Good Mythical Morning’s another hilarious food review is here. This week, they tasted popcorn from 6 different movie theaters and rated them. There were 6 contenders including 4 national chains and 2 regional cinemas. The contenders were: Pacific, Cinemark, AMC, ArcLight, Laemmle, and Regal.
Let’s see which movie theater has the popcorn worthy of our movie experience!
(We will also share some unique popcorn recipes for those who enjoy watching movies in your own homes)
AMC: #4
AMC is one of the largest cinematic chains in the US with 8,200 screens across the country. Unfortunately, the large chain’s popcorn placed last in GMM’s tasting. The popcorn tasted bland and flat with one reviewer demanding ticket refund for such horrible concession food.
Hmm…large chains need to realize that customers notice when they cut corners and sacrifice quality!
Regal: #3
Regal’s popcorn does not use real butter. It uses coconut oil and Flavacol and tasted extremely mediocre – edible yet not memorable.
It was very middle of the road, they said in the video, and not singing any high notes.
Pacific, ArcLight, and Cinemark: #2
Pacific, ArcLight and Cinemark tied at the 2nd place. Despite the fact that most popcorns are relatively uniform in taste, the two reviewers held opposing views on these popcorns.
So I guess we do have some different popcorn pallets in the world!
Pacific, a theater chain that’s been around since 1978, had a pretty mediocre taste with one reviewer claiming it tasted burnt. They most likely used Flavacol, which is common in all generic popcorn.
Cinemark, on the other hand, used canola oil instead of coconut oil like most other movie theaters do. They also used anhydrous butterfat which means butter with all the water and milk solids removed. Quite unique, right? Unfortunately, the two of them had completely opposite opinions on whether Cinemark was more flavorful than Pacific. Either way, A for effort!
ArcLight is a small national chain in LA, Chicago, DC and San Deigo. It’s owned by Pacific but apparently has their own popcorn recipe! It was distinctively different than the rest and is made with real butter. But once again the two could not agree on whether their unique flavor was good or bad!
Laemmle: #1
Finally, the winner of the popcorn tasting contest was Laemmle! Laemmle is a small family-run artsy theater established in 1938 in Pasadena, California.
It has a lot of those indie movies beloved by the artsy-fartsy hipsters. Their popcorn had raving reviews as the best popcorn in Pasadena. This one was easily the best out of the 6 – it was light, fluffy and made with real butter. And it also had the best flavor with the right balance of butter and salt.
Lucky Pasadenians!
Do you want to make your own popcorn at home? Well, we also got some unique recipes for just that!
White Chocolate Popcorn
Get:
- One 4-ounce bag of white chocolate – coarsely chopped
- 6 cups popped, lightly salted popcorn with no butter
- 1/4 cup of rainbow sprinkles
- Kosher salt
Put the white chocolate in a heatproof bowl over a pot of simmering water. Do NOT let the bowl touch the water. Stir until chocolate is melted.
Then add the popcorn to a large bowl and spoon the melted white chocolate over it in batches, gently tossing to coat. Sprinkle with 2 tablespoons of sprinkles and a pinch of salt to taste.
Mac ‘n Cheese Popcorn
Get:
- 1 packet of mac ‘n cheese powder
- 1 stick of butter, melted
- Black pepper
- A few cups of popcorn (popped)
Whisk the mac ‘n cheese powder with the melted butter + a little bit of black pepper.
Pour it over your popcorn. Toss and enjoy!
Garlic Bread Popcorn
Get:
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 tablespoon minced white onion
- 4 garlic cloves, finely minced,
- 1/2 stick of unsalted butter
- 2 teaspoons of grated lemon zest
- 1/2 cup of chopped fresh parsley
- Popcorn (freshly popped)
Heat the oil in a small skiller over medium heat. Add the onion and saute for 5 minutes.
Throw in the garlic and cook for another 3-4 minutes. Then add butter, lemon zest, and parsley.
Drizzle this beautiful mixture over your popcorn. Season with salt and pepper.
Lime and Chili Popcorn
Get:
- 3 tablespoon of unsalted butter, melted
- Zest of 2 limes
- 1 tablespoon chili powder
- 1/4 cup vegetable oil
- 1/2 cup popcorn kernels
- Salt
Melt the butter. Mix in the lime zest and chili powder. Set the mixture aside.
Heat vegetable oil and popcorn kernels in a pot over medium heat. Shake the pot until the popping slows about 3 minutes. Then toss with the butter-lime-chili powder mixture!
If you want more recipes, check out 11 gourmet recipes recommended by Rachel Ray here.
