Rhubarb and Custard Hot Chocolate (Whittard) By @cinabar

This Whittard Rhubarb and Custard is one of the brand’s new summer flavours of hot chocolate. As a fan of rhubarb and custard, count me in. The tub is very pretty and looks perfect for the season. I opened it up to find pale pink granules. I heated some milk and mixed them in, and the drink turned a lovely shade of pale pink.

I gave it a sip and found the rhubarb taste to be weirdly sharp, with a slightly artificial edge to it. It wasn’t quite zingy, but there was something about the flavour that didn’t quite work for me. The creamy custard taste was the saving grace, adding a much-needed boost of vanilla.

I usually love Whittard hot chocolates, and I currently have two other tubs on the go that I’m really enjoying. With my hot chocolate addiction, I’m certainly no stranger to their flavours! Sadly, this one is the first that has been just okay. I’ll get through the tub, but I was honestly thinking about adding sugar to it.

FIVE Guys Revisited - is it better value than KFC now? [@NLi10]

 There's a section of the fast-food-eating community that are still admamant that it's worth paying extra for FIVE GUYS over things like McDonalds and KFC and that it's comparable to Nando's and similar.  It usually costs £20 for a 'meal' (they don't do meals - no discounts for you!), and now FKC and McDonalds have snuck in luxury menus they can cost close to £20 too - so - which is the best value in 2026? 

First up we have a cup of chips.  This is not a sane choice, but it's what they go with.  I think it's because of the peanut oil or something - but it's a small portion.  Why is that...?

They tip the rest into your bag.  Now - this seems silly because these are the ones you'll want to eat first before they go cold.  They are protecting the burger for safety.

And what about the drink - they have a giant machine for that.

As ever - these seem to be malfunctioning.  One was off, and the working one put the flat tasting water everywhere.  I used the variations and options to try a Fanta Grape, non Sparkling.

This is me realising I just paid £4 for a cup of squash.  Luckily it's bottomless so I could have a 2nd drink and take it with me into the cinema - I chose a Coke, but it tasted very odd.  Not sure if it was grape residue or just that the machines proportions were thrown off by it being a sprinkler system.

Next up - the main event - a burger cooked your way with a choice of toppings.

They wrap them forcefully in foil to keep them hot, which means that they all look a bit like this.  Decently fresh ingredients, nice enough meat - but is this a £10 burger?

Overall this leaves me wondering why UK fast food places can't get the drinks right post sugar-tax.

Why pub burgers are so much better value and quality than burger place burgers.

And why chips always have to have a gimmick.

Overall I had a decent meal, I was full, and everything food based was decent enough.  I enjoyed the chips and the ability to have a decent amount of salad on the burger was nice.  The £16 KFC Naan Meal from last week was better value, but not really by much. That said - in KFC I can be full for £12 pretty easily.

Maybe I'm just not the teenage/student audience that these things are designed for (when I was 21 this place was still Birmingham's Hard Rock Cafe!) and I should be valuing the fact that I can eat it fast and get back to whatever the young people enjoy these days.  As it stands £20 would get you a slower, better meal at one of towns many many independent pubs, even if the ingredients aren't quite as flashy and the kitchen is probably more basic.

Hellman’s Ranch Blue Cheese (Ocado) By @SpectreUK

I had steak and chips the other night. Not only did I enjoy Two Scoops Honeycomb Ice Cream Stout, but I also enjoyed dipping my dinner into this new Hellman’s Ranch Blue Cheese.

Made with Buttermilk and Blue Cheese, this Hellman’s Ranch Blue Cheese went perfectly well with my steak dipped in it, as well as my chips and broccoli. I also had it with Colman’s English Mustard on a beef sandwich earlier today.

Hellman’s Ranch Blue Cheese tastes of creamy Blue Cheese without the earthy bite it often has. It seems to go well with anything, just like its other new counterpart, Hellman’s Buffalo Ranch, which I even tried on a tuna sandwich the other day. Yum.

St Michael Sparks Bar (Marks and Spencer) By @Cinabar

This St Michael Sparks Bar came from a multipack bag of mini bars labelled as a treat selection. Reading between the lines, there’s a chance this is an early release for the Halloween season, when mini bars become much more readily available. As we’re still in a heatwave, I really can’t think about autumn yet. I’m still keeping my chocolate in the fridge!

The bar is called Sparks, and I just love the retro 1980s-style packaging. It’s super cute. I did try to investigate whether they were bringing back an old bar, but I think they’re simply going for the retro look.

I bit into the bar and found milk chocolate, soft nougat and a thick layer of caramel. It was surprisingly similar to a Mars, which seems rather curious given Marks and Spencer’s previous complaints about Aldi producing a cake similar to their Colin the Caterpillar. Aldi’s response on social media was hilarious, but it does seem slightly ironic for M&S to launch a new chocolate bar that bears such a resemblance to a Mars. Curious times!

Putting the similarity aside, this bar was lovely. The chocolate was sweet, the caramel soft and thick, and the nougat had a lovely soft texture. It was a delight and a proper treat.

For me, this is the perfect afternoon chocolate to have with my coffee. And, thankfully, without a trick-or-treater in sight.

Mochi - Tiramisu & Creme from Royal Family [@NLi10]

 My nan loves a Tiramisu - I love weird snacks - this seemed like a decent combo.  But would it freak out a 99 year old to eat rice-balls?

They certainly look quite fluffy and fun

And while they are very exotic, they definitely only contain things she already likes.

They are individually sealed which I heartily approve of, less messy.

I wonder if the V means veggie - they do kind of look veggie from the ingredients.

And it was very easy to convince her that they are essentially 'Japanese marshmallows' but a bit heavier and with an odd texture 

They are pretty sticky inside - it took a chewing but she liked it - and kept one to eat later.

I was also a big fan of these - 12 in a pack (for £2.50) is a lot of one flavour - but they certainly will get finished.  I've promised a trip to the big store that has these to someone, so maybe I'll get to try more of them.