# Foods that smell better than they taste **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [February 10, 2003, 8:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/foods-that-smell-better-than-they-taste/154184 "2003-02-10T20:18:24Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![gvsantos](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a88e4f/32.png) [@gvsantos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gvsantos)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2003, 8:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/foods-that-smell-better-than-they-taste/154184/1 "2003-02-10T20:18:24Z")
Freshly popped popcorn always smells so good to me that no matter where I am, I smell it and I have to buy some but, it just never seems to taste as good as it smells. Anyone else have this happen with this or any other type of food? ---
**Author:** ![In\_Conceivable](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/4bbf92/32.png) [@In\_Conceivable](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/In_Conceivable)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2003, 8:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/foods-that-smell-better-than-they-taste/154184/2 "2003-02-10T20:29:34Z")
Coffee, sometimes. Good coffee tastes as good as it smells. Bad coffee always still smells good. ---
**Author:** ![Meatros](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b4bc9f/32.png) [@Meatros](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Meatros)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2003, 8:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/foods-that-smell-better-than-they-taste/154184/3 "2003-02-10T20:34:11Z")
Vanilla extract. ---
**Author:** ![Barbarian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e19adc/32.png) [@Barbarian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Barbarian)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2003, 8:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/foods-that-smell-better-than-they-taste/154184/4 "2003-02-10T20:55:44Z")
Coffee smells good but tastes like someone shat in a cup. ---
**Author:** ![bouv](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/bc8723/32.png) [@bouv](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bouv)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2003, 9:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/foods-that-smell-better-than-they-taste/154184/5 "2003-02-10T21:01:37Z")
Well, almost any type of extract smells better than it will taste, until you put the extract into something, then you get it’s flavor. Also, my dad drinks hazelnut coffee, and it smells sooooooo good, but I hate coffee and know that it will taste like crap if I drink it. ---
**Author:** ![Bippy\_the\_Beardless](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ac8455/32.png) [@Bippy\_the\_Beardless](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bippy_the_Beardless)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2003, 9:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/foods-that-smell-better-than-they-taste/154184/6 "2003-02-10T21:07:04Z")
McDonalds burgers, always smell good, but the taste (if you try to taste them) is awful. Cheers, Bippy ---
**Author:** ![BoBettie](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/4af34b/32.png) [@BoBettie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BoBettie)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2003, 9:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/foods-that-smell-better-than-they-taste/154184/7 "2003-02-10T21:10:11Z")
Last night my friend made eggplant parmesean. It smelled great, but I determined quickly that eggplant tastes like worn socks. Ugh. ---
**Author:** ![Meatros](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b4bc9f/32.png) [@Meatros](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Meatros)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2003, 9:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/foods-that-smell-better-than-they-taste/154184/8 "2003-02-10T21:20:24Z")
**Barbarian** and **In Conceivable** I think you’ve got it wrong, you see in order to fully enjoy coffee-you have to be _hopelessly addicted_ to it.😃 ---
**Author:** ![tevya](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/4491bb/32.png) [@tevya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tevya)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2003, 9:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/foods-that-smell-better-than-they-taste/154184/9 "2003-02-10T21:21:32Z")
As soon as I saw the thread title, I thought “popcorn.” I like the smell of bacon but when I eat it I’m always diappointed by the overpowering saltiness of it. I like the smell of fresh baked cookies but I’m not really into eating cookies (with only a couple of exceptions). ---
**Author:** ![scout1222](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/34f0e0/32.png) [@scout1222](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scout1222)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2003, 9:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/foods-that-smell-better-than-they-taste/154184/10 "2003-02-10T21:24:38Z")
I _LOVE_ the smell of hot dogs cooking. But I absolutely loathe eating them. It makes me a little sad that something that smells so good can (to me) taste so horrid. ---
**Author:** ![BuckleberryFerry](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/5f9b8f/32.png) [@BuckleberryFerry](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BuckleberryFerry)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2003, 9:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/foods-that-smell-better-than-they-taste/154184/11 "2003-02-10T21:25:16Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Meatros \* > \*\ ***Barbarian** and **In Conceivable** I think you’ve got it wrong, you see in order to fully enjoy coffee-you have to be _hopelessly addicted_ to it.😃 \*\* Can I get an A-MEN?! Personally, I have to say pea soup. If they made a candle of that smell, I’d be sure to buy every last one. Ask me to taste it and I’ll dump the pot on your head. ~Ferry ---
**Author:** ![Batsinma\_Belfry](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ea5d25/32.png) [@Batsinma\_Belfry](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Batsinma_Belfry)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2003, 10:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/foods-that-smell-better-than-they-taste/154184/12 "2003-02-10T22:07:28Z")
Toast Beef boullion Popcorn Unsweetened baking chocolate Margerine ---
**Author:** ![badmana](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/977dab/32.png) [@badmana](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/badmana)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2003, 10:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/foods-that-smell-better-than-they-taste/154184/13 "2003-02-10T22:27:41Z")
Cinamon…I remember as a kid putting cinamon directly onto toasted and buttered bread…yuk. I second coffee, especially the freeze dried raw coffee. ---
**Author:** ![LifeOnWry](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/96bed5/32.png) [@LifeOnWry](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LifeOnWry)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2003, 10:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/foods-that-smell-better-than-they-taste/154184/14 "2003-02-10T22:56:19Z")
Scallops. These things smell heavenly, and they set my mouth a-watering every time. They taste dreadfully like rubber bands. ---
**Author:** ![In\_Conceivable](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/4bbf92/32.png) [@In\_Conceivable](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/In_Conceivable)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2003, 11:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/foods-that-smell-better-than-they-taste/154184/15 "2003-02-10T23:47:33Z")
I do love coffee. I have just noticed that _bad_ coffee smells as good as _good_ coffee. ---
**Author:** ![cichlidiot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/5f9b8f/32.png) [@cichlidiot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cichlidiot)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2003, 11:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/foods-that-smell-better-than-they-taste/154184/16 "2003-02-10T23:53:20Z")
Green bell peppers. I think they smell wonderful, but taste pretty much like watery cardboard. ---
**Author:** ![Lissa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/85f322/32.png) [@Lissa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lissa)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2003, 12:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/foods-that-smell-better-than-they-taste/154184/17 "2003-02-11T00:00:00Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Bippy the Beardless \* > \*\*McDonalds burgers, always smell good, but the taste (if you try to taste them) is awful. > Cheers, Bippy \*\* The smell of the burger is carefully engineered by artificial means, oddly enough, by the same lab which make Clinique perfumes. (This is according to \* Fast Food Nation \* by Eric Schlosser.) ---
**Author:** ![Duke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e8c25b/32.png) [@Duke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Duke)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2003, 2:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/foods-that-smell-better-than-they-taste/154184/18 "2003-02-11T02:51:19Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Meatros \* > \*\*Vanilla extract. \*\* Hmmm…exactly what I thought. But I guess you could include just about any kind of extract or spice, other than fennel seeds, which are an integral part of “pan mix” and can be safely eaten on their own. ---
**Author:** ![cadolphin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/c37758/32.png) [@cadolphin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cadolphin)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2003, 3:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/foods-that-smell-better-than-they-taste/154184/19 "2003-02-11T03:45:15Z")
coffee - definitely coffee. I can’t stand the taste of it but I love the smell of it. ---
**Author:** ![SnugTheJoiner](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e8c25b/32.png) [@SnugTheJoiner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SnugTheJoiner)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2003, 3:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/foods-that-smell-better-than-they-taste/154184/20 "2003-02-12T03:16:06Z")
Mmmmm . . . what’s that delectable aroma? What? Fried LIVER?! (Sound of spontaneous upchuck) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/foods-that-smell-better-than-they-taste/154184.md?page=2)