Flavors Tried: Nacho Cheese, Ranch, Chipotle BBQ
Price: $28 for 12 bags on Amazon ($2.33 per bag)
Nutrition per serving: 140 Calories, 7g Fat, 8g Carbs (4g Fiber), 13g Protein
Atkins has released their own line of protein chips, and by the looks of them, they seem to rival Quest protein chips.
Atkins currently has 3 flavors in their protein chip line: nacho cheese, ranch, and chipotle BBQ. Unfortunately, I was not able to get my hands on the chipotle BBQ, but if I end up trying it, I’ll be sure to update this review.
Since Quest Chips are the most popular protein chip on the market right now, it’s only fair that we see how Atkins Protein Chips stack up against the Quest version.
The serving size of one bag is 32 grams, which is the same serving size as Quest Chips.
Quest and Atkins protein chips contain the same amount of calories and net carb count, but the clear difference lies in the protein.
Atkins chips contain 13g of protein, whereas Quest chips contain 18g of protein per serving. Considering the main ingredient of Atkins Protein Chips is “protein blend,” it’s surprising to see the protein count lower overall. But, let’s see if the lower protein improves the texture and/or flavor of these chips at all.
Nacho Cheese Atkins Protein Chips
First up, we have classic nacho cheese chips. On looks alone, these protein chips resemble Doritos quite a bit. In fact, they even have those black specks on them that Doritos always have.
It’s also really nice to see just how much powder is packed onto these chips. If you’re hoping to have your fingers covered in nacho cheese while eating this snack, you are not going to be disappointed.
In terms of flavor, I find these chips to only taste like cheddar cheese powder. Since that is one of the main ingredients, that’s not surprising, but it’s disappointing that the other flavors don’t come through.
When you look at the ingredients list, you can see onion powder, tomato powder, buttermilk powder, and other ingredients that combine to make Doritos so delicious. Unfortunately, I don’t taste any of those flavors, and all I really get is the cheddar flavor.
Now, that’s not necessarily a bad thing, but if you’re hoping for a Doritos nacho cheese flavor, you’re going to be disappointed.
Ranch Atkins Protein Chips
The nacho cheese flavor may have fallen short for me, but Atkins absolutely nailed the ranch flavor.
Generally speaking, ranch is not my favorite flavor for chips, but I really enjoy these chips. In fact, after taking photos for this review, I promptly finished the entire bag.
There is plenty of ranch seasoning covering these chips, and the flavor is exactly what you’d want it to be!
In terms of texture, these chips remind me of a cross between a light potato chip and a cracker.
Atkins chips have a nice thickness to them, similar to a cracker, but they’re very light and airy when you bite into them, just like a potato chip.
If you’re a fan of Cool Ranch Doritos, I think you’ll love these chips.
Chipotle BBQ Atkins Protein Chips
After my initial review of the two Atkins Protein Chips flavors, I was able to get my hands on the chipotle BBQ flavor to try.
When it comes to BBQ, I much prefer a flavor that is more on the sweet side than the smokey side. These Atkins chips lean more toward the smokey side of the scale, which is not my preference, but there’s a pretty good balance to them overall.
They also have a nice kick to them from the chipotle pepper, so if you enjoy spicy BBQ, these will likely be right up your alley.
If they were a little more sweet & spicy vs smokey, I’d absolutely love these. As is, the flavor is exactly what it claims to be, so if you enjoy that smokey BBQ flavor, these chips are worth trying.
Atkins Protein Chips: Overall Thoughts
No offense to Atkins, but I had very low expectations for these chips. I suppose it’s just the stigma of Atkins being a diet program that has been around forever, but it’s time I change my attitude and start taking them seriously.
If you’re in search of a delicious protein chip, Atkins is definitely worth a try.
Like all protein snacks, you do need to adjust your expectations a little bit for these chips. They are not going to be as crunchy as a regular tortilla chip, and the flavor is obviously going to be a bit different.
But, for 140 calories and 13g of protein, these are a great alternative to regular tortilla chips.
If we’re comparing these to Quest chips, I think Quest still has them beat on the overall flavor. However, these Atkins Protein Chips are a bit thicker than Quest chips, which means they’ll likely hold up better as a plate of nachos.
All in all, I really enjoyed these chips, and I’d say they are worth a try!
