Rating: ©©-3/4 chips (tolerable)

Alright, it’s about that time to show Lay’s U.S.A. how a limited edition group of chips is really supposed to be done!!  South American Style!!!

A little while ago we reviewed Lay’s Ensalada Chilena and España Chorizo Iberico flavored chips, and we thought they were both pretty lip-smacking! If you’ve already read either of those reviews, then you’ve then you’ve already seen the following before.  But for those of you who have not, please enjoy:

Wouldn’t you know it, Chip Review leaves the country right as Lay’s U.S. released this year’s four new ‘Do Us a Flavor’ chips.  So, we missed all of the initial hub-bub, and our own ‘Do Us a Flavor’ reviews were a little behind on the ball, but everything worked out in the end, because while most of your were struggling through weird flavors like cappuccino, we were busy devouring four delicious limited edition Lay’s Chile Copa de los Sabores! Aka – World Cup inspired flavors!  That’s right, in honor of 2014’s FIFA World Cup in Brazil, Lay’s Chile decided to release four unique flavors highlighting traditional dishes from four, scratch that three, South American countries, plus Spain??  *On a side note: we just wonder why Lay’s Chile opted to include Spain, a European country, rather than stick with their South American siblings, and include a country such as Argentina, who of course exudes World Cup soccer, and who’s grilled steak with chimichurri sauce, would have fit right in with this flavor line-up??  Is there some sort of underlying rivalry between the two…?!  Or, are are they simply honoring their Latin American roots by including Spain?  The world may never know!

So, without any further ado, may we introduce to you, the third player from Lay’s Copa de los Sabores flavor line-up: Peru’s very own Pollo a la Brasa (Peruvian grilled / roasted chicken).

Lay’s pushes up field, they’ve already got a couple of lip-smacking goals on the board with Ensalada Chilena and Chorizo Iberico. Lay’s passes the ball to an open player, looks like a sure fire goal, Lay’s shoots and……………MISSES!!  That pretty much sums up what we really think about this flavor from La Copa de los Sabores.  Up until now, Lay’s was on what seemed like an unstoppable roll, but it appears as though the flavor simplicity of Peruvian grilled chicken  turned out to be to complex for Lay’s to replicate, or at least produce some deliciously flavorful chips!

**Side note: There used to be this little, hole-in-the-wall Peruvian chicken joint on East Lake Street in the Twin Cities called Rotisseria, and a couple of us from Chip Review absolutely loved!  Chef/Owner Saleh Hamshari’s crispy and juicy, charcoal kissed, finger licking delicious grilled chicken was as good as chicken gets.  Seriously, one of the best dishes anywhere in the world.  In other words, we’ve enjoyed great tasting Peruvian Pollo a la Brasa, and these Lay’s chips simply do not do it justice!

Pretty much all we taste in these chips is a rather salty chicken bullion seasoning.  No delicious array of herbs like oregano, rosemary and thyme.  No depth of flavor from any smoky grill notes, or fatty crisped chicken skin.  No additional richness in any form.  Pretty much no flavors other than salt and chicken broth!  We don’t very much like these chips, but they aren’t necessarily bad per se.  They just don’t evoke any thoughts of Peruvian Pollo a la Brasa!

As for the potato chips, they seemed a bit more rustic than what Lay’s Wavy in the U.S. usually produce.  Very well salted, good amount of real potato flavor, and with many of the skins still intact.  Maybe a bit greasy, but nothing really distracting.  The chips themselves are definitely the best part of this bag!

Stay tuned for our final review from the Copa de los Sabores flavor line-up.

As always, these are our thoughts, we would love to hear what you think. Agree or disagree, let us know.

Chips discovered at Lider Express; Santiago, Chile

Lay’s Chile

Chip Ratings Scale:

(1/4 increments)

© – return to sender

©© – tolerable

©©© – notable

©©©© – lip-smacking

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