than low salt, low fat, low sugar and small pack sizes (all "snacks" seem to come in huge sizes now). It's a bonus really. I like the fact they're baked not fried, too.

Q3: DD has school lunches; I can see these going into picnics though.

I don't know if I've been picked or not but I missed a parcel yesterday and the red card said our local collection office is closed until the 23rd!! :(

Q1 What do you think of the flavours you tried? Which one did you like the most? And how about your DC?

We tried the beef ones and the salt and vinegar. I personally thought the beef ones were exactly like monster munch, and were lovely. The salt and vinegar ones were perfect.

DD (3)'s first reaction when I put the crisps in the bowls was "oooh I like those, will you buy those every day?". She tried the salt and vinegar and said "mmmm yummy, keep buying these". Beef: "I don't like these, urgh. They're horrible" and put it back half eaten in the bowl (more for me!).

DS (6) had no initial reaction. I asked him to try a beef one and let me know what he thought. He ate one and said "yep". He then ate a S&V one and said "yep". When I asked his favourite, he pointed to both bowls. When I asked him if he'd like me to buy these instead of other crisps, he said "a thousand times" (which I think is a stamp of approval).

I offered them to DH and he said "I'm not eating those, they look like monster munch". Who knew I was married to such an odd man?

Q2 What do you think of the fact that Hoops and Crosses are a source of wholegrain? Would you choose them over another snack that isn't wholegrain?

They can't be described as "healthy", and so while I would buy them, I'd buy them on the basis of how I'd normally buy snacks - what looks nice, what's on offer? I wouldn't buy them because they're wholegrain. Actually, that said, I tend to buy crisps to dip, and so would probably be less likely to buy these than, say, pringles, even though as crisps I like them equally.

Q3 What did your DC think of Hoops and Crosses as a snack? Would they be happy to get them in their lunch box
Yes very, although DD would only like the S&V ones. They'd think of it as a real treat, and I'd be happy to give them a full pack each, whereas with the normal walker's crisps I'd make them share - so that will make them very happy!

Q1 What do you think of the flavours you tried? Which one did you like the most? And how about your DC?

We also had the salt and vinegar and beef flavoured ones.
DS (10) and DD (8) both preferred the salt and vinegar ones but said they liked both. I much preferred the roast beef flavour. We all thought they were similar to Monster Munch too. I actually thought they were much nicer than Monster Munch, less greasy and a much more subtle flavour.

Q2 What do you think of the fact that Hoops and Crosses are a source of wholegrain? Would you choose them over another snack that isn't wholegrain?

That is an added bonus! We only have crisps as an occasional treat or if we're out and about. I would definitely choose them as a snack instead of regular crisps.

Q3 What did your DC think of Hoops and Crosses as a snack? Would they be happy to get them in their lunch box?

My kids would love to have them as a snack at school, but unfortunately we are not actually allowed to have crisps in lunchboxes at our school. I would be happy to have them after school occasionally. I on the other hand would love to take them to work for lunch (as would my husband!).

Helloooo!
OK - both flavours tried and tested by me, DH and DSs aged 8 and 6.

Q1 - all preferred the roast beef flavour, although DS1 (age 8) liked both equally he says. DS2 really disliked the salt and vinegar but then he doesn't generally like salt and vinegar flavour stuff anyway to be fair. DH also made comment that the S&V tasted a "bit funny" and "sweet" similar to what others have said in the feedback.

Q2 - yes very much like the wholegrain and would choose over another crisp type snack. I personally prefer the sort of fluffy, crunchiness to plain crisps (I am a monster munch fan!) The boys both love crisps and I do try to limit them, so a marginally healthier option is great.

q3 - yes indeed they would be more than happy with them as part of a lunch box. As would DH.

Thank you for the crisps!

Q1 What do you think of the flavours you tried? Which one did you like the most? And how about your DC?
We tried roast beef and salt and vinegar. We all loved the roast beef, they were nice and savoury and not too salty. The salt and vinegar were not vinergary enough but were not too salty which was good. They also tasted a bit sweet but the DC's loved them.

Q2 What do you think of the fact that Hoops and Crosses are a source of wholegrain? Would you choose them over another snack that isn't wholegrain?
I would choose them over other snacks because of the wholegrain and the calories are low which is great.

Q3 What did your DC think of Hoops and Crosses as a snack? Would they be happy to get them in their lunch box?
The DC's loved them and especially the size of them. They were just right for their hands and seemed to go a long way because they weren't too big, like some similar snacks. My DS's actually played noughts and crosses with theirs and had great fun with that. I did put them in their lunch box but squirrelled some away for myself first! Mine are only allowed crisps twice a week but I would be happy to give them to them as they are a healthier option.

Q1 What do you think of the flavours you tried? Which one did you like the most? And how about your DC?

Strong flavour. The roast beef taste the same as Monster Munch. I preferred the beef, both children preferred the salt and vinegar although still liked the beef. We're all veggie, so glad to see both suitable for vegetarians and nice, short list of ingredients on the salt and vinegar.

Q2 What do you think of the fact that Hoops and Crosses are a source of wholegrain? Would you choose them over another snack that isn't wholegrain?

Preferable to similar snack that wasn't whole grain but find it hard to believe it's doing much good in that form.

Q3 What did your DC think of Hoops and Crosses as a snack? Would they be happy to get them in their lunch box?

I'm sure they would be happy to get in their lunch box but it's not something I'd put in. Not very substantial and would just give as a treat.

Small pack, which is fine for the kids, and would hope to see this reflected in the price. Youngest liked the shapes and told me for EACH crisp what shape she was eating.

GDA listed on the back of the pack is that for adults - if they're aimed at children then it would be more apporpriate if their GDA were listed.