Taste: 3/5
Noodle Texture: 2/5
Prep Level: Easy
Overall recommendation: 3/5
This was one of the less expensive brands of fettuccine alfredo, and having had a few other Banquet meals that I enjoyed in the past, I decided to give this one a whirl. Probably the first thing I noticed as I unboxed my dinner was that there appeared to be considerably less pepper on the noodles than is actually pictured on the box, which is fine with me personally as I do not like much pepper, but for all you pepper lovers out there, you may feel a bit betrayed.
The second thing I noticed about my fettuccine was not the noodles themselves, but rather the packaging. That's right, the packaging. Something just didn't seem quite "right" with the container in which the noodles were sitting. I had to think for a minute, and then it hit me: the container is shaped like a dog bone. Don't believe me? Take a look for yourself:
I found myself thinking of dog bone shaped food bowls such as this one...
...and had to block that thought out of my head as I consumed my fettuccine. I mean, who really wants to eat out of something that even remotely resembles a dog food bowl? I'll admit, when I was younger, it was "cool," but that was when I was still in diapers.
Now, for the review you've all been waiting for:
As I took my first bite of the fettuccine, I noted that the noodles seemed a bit... overcooked? undercooked? It was like a cross between over-and-undercooked noodles, if there is such a thing. They were just slightly hard, like they were undercooked for a few minutes, but at the same time a bit too soggy, like they had been cooked just a bit too long. The noodles were cut in half, which was ok, but I prefer full sized noodles for fettuccine. I also noticed that the noodles were fairly thin, and I prefer a thicker noodle in alfredo dishes.
The sauce was mildy cheesy, pleasantly buttery, and just a bit too peppery for my taste. Pepper lovers may be satisfied after all. The one thing I can say about this dish without criticism is how perfectly the sauce stuck to the noodles. You can see from my picture of the cooked noodles that the sauce is not at all soupy, something I don't enjoy in fettuccine dishes. The sauce and noodles complimented each other well, but the dish just didn't deliver that "wow" factor that would give it a favorite spot on my (theoretical) noodle shelf. I would buy it again, however.
