MYNORTHWEST NEWS

Mom of three wins $1 million after masses pick her Cheesy Garlic Bread Lay’s chip flavor

May 8, 2013, 12:28 PM | Updated: May 9, 2013, 10:36 am

Karen Weber-Mendham collects her winning check from Lay's. (Image courtesy Lay's)

(Image courtesy Lay's)

Potato chip fans have spoken and the flavor they’d like to eat more of is: Cheesy Garlic Bread. The flavor originated from a mom of three who submitted the idea in Lays’ contest.

Winner Karen Weber-Mendham tells KIRO Radio’s Andrew Walsh Show she doesn’t typically enter contests, but at her son’s prodding the two sat down to come up with a new flavor.

They settled on Cheesy Garlic Bread because, as Karen explains, “You just can’t resist the smell of garlic bread,” and being from Wisconsin, she’s of course, a big proponent for cheese.

After they entered, Karen says she forgot about the contest until she received a call at the school library where she works. Her flavor had been named a finalist. As one of three finalists, her flavor put her in the running for $1 million. Even the two runners-up would end up with $50,000.

The whole ride since has been surreal, she says. “Freaking out is actually a phrase I’ve used a lot. Throughout the whole contest, I’ve been completely freaking out.”

She was even more so this week when she was told her flavor had received the most votes and was declared the contest winner.

Speaking to Walsh about her flavor creation, she calls it “a chip miracle.” After the Cheesy Garlic Bread chip was created in January, Karen was blown away by her first tasting at Frito-Lay.

“They have executive chefs with incredible credentials that create the flavors. So two of them – it was like a cooking show, they created literally cheesy garlic bread. It was the most beautiful cheesy garlic bread you have ever seen and had us taste that straight out of the oven, then handed me the chip and I thought, ‘wow, that’s confidence,'” she says.

After tasting it, she says she couldn’t believe how close the Cheesy Garlic Bread chip was to the real thing. “It tasted like the bread.”

The other two flavor finalists were Sriracha and Chicken and Waffles. Karen says those chips were also great. All three were available for sale around the country during the public voting period.

The Cheesy Garlic Bread flavor will continue being produced for at least a year, says Karen. As for her future, Karen says she won’t be blowing her million bucks on a boat.

“I’m a mom. I’ve got three kids. I’m at a point in my life where I’m boringly practical, so braces and college.”

She does say they’re also planning a family trip to Mexico because her kids did a great job campaigning to get their Cheesy Garlic Bread flavor to the top, and it was her son’s idea, after all.

MyNorthwest News

Everett boy missing...

Frank Sumrall

4-year-old Everett boy missing, police worried he’s in danger

Police and Search and Rescue crews are looking for a missing four-year-old boy they suspect could be in danger.

46 minutes ago

Image: The awnings of a store advertise the sale of lottery tickets, including Mega Millions and Po...

Steve Coogan

Lottery jackpots update: Powerball prize jumps again after $1.1B Mega Millions win

A lottery jackpots update: The Powerball prize reached an estimated $935 million ahead of Saturday night's drawing.

10 hours ago

Photo: The Judge Patricia H. Clark Children and Family Justice Center....

James Lynch

King County’s plan to close youth detention center met with fierce backlash

The King County Law and Justice Committee received a final report on Executive Dow Constantine's plan to close a youth detention center.

12 hours ago

Image: A cargo ship is stuck under the part of the structure of the Francis Scott Key Bridge after ...

Associated Press

Authorities identify 2 bodies recovered at site of Baltimore bridge collapse

A major bridge in Baltimore snapped and collapsed after a container ship rammed into it early Tuesday, and several vehicles fell into the river below.

14 hours ago

Photo: Mountaineer Jim Whittaker has died at 95....

Gene Johnson, The Associated Press

Lou Whittaker, among the most famous American mountaineers, has died at age 95

Lou Whittaker, a legendary American mountaineer who helped lead ascents of Mount Everest, K2 and Denali, has died at age 95.

14 hours ago

File photo: Former Sen. Joe Lieberman speaks in Washington on Jan. 18, 2024....

Associated Press

Former Sen. Joe Lieberman, Democrats’ VP pick in 2000, dead at 82

Former U.S. Sen. Joe Lieberman of Connecticut, who nearly won the vice presidency on the Democratic ticket with Al Gore in 2000, has died.

14 hours ago

Mom of three wins $1 million after masses pick her Cheesy Garlic Bread Lay’s chip flavor