We Tasted Lay's Crazy New 'Chicken & Waffles' Potato Chips Here's The Verdict

The three finalists for the Lay's flavor contest are Garlic Cheesy Bread, Chicken & Waffles, and Sriracha.

Click here to read about Lay's crazy selection process>

They were spotted in the wild before the official announcement, but the flavors will be hitting stores tomorrow.

Garlic Cheesy Bread and Sriracha are pretty simple and they taste exactly how you'd expect them to taste.

If you like cheesy bread, you'll like the flavor in the chips, but maybe not the texture (it doesn't come close to replicating the experience of a eating a piece of a loaf). 

If you like the taste of sriracha, you'll enjoy the spice in those.

But what about the strangest of the three flavors: Chicken & Waffles?

It's definitely... unique.

You immediately get the maple syrup flavor right up front as you crunch into the chip, and it stays with you all the way through.

The basic potato chip flavor serves as a backdrop as a tiny bit of chicken seeps its way onto the palate along with a bit of paprika.

It's quite lacking in chicken flavor, though. You're waiting for the chicken, but it just doesn't quite hit, and you're left wanting more.

By the time the chip has turned to mush in your mouth, you're left with that traditional chip flavor, but a waffly taste still lingers. Minutes later, the sweetness remains. It needs to be washed away if you don't like the aftertaste.

We asked the newsroom what they thought of Chicken & Waffles. Here's what they said:

• "A taste that's hard to describe, but is almost like a cracker more than a potato chip" — senior reporter Jay Yarow
• "Gross. You can only eat one of them. Like, 'betcha can't just eat one' would never be a good phrase for them" — senior editor Leah Goldman
• "Tastes too overwhelmingly of chicken flavoring. It reminds me of ramen or chicken broth. The maple is barely perceptible and vanishes in the weird aftertaste. I would eat these chips, but only if I had nothing else around" — reporter Ashley Lutz
• "The waffle flavor helps leave a sweet after taste that is more appealing than the feeling of garlic breath and a spicy tingle on the tongue from the sriracha" — reporter Kirsten Acuna
• "Liked it a lot. It wasn't overpowering. I wish there was more of a chicken flavor but it was still good" — reporter Kevin Smith
• "All you really taste is maple syrup with a hint of Cajun spices you'd expect from Popeye's" — multimedia producer Will Wei
• "Overly sweet, with an undertone of suffering" — reporter Max Nisen
• "Nice syrup-y bouquet. But has kind of a ramen noodle-y finish on the palette" — editor Sam Ro

If you're curious, here are the ingredients in Chicken & Waffles:

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