I admit that if given a choice between potato chips or an apple for a snack, I will invariably pick the chips.  Here is a collection of some of those bad choices.  A glass full of a childhood favorite cereal crunchberries, which btw are not a real fruit.  Did you know that you can buy a box of just crunchberries, without the Cap’n Crunch?  Mr. K’s nephew Espen was excited to try it out, but in the end concluded that he enjoyed the crunchberries more when they are mixed in with Cap’n Crunch.  It makes you appreciate them more.  Deep thoughts and wise words…

Sonic Burgers recently opened up in nearby Hayward.  They are famous mostly because they have carhops who will bring your order out to your car.  There is something nice about being able to driveup and park and look over the menu without worrying about holding up the drive-thru line. But for me, I was excited because they serve tatertots covered with chili and melted cheese.  The tots were crisp and chewy and the topping just made it insanely delicious. Infinitely better than the standard ketchup!

Warning, fast food alert!  This is the KFC DoubleDown, two battered and fried chicken patties surrounding two slices of cheese and two slices of bacon and a smear of special sauce.  People seem to fear this KFC speciality while others revere it.   I felt a bit indifferent, because I found it to be an unsatisfying experience without the bun and it is in reality a much smaller than I expected.  Very guilty, very little pleasure.  

Now, if you want to talk big and scary, take a look at this, the Three by Three (3X3) burger at In-n-Out.  That would be three hamburger patties smothered with mustard before grilling, topped with three slices of cheese served animal style which includes extra pickles, grilled onions and lots of special sauce.  These additional items can be found on their secret menu.

You can order the Fries Animal Style as well, but admittedly it was overwhelming as a side dish. 

The Zilla Dog, a bacon filled hot dog, topped with $$$ sauce, kimchee and chicharrones from 4505 Meats at the SF Ferry Building.  Yes topped with chicharrones … And yes, the celebrated hot dog is loaded with bacon.   Which means the snappy tube of meat is fatty and luscious with little pockets of rich bacony flavor, the kimchi adds an uproarious pungent spicy kick which is soothed by the curly frills of angelic pork rind topping.

And while we’re on the topic of outrageous eats, have you tried these wacky flavors from Doritos?  Tacos at Midnight taste just like you are snarfing up Jack in the Box crispy tacos from the drive through lane on a late night munchy run, I swear I even taste shreds of iceberg lettuce…  The All Nighter Cheeseburger tastes mostly like ketchup and mustard, which makes them a perfect accompaniment for a cheeseburger.

I am also elated to see another childhood favorite, MUNCHOS® back in the supermarket, at $2 a bag.  Mr. K insists that these are not real food, but I love them.

When we dined with Mr. K’s family, I was introduced to a decadent pairing of french fries dipped into the chocolate shake. 

And speaking of desssert, chocolate and peanut butter is another one of my weaknesses.  This is Justin’s Chocolate Hazelnut Butter smeared on a Peanut Butter Girl Scout Cookie.  I was so smitten I had to take a picture to capture and relive the moment.

The bad news is after snacking on things like this, I am on a bit of a regimen as I need to deflate my spare tire…