Customers Say This Surprising Item Was the 'Biggest Disappointment' Grocery Item of 2023

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We’ve come a long way since the days of Harold and Kumar’s first legendary trip to White Castle. The popular fast-food establishment has since stood as a symbol of delicious late night eats and endless belly laughs despite the subsequent and unavoidable stomach aches that tend to follow downing an entire bag of sliders. But as we bring 2023 to a close, it turns out that some people have a bone to pick with a specific White Castle frozen offering, calling it the most disappointing grocery item of the year.

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Bill Oakley, better known for his former role as head writer and showrunner for The Simpsons, has created a new lane for himself as the founder of his own personal club for food lovers, The Steamed Hams Society. The club, which was named in honor of one of his most iconic Simpsons sketches, acts as a platform for Oakley to crown his yearly picks of best and worst food items. These annual picks have become known as the Steamie Awards, and this year, Oakley has named White Castle’s Cheeseburger Castle Bites as his “biggest disappointment” of 2023.

Cheeseburger Castle Bites were developed in partnership with Bellisio Foods, a well known frozen food company that put White Castle items in grocery stores nationwide. The bite-sized snack first arrived in grocery stores in September 2022, along with a press release by Bellisio, describing the snack as featuring "100-percent real beef and onions wrapped in a crispy golden crust."

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In an Instagram video made to present the award, Oakley invited the Dough Boys to announce the winner of the category, which Oakley hilariously describes as tasting similarly to cat food. After naming both Pink Sauce and Spicy Jalapeño Pineapple Doritos as the first and second runner ups, the Dough Boys immediately started to boo the questionable frozen food offering from White Castle. Oakley finishes the announcement by admitting that he has been a fan of White Castle's microwaveable sliders for over 30 years, however he can’t get past the foul taste of the company’s Cheeseburger Castle Bites.

Oakley’s choice for biggest disappointment of 2023 is just one of 10 accolades that he has dulled out this year. Now in its sixth season, this year’s Steamie Awards began on December 18 and continued through December 22. You can find each of the 10 Steamie Award recipients on Oakley’s Instagram page, along with a slew of other hilarious and eye-opening content from the iconic writer and personality himself.

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