I rounded up my six favourite snacks, comparing the No Name version to the popular brand-name counterpart. Let's see what's worth the splurge.
Salt and vinegar chips
Chips are the perfect picnic snack!
Alyssa Wiens | Narcity
Who doesn't loooove some classic salt and vinegar chips? I brought these to a picnic with friends to get some of their opinions. Here's what we found when comparing No Name to Lays.
No Name chips: I tried these first and thought they were great. Strong flavour, nice and crunchy — a solid chip. But then I tried Lays and, well...
- Price: $1.43 for 200 grams
- Rating: 8/10
Lays chips: These were WAY better. A lot more flavourful; you definitely have to love the taste of vinegar to eat these! They were also lighter and crunchier, less oily than the No Name brand. All 5/5 of my friends who tried agreed — Lays is a lot better.
- Price: $3.47 for 230 grams
- Rating: 9/10
The Lays chips were objectively better, though No Name was still pretty good IMO. Since No Name is about half the price, I would probably opt for it if I were buying a lot of chips for a party or something. But just one bag? Lays all the way, baby.
Dipped granola bars
See the difference in chocolate coating?
Alyssa Wiens | Narcity
While they're basically a chocolate bar disguised as a healthy snack, I love granola bars for when I'm on the go and need something easy. I compared the No Name brand to Quaker Dipps.
No Name granola bar: Overall, the taste was good, and the texture was nice and chewy. The chocolate coating was, however, much thinner than the name-brand version. You could even visually see this when looking at the bar.
- Price: $2.25 for 5 bars
- Rating: 6/10
Quaker Dipps: There was definitely a thicker chocolate layer on the outside of the granola bar, which is a huge plus. The overall taste is very similar, though this name-brand option had a richer flavour than No Name.
- Price: $2.29 for 5 bars on sale (regular price $3.49)
- Rating: 7.5/10
The extra chocolate on the Quaker brand is the only thing that really gives it the edge, as even the nutritional content is the same. I got them on sale, so it was the same price as the No Name option, but even if not, I think I'd pay $1.00 more for the extra yummy chocolate. However, the No Name version is certified peanut-free, so I can see it being a great option for when you need to avoid allergens.
Chocolate bar
Comparing chocolate bars
Alyssa Wiens | Narcity
I recruited my family to blind taste test these chocolate bars, and all five of us got it right. We all confidently said that while both are good, the Cadbury option was better — obviously so. Here's the breakdown.
No Name chocolate bar: I'm a chocolate lover, so I didn't hate this. It had an overall good taste and texture, but errs a little on the sweet side. I can see how some people wouldn't like that.
- Price: $2.49 for 100 grams
- Rating: 7.5/10
Cadbury's chocolate bar: Cadbury is seriously the best. I'm totally biased because it's my favourite brand of chocolate, so I really could not imagine No Name coming close. After taste testing them side-by-side, Cadbury has a richer, more chocolately flavour. It's sweet, but not overly so.
- Price: $3.49 for 90 grams
- Rating: 10/10
Wafer cookies
No Name brand wafers.
Alyssa Wiens | Narcity
Of all the snacks I tried, this one was one of the most obvious differences between the No Name and brand-name versions. I tried Voortman and don't think I can ever go back.
No Name wafer cookies: Texturally, these are fine. They're light and crispy as you'd expect. But taste-wise? The chocolate is bitter and not sweet enough at all. With the dry texture, it's giving cardboard vibes.
- Price: $1.79 for 175 grams
- Rating: 4/10
Voortman wafer cookies: The most dramatic comparison by far, these cookies were SO deliciously sweet and chocolatey, combined with the light and flaky wafer. Excellent.
- Price: $3.79 for 300 grams
- Rating: 9/10
Ice cream
Ice cream + a movie = perfection
Alyssa Wiens | Narcity
Ice cream is my favourite food group, so I was really very excited to try these side by side! I recruited some friends to weigh in as well, and we were unanimous in our opinion: Chapman's wins.
No Name Neapolitan ice cream: One downside to No Name ice cream off the bat is the general lack of options. They only had chocolate, vanilla, and Neapolitan — none of which would be my first choice. The Neapolitan was good, though. I tried it first and honestly enjoyed it. Flavours were good, and I didn't really have much to say about it...
- Price: $4.00 for 1.65 litres
- Rating: 7/10
Chapman's Neapolitan ice cream: ...Then I tried Chapman's. It was better. Side by side, I could taste that it was creamier and the flavours were less sweet and deeper. Going back to the No Name after, I could tell it had an icier texture compared to the smooth Chapman's option. Nutritionally, Chapman's was higher in calories and fat, which probably accounted for the deliciousness!
- Price: $5.49 for 2 litres
- Rating: 9.5/10
Instant noodles
Easy winner here
Alyssa Wiens | Narcity
Some will argue this is more of a meal, but sometimes you just need some cozy, salty, comforting noodles, and instant noodles always hit the spot! I often will add veggies or protein to mine, but for the sake of this comparison, I tried them plain... And it wasn't even a competition.
No Name instant noodles: The noodles were fine, but the broth was thin and watery. Virtually zero flavour and very bland — I would truly never buy or eat these again.
- Price: $0.39/package (85 grams)
- Rating: 0/10
Mr. Noodles: Visually, I could tell these were going to taste better because the broth was a much darker, richer colour. And while it is still instant noodles, not some kind of authentic Ramen, it hit the spot for a savoury, salty comfort food.
- Price: $0.59/package (85 grams)
- Rating: 7/10
It was truly such a burden to eat all this yummy snack food so you can know what's worth going No Name for and what's not. I hope you enjoyed it — happy snacking!
The opinions expressed in this article are the author's own and do not necessarily reflect the views of Narcity Media.
