After trying a couple of the other Fresh Finds “gourmet” potato chips, I opted to try the most straightforward one yet: mesquite barbecue. There are only so many things you can do with BBQ chips, and many of them come off tasting like salt more than actual barbecue, but based on what I’ve had, I had faith in Fresh Finds to deliver the goods. Did they come through, or leave me hanging for the first time ever?

Like all the other Fresh Finds chips that I’ve seen, the Mesquite Barbecue is contained in an 8 oz. bag, for $1.90, which is a pretty good price point. A vast majority of the chips take on a dark red hue, from the sheer amount of barbecue seasoning on each one. While this can be a blessing, a lot of times with barbecue chips it tends to mean that it’s just overwhelmingly salty; still, I’d rather there be too much seasoning, than not enough, I suppose.

Just like the other Fresh Finds chips I’ve had, these really are nice and crunchy, just like the packaging declares. This is no doubt due to them being processed as kettle chips, which tend to be twice as crunchy as standard ones. And just like all the other ones I’ve had under the Big Lots private label brand, these are surprisingly delicious.

The “secret” ingredient in these, which are curiously missing from a lot of other BBQ chips, is that they add a touch of sweetness to their seasoning. This is welcome, because it helps to counterpoint the saltiness inherent of standard barbecue chips, that I have now mentioned three times. By adding a little bit of sugar to the mix, it creates a much more addicting flavor, and I found myself reaching into the bag at various points throughout the day just to shove a few in my mouth. This doesn’t happen very often to me, as far as barbecue chips are concerned.

But it really works here–I was downing these quicker than any other barbecue chip of recent memory. I’m usually hesitant to purchase BBQ chips because they all seem to taste the same (or close enough), but these stand out enough that I wouldn’t hesitate to get them again, though it would be some point down the road (barbecue used to be the only kind of chip I would buy, so I get sick of them quite easily, no matter how good they are). If you don’t mind a little bit of sweetness to go with your salty, then these are a surprisingly delicious way to go.

Overall: 8/10. A surprisingly sweet barbecue chip that is one of the better ones I’ve had in recent memory. The BBQ itself is good, and manages to avoid being salty on its own, but adding in a touch of sugar makes these far more addicting than they should be. For purveyors of crunch, these are kettle cooked, so they are twice as crunchy as standard potato chips. The retail price, $1.90 per 8 oz. bag, offers plenty of chip for an affordable price, too. If you’re a barbecue connoisseur, you should pick these up the first chance you get!