Lay’s Cheddar Scalloped Style Potatoes vs. Roasted Holiday Turkey: Fans Already Have a Favorite
Lay’s is bringing two familiar holiday dishes to the snack aisle, and fans already seem to have a favorite.
The newest limited-edition flavors, Lay’s Cheddar Scalloped Style Potatoes and Lay’s Roasted Holiday Turkey, take inspiration from two staples of the holiday dinner table. One promises creamy, cheesy potatoes. The other attempts to capture the savory flavor of roasted turkey and gravy.
Both sound intriguing, but early reactions suggest the competition may not be particularly close.
Lay’s Cheddar Scalloped Style Potatoes Is Getting the Attention
Of the two new flavors, Cheddar Scalloped Style Potatoes appears to be generating the most excitement.
It's not difficult to understand why. Scalloped potatoes are already a combination of ingredients that translate naturally to a potato chip: potatoes, cheese, cream and savory seasoning.
Lay’s describes the flavor as creamy and cheesy, inspired by the familiar baked side dish.
The real test will be whether the chips capture that rich, oven-baked flavor or simply taste like another variation of cheddar potato chips.
And that's an important distinction. Lay’s already knows how to make a good cheese-flavored chip. Recreating scalloped potatoes requires something a little more interesting.
Still, among fans reacting to the announcement, this is clearly the flavor attracting more enthusiasm.
Lay’s Roasted Holiday Turkey Is a Different Story
Roasted Holiday Turkey is perhaps the more ambitious of the two.
While cheese and potatoes are natural partners, translating an entire roasted turkey dinner into potato chip seasoning presents a different challenge.
The flavor is designed to deliver the savory taste of roasted turkey and gravy, complete with the herbs and seasonings associated with a traditional holiday meal.
And there's one detail that makes this particularly interesting.
The ingredients actually include turkey broth powder.
Yes, real turkey broth powder, alongside spices that include thyme.
That's a notable choice for a potato chip, and one that suggests Lay’s is making a serious attempt to recreate the flavor rather than relying entirely on generic savory seasoning.
It also means these aren't simply vegetable-based chips with turkey-inspired flavoring. The ingredients matter, particularly for anyone avoiding meat or dairy.
Early reactions to Roasted Holiday Turkey have been more reserved than those to its cheesy counterpart. Meat-flavored potato chips tend to inspire strong opinions, and some snack fans are approaching this one with understandable caution.
But there's a difference between a flavor that sounds unusual and one that actually tastes good.
Roasted Holiday Turkey may turn out to be the more surprising of the two.
Holiday Flavors Are Getting More Creative
For years, limited-edition holiday snacks have leaned heavily toward sweet flavors. Peppermint, gingerbread, cinnamon and sugar cookie seem to find their way into practically everything once the holiday season approaches.
Lay’s is taking a different approach by focusing on the savory side of the dinner table.
And the idea isn't entirely new. Turkey dinner-flavored Lay’s have appeared in Canada, where the brand has previously experimented with the flavors of roasted turkey, stuffing and gravy.
The new Roasted Holiday Turkey joins that broader tradition of turning familiar meals into unexpected snack flavors.
Both new varieties feature festive packaging and are labeled limited edition, making them part of Lay’s seasonal lineup rather than ordinary additions to the permanent collection.
Which Lay’s Holiday Flavor Will Win?
Based on the early enthusiasm, Cheddar Scalloped Style Potatoes has the advantage.
It's familiar, appealing and relatively easy to imagine before opening the bag.
Roasted Holiday Turkey has a little more to prove, but it also offers the more unusual experience. If Lay’s gets the balance of roasted meat, herbs and gravy right, it could easily become the surprise favorite.
And that's what makes this particular pairing interesting.
One flavor sounds like an obvious winner. The other could either exceed expectations or remind everyone that some Thanksgiving dishes are best left on the plate.
For now, Cheddar Scalloped Style Potatoes seems to have the fans on its side. But I wouldn't count the turkey out just yet.