A Definitive List of The Best Ring Shaped Foods To Enjoy During The Olympics
Words: Hannah Lemass
Images: Instagram
Words: Hannah Lemass
Images: Instagram
Every four years, in the warm embrace of the summer months, the world comes together to celebrate the ultimate display of human athleticism, resilience, and spirit. Nations of the world watch as their countrymen and women battle to be named the best in disciplines that span not only feats of strength, but also elegance and agility. While we all cheer on our national heroes, we also marvel at the brilliance of the human body and mind. And yeah, that’s all pretty cool, but let’s be real: the best part of the Olympics is the rings, baby.
The five rings are an iconic and enduring symbol of the Olympic Games. Think of them like a global friendship bracelet shackling us all together. The five colours of the hoops — blue, yellow, black, green, and red — along with the white background, are a symbol of the unity among the world’s countries. They don’t represent or correspond with individual continents, mind you. The colours were chosen because every country in the world has at least one of the colours in its flag. It’s a lovely sentiment, and in recognition of this, we have decided to curate a list of the best ring-shaped foods around. And get your minds out of the gutter, people—I know what you’re thinking. These are just wholesome Olympic ring-inspired foods, thank you very much.
Wow Burger
The go to ring shaped food. You can pick these babies up in lots of places but we like the Wow Burger ones. They BIG. The batter is light and crispy and the thin slice of onion is delicate you don’t that slimy inside that can be a real turn off.
Get em at The Shop
Again I don’t want to hear any jokes about hoops or rings folks thank you. These crunchy morsels are the S-tier of retro crisps. These are an elite snack and are deliciously nostalgic. It is impossible not to feel like child again when having these. They are still best enjoyed when paired with Capri Sun. And naturally the only correct way too eat them is by putting them on younger tips and biting them off one by one.
Yeeros
We have the Greeks to thank for the invention of the Olympics, so it’s only right to pay tribute to their cuisine. Loukoumades are usually ball-shaped, but this version from Yeeros has been ring-ified and has a range of decadent toppings to choose from beyond the traditional honey. You can get yours topped with Nutella, Kinder Bueno, pistachio and salted caramel and more. They come out warm and perfectly crisp on the outside and chewy on the inside. You can even get them served up with a bit of ice cream. These are so heavenly you’ll feel like you’re with Gods on Mount Olympus watching the games.
Get em at The Shop
These are so synonymous with celebration that I actually think athletes should be awarded these instead of gold medals. We don’t need to say much about them. We all have nostalgic memories of these beautiful and vibrant treats. They were a staple at every special occasion growing up. They not only look good but the taste still stands up. With a crispy base and sweet vanilla icing, they provide the perfect sugar rush to keep you going while you watch the games.
Fish Shop
This romantic and jazzy little fish and chip shop on Benburb Street is, of course, best known for its classic fish supper. However, they are also elevating squid to the same crispy battered heights. This is proper calamari — big rings of squid perfectly fried in a light, crunchy batter. And you know you’re getting the good stuff when the plate isn’t just the calamari rings; it’s the squiggly bits too. While the rings are the main attraction for us because of the Olympics, a few of the tentacles never did any harm. We’ll have several plates, please, and a lovely Pét-Nat to wash it all down.
Get em at the Shop
To be fully transparent, these things make me gag just thinking about them, but in the spirit of unity, I’ll knock a few back. I suppose served steaming hot on a freshly toasted piece of sourdough would be the least offensive way to consume these hoops. If you’re eating them cold straight out of the can, you need to go to jail.
FatBaby Bakes
These chonky little boys may not be a perfect ring shape, but there’s a hole, so that makes them a ring. Dublin was crying out for authentic New York-style bagels for ages, and finally, a real, authentic New Yorker Kieran Clifford made all our dreams come true with FatBaby Bakes. She’s been living in Ireland since 1999 and understandably missed her bagel fix. So she makes it happen herself, whipping up her creations at her micro bakery in Ringsend. Yes, RINGSend.
The everything bagel is, well, everything. So grab a few and chow down as you watch Team U.S.A. win everything. You see, the Gracenote-Nielsen Forecast puts them at the top of the table in their projections for who’s going to win gold, silver and bronze this year with a projected wins 39 wins.
Get em at The Shop
Well, Thailand didn’t make it on to the Gracenote-Nielsen forecast (Ireland did though with 2 yeooow!!) but Team Thailand believes they’re in with a a shot at taking home 6 medals. We will certainly be cheering them on as we munch on a big bag of Thai Rings. Hands down, the best of the Tayto ring collection. The Thai Ring is a beautiful balance of sweet and spicy aromatics. They are more mellow than the Spicy Ring, and way more interesting than the Onion Ring. Do they get stick in your teeth? Yes all corn based snacks do but its all worth it. You can’t really beat that crunch and texture.
Definitive Tayto Ring Ranking
Gold: Thai Ring
Silver: Spicy Ring
Bronze: Onion Ring
That’s facts.
