Potato salads are the side dish that actually have main dish energy. A creamy, tangy, fresh, and perfectly flavorful potato salad is the standard and anything that misses the mark might as well be scraped off the plate for fear of spoiling the meal. Whether potato salad is served alongside burgers or sandwiches or tucked neatly onto your plate with the rest of your go-to barbecue line-up, it’s one of those side dishes that will always be a welcomed (read, highly requested) addition to the dinner table. When Chowhound took on the task of tasting and ranking store-bought potato salads from best to worst, there was one bowl of potato salad that was decidedly never making it to the cookout. Smart & Final’s First Street Deviled Egg Potato Salad came in last place in the rankings, and for quite a few reasons.
The rankings heavily favored the salads that had been freshly made with natural, healthy ingredients — these potato salads were almost exclusively made on-site. The First Street Deviled Egg Potato Salad had the disadvantage of being pre-packaged and full of preservatives. Even while the first ingredient listed is cooked potatoes, the overall taste to expect is additives. With the inclusion of preservatives and additives like EDTA calcium disodium, potassium sorbate, corn syrup, and others, this salad never truly stood a chance in comparison to the other options that were freshly made. Not only was the First Street potato salad lacking that hearty and homemade taste, but it didn’t look the part either.
Is the Smart & Final’s First Street Deviled Egg Potato Salad really that bad?
If you’re looking for a deli-standard, preservative-free potato salad, then this isn’t going to win you over. If you’re pressed for time and not bothered by preservative-heavy side dishes, then you might enjoy this potato salad with no qualms. As far as grocery store potato salads go though, Smart & Final’s First Street Deviled Egg Potato Salad lacked the pizzazz that its competitors provided. Unlike Sprout’s Deviled Egg Potato Salad which came in at first place, this version didn’t do justice to the complex deviled egg taste that has so much potential to impress. The Southern tradition of adding egg to potato salad is, admittedly, pretty hit or miss for some. Deviled egg potato salad lovers know that the boldness of this eggy and richly seasoned potato salad usually has potential to impress your tastebuds, but only when the recipe is kept simple and prioritizes texture and freshness.
While the First Street recipe does include some of the expected ingredients and qualities that make for a great potato salad — mayonnaise, celery, mustard, onion, and pickles — it was still underwhelming. Perhaps the upgrade it needs (besides being made fresh to serve) could be to swap out some ingredients for a more impactful and absurdly good potato salad like using Dijon mustard, Greek yogurt, or herbs that are hard to ignore like dill or parsley. This potato salad didn’t stand out for those who value more handmade food, but maybe a fragrant tasty addition could redeem it or inspire a whole new recipe altogether.
