Quest protein bar availability

Just FYI, the Vitamin Shoppe stores here in SW Ohio are having trouble getting shipments of Quest protein bars.  Not sure of the exact problem, but I suspect that other places may be having the same issue.

I don't normally "do" protein bars (because, honestly, the only one that I have ever had that tasted good instead of just tolerable was too high in carbs and calories) but my appetite has been unreliable lately and so many people have raved about them that I decided to try some.  I have tried 3 flavors (brownie, cinnamon roll, and vanilla almond... the only ones I could find!) and they were all decent tasting (but those of you who think the brownie one really tastes like a brownie have clearly not had an actual brownie in a while, LOL!) so I really wanted to try some of the fruit ones... but had not been able find them.

I finally found individual Quest bars at bodybuilding.com, though, and they are only $2.08 each with shipping starting at just under $6, so I ordered 2 of each of the fruit flavored ones (and a case of the tangerine Cytosport protein water). Just wanted to pass that along.

Lora

I don't know if they are currently in stock but Netrition has the single bars and they have the flat $4.95 shipping.   And the Quest site sells them indiviually as well but I seem to remember the shipping being higher than Netrition. 

My best friend loves the brownie.  Even straight out of the package without warming.  I just couldn't do that one.  I was surprised how much I like the vanilla almond.  My favorite is probably the apple pie.  Also clearly not apple pie but I like the large pieces of dried apple in it.  And I didn't hate the PB&J although I didn't love it either.  Mixed berry is fair. 

I haven't had a chance to try the cinnamon roll yet. 

When I looked at Netrition a week or so ago, they were out of the strawberry, which was the one I wanted to try most, so i continued to look.  The individual bar price and the shipping were higher on the Quest site itself than from Netrition OR bodybuilding.com!  Thanks for mentioning Netrition, though, so others will be aware that they have them (well, maybe not strawberry, LOL).

Of the three I tried, I definitely liked the vanilla almond the best! The cinnamon roll was pretty good, but nothing to rave about.  It was definitely better warm, but it got really squishy when I heated it.  Glad to hear the apple pie one has apple pieces.  I was hoping it would.

Lora

 I love bodybuilding.com  there is always a surprise in my box with every order and they ship fast.  :)

I think I think it tastes like a brownie because I tend to bake my brownies from scratch and use a bit more cocoa and coffee than the recipe calls for. I like bitter.

But then I eat 86% cocoa chocolate bars so...

I hear the ones in MD have been having issues too. They sold out really quick too, a friend of mine told me.

 Yep, in that case it would taste like a "real" brownie, LOL.  I much prefer dark chocolate over milk chocolate  it I don't like bitter.  The Quest brownie flavored one wasn't really bitter, but the lack of sweetness (and the flavor from fat, of course) was disappointing.  It might not have been quite so disappointing if I had not had a couple of small bites of a real brownie just 2 weeks ago.

Lora

the clerk at the vitamin shoppe where i live said Dr. Oz promoted the Quest bars on his show recently. Since then, they cant keep them in stock.

That would definitely explain it!  Even the site I ordered from indicated that they were low on stock on several flavors.

Lora

I love Quest bars. I love the stats. I love the variety of flavors. And I love the company. A bunch of my blog readers complained that their samples never came and I emailed them. Their director for marketing contacted me and told me to email him personally if that happens to anyone else. So far everyone has received their bars!

Plus they gave a big prize for the Bariatric Foodie pledge and want to do more giveaways within the bariatric community in the future. So I like their vibe a lot.

Did you happen to notice that, on their website, when they are comparing their products to other protein bars (generically) that it indicates that some protein bars use "worthless gelatin"  {LOL at the adjective} -- translation: collagen protein -- to boost the protein stats?!?  Which means that, just like the protein bullets/shots, people may not be getting all the protein they think they are from their protein bars...  Sigh.

Lora