Product: Quest Bar Peanut Butter and Jelly – $2.39+
This was it. The final Quest Bar that I picked up on my excursion to Jungle Jim’s back in April. I have been more then…ehhhh…on these bars. Which, honestly, makes me sad because I heard so many people talk them up. I had such high hopes for them. And from the first one (too chewy)…to the next one (still hurt to chew so much)…to this…the last one…I stick with my initial assessment.
The Quest Bar Peanut Butter and Jelly was my post-run protein this weekend. I’m really short on money right now…so catching a bite out was not happening. Ice cream didn’t even happen this weekend. Yeah. And it was a miserably humid weekend. Ice cream would have been the best thing ever. But…budgets are budgets and have to be lived with. So…following my run, this…was my breakfast.
As mentioned before, I’m on the fence. I don’t know whether I like these or loathe them. And this one in particular…kind of has me perplexed more than usual. Because…as with the previous one…it tastes just like the wrapper describes it. It tastes…like peanut butter and jelly. More like jelly…strawberry jelly…but it has that peanut butter flavor in there as well. So, the taste and flavor are totally there.
But that chewy texture. That overly chewy texture that makes my jaw ache after having to chew it down to some semblance of something I can swallow…that’s what is offputting on these. Otherwise, I’d be all about them. But, the fact that all three of them, some more than others albeit, have brought about an ache in my jaw from the amount and intensity of chewing I have to do in order to get it down…speaks volumes. It tells me…that these bars are not worth the money.
Sure, flavor-wise, they are spot on. All three have tasted like what they are advertised to taste like. This one, especially, does a great job with the flavor profile. That being said, I just can’t handle this thick, tough bar. After I run, I have the runchies and am rungry. The last thing I want to do is go to battle with my food. Usually I don’t want to chew all that much either…so…yeah…this, while great nutrition-wise after a long run, not so great as far as actually being able to consume it easily. My jaw should not feel like it has run a marathon.
I have read, however, that if you microwave these bars, they get soft and that almost-gooey consistency of a fresh-baked cookie. I don’t travel with a microwave, however, and as these are meant as meal replacements or supplements, I don’t think a microwave should even factor into the equation. Fine if you’re at a gym where there is one that is accessible. That isn’t the case at my gym…because I use these on days my gym is the open road that goes on for miles. Many…many…many miles!
Too bad. I was so excited about the Quest Bars.
Let’s talk ingredients in this bar. The Quest Bar Peanut Butter and Jelly is made from a combination of protein blend (whey protein isolate, milk protein isolate), isomalto-oligosaccarides (prebiotic fibers derived from plant sources), peanuts, almonds, water, sea salt, lo han guo, sucralose, and natural flavors. Where the jelly flavor comes from…I couldn’t even tell you!
Nutritionally speaking, a serving size is one bar. One bar contains 200 calories and 10 grams of fat. Much of that fat is from the almonds and peanuts that are involved. Those are healthy fats. This bar contains less than 5 mg of cholesterol, 320 mg sodium, and only 2 grams of sugar. That low sugar is one of the things that drew me to these bars. This bar has 17 grams of fiber and 20 grams of protein. FILLING! Too bad it wasn’t filling and delicious.
So…I think this is where Quest Bar and I part ways. Sadly. I was so excited to try these, and then they went and let me down…in a big way. They were just a disappointment to me. And I was just expecting so much more from them. The Quest Bar Peanut Butter and Jelly…was the last bar in my drawer…and will be the last Quest Bar in my drawer. On to trying something else that is new and different…
I gave it a shot…but these aren’t all they are cracked up to be.
The Celiathlete 