It’s natural to feel a little put off or lose one’s appetite when the food we are presented with doesn’t smell particularly appealing or fresh. Although not as finicky, our ancestors did the same and used smell to determine whether food was safe and suitable for consumption. If it doesn’t smell rotten—then it’s good to go. No rocket science here.
The smell and look of food helps us decide what’s safe to put in our mouths and what’s not. However, food is not the only area where scent matters. And as we’ve come to realize, some in more brutal ways than others, not all that smells good tastes accordingly. And many of the good-smelling things are not even edible. Many have heard the riddle asking what tastes better than it smells (FYI, the answer is tongue), but what about things that smell good but taste bad? That’s a different spin on the riddle! However, it’s not so much of a mystery when you realize how many things that smell nice taste rather awful. In fact, they shouldn’t be put in one’s mouth at all. Interested in what smells better than it tastes, user Muntszy of the AskReddit community asked fellow Redditors to name more things that smell good but taste—not so. Unsurprisingly, many of the things people listed were not supposed to be eaten (at least not by humans).
Below, we’ve compiled some of the most spot-on or simply funny replies people left in the thread. As always, we invite you to upvote the entries you liked or can agree with. Also, do you know of more things that smell better than they taste which haven’t been mentioned? If so, let us know in the comments!
#1
m00kiiprinxess said:
“Vanilla extract.”
Sailor_Chibi replied:
“So glad this is near the top. I once made the mistake of giving into temptation and tasted vanilla extract. That’s a mistake you only make once.”
Image source: m00kiiprinxess
#2
“Soap.”
Image source: 2kRandy
#3
PmMeYourTattoo said:
“Cocoa powder.”
ClutchingMyTinkle replied:
“Unsweetened cocoa powder.”
guy_who_likes_coffee replied:
“I distinctly remember my older sister begging my mom to let her eat some of the (still unsweetened) chocolate stuff my mom was making… and then I remember my sister washing her mouth out under the sink cuz it turned out mom was right and she very much did not like it.”
Image source: PmMeYourTattoo
#4
Sighwtfman said:
“Coffee.
I know billions and billions of people like the stuff.
If it tasted the way it smells I would too. Love the smell.
The taste? Awful. Unless I put enough cream and sugar that it’s basically a milkshake.”
TheShoot141 replied:
“I like drinking coffee. It smells way better than it tastes.”
Image source: Sighwtfman
#5
dash47 said:
“Perfume.”
User No 2 replied:
“When I was little, I saw Pepé Le Pew spray something that looked like a fancy perfume into his mouth tryna get a smooch for that foxy cat or whatever he was always after. My mother had a similar-looking bottle and so I obviously had to try it.
Sometimes making a mistake once is enough.”
Image source: dash47
#6
“Scotch. Always smells delicious. Often tastes like bandaids.”
bbear122 replied:
“Bandaids is a new one. I usually think of old carpet or books when I drink scotch.”
Image source: Kinky_mofo
#7
“The rotisserie chickens are sold in the front of supermarkets. They taste fine, but they smell amazing. I’m not sure anything tastes as good as those things smell.”
Image source: reddit.com
#8
“Leather/new shoes.”
sushisay replied:
“My dog would disagree.”
Image source: Eh_okay
#9
“Uncooked minced garlic.”
EclipsaLuna replied:
“Fun story, my sister realized she had Covid one morning when she woke up and couldn’t smell or taste her coffee. So she decided to try out items in her spice cabinet and see how far she could take it. For the final test, she ate a whole tablespoon of raw minced garlic. Nothing.
She then got to tell the story when the doctor asked her why she thought she might have Covid. The doctor had a good laugh.”
Image source: reddit.com
#10
Melisandre-Sedai said:
“Dragonfruit. They smell heavenly, then taste like a solidified La Croix.”
Jmersh replied:
“They really are a very mild flavor, but if you’ve had them in the US, you have probably eaten a not-quite-ripe and not-freshly-picked fruit. They don’t travel well once they’re really ripe.
When they’re fully ripe and just picked off the cactus, they are sweeter and/or more sour. I think they taste like a ripe pear with a little sourness like kiwi fruit. If you can find them in Central America or Mexico, I’d recommend it. Very good, but the further you get North, the worse quality you’ll find.”
Image source: Melisandre-Sedai
#11
oohanonymousperson said:
“My strawberry shortcake doll that I had when I was a kid. Turns out her hair doesn’t actually taste like strawberry. Just plastic…”
geegeeallin replied:
“I wish I had one of those old strawberry shortcake dolls to smell right now. The memories would be intense.”
Image source: oohanonymousperson
#12
FriskyKittenPaws said:
“Snazzy flavored herbal teas.”
pamwhit replied:
“Every time. “Oh, I bet this one will taste good!” Nope.”
Image source: FriskyKittenPaws
#13
silksalmon said:
“Every grocery store bakery’s chocolate chip cookies.”
Fragrant_Penalty_ replied:
“They’re always too doughy and sweet, it’s an insult to cookie connoisseurs.”
Image source: silksalmon
#14
“Mint leaves smell like breath mints, tastes like leaves.”
Image source: BunnyTearsOnline
#15
paulfromatlanta said:
“Scented markers.”
BTW_The_Names_Marcus replied:
“I don’t know, that grape marker looks pretty tasty…”
Image source: paulfromatlanta
#16
2kRandy said:
“Roses.”
earthdweller11 replied:
“I love rose tea. Taste like nothing but hot water but there IS a mild floral nice taste. Basically, I just love the heavenly smell mostly though. Also love jasmine green tea for the same reason.”
Image source: 2kRandy
#17
Maso_TGN said:
“Old books.”
nicetriangle replied:
“Supposedly one of the chemicals produced by books/paper aging is in the same neighborhood as one of the main compounds in vanilla.”
Image source: Maso_TGN
#18
“Movie theatre popcorn.”
Impossible_Town984 replied:
“I eat handfuls of it hoping it will taste as good as it smells. It never does.”
Image source: reddit.com
#19
Prank_Owl said:
“Cinnamon.”
sonic_silence replied:
“The cinnamon really is only pleasant as an odor. The taste is actually bitter but is paired with other flavors to work with the scent. Such as sugar.”
Image source: Prank_Owl
#20
no-more-mr-nice-guy said:
“Cucumbers! They lure me in with that wonderful smell and then reward me with the taste of stale water. Why do you hurt me so?”
Sapphire580 replied:
“The first time I had cucumbers I knew I had tasted them before, but then I realized they taste like a bit of watermelon at the rind. With no red in the bite.”
Image source: no-more-mr-nice-guy
#21
“Coconuts. Not that they don’t taste good but man coconuts be smelling bomb!”
Image source: RukeSkyWokker
#22
truthesda said:
“Gasoline.”
Ralfarius replied:
“Unleaded tastes a little tangy. Supreme is kinda sour, and diesel tastes pretty good.”
Image source: truthesda
#23
“Candles.”
Image source: twinklex2bigstar
#24
“Play-doh.”
Image source: throwaway20220712
#25
“Lipsmackers chapstick.”
Image source: reddit.com
#26
Zoltarrah2000 said:
“Deodorant.”
an_ineffable_plan replied:
“I once accidentally applied deodorant like one would apply Chapstick because I was seriously spacing. I don’t recommend it.”
Image source: Zoltarrah2000
#27
SuvenPan said:
“New tires in a tire shop.”
KDeol replied:
“This is unjustly underrated.”
Image source: SuvenPan
#28
“Christmas trees. Currently decorating one. Tried a broken-off piece. Smelt great, tasted bad.”
Image source: Roecasz
#29
“Fresh-cut pine. Amazing smell, a little bit prickly of a taste.”
Image source: PatrickPak
#30
Mapletron2020 said:
“Pipe tobacco.”
gil_beard replied:
“I’ve been a pipe tobacco smoker for almost ten years and mainly smoke aromatics like bourbon, vanilla, etc. People love the smell of it when I smoke around them. I have to remind them the taste isn’t the same. Not as bad as a cigarette of course but no it isn’t going to taste as well as the name implies.”
Image source: Mapletron2020
#31
No_Language_423 said:
“Grapefruit.”
Misseskat replied:
“Yes, I remember the grapefruit craze about 10 years ago – it’s unbelievably bitter. I remember tasting it as a kid and I still feel the same way about it. Makes awesome juice and soda though.”
Image source: No_Language_423
#32
“Juniper berries.”
Image source: ARoundForEveryone
#33
“Sausage sizzle. I love the smell of sausages and onion cooking but I really do not like eating them. Sausages just make me feel sick. It’s weird.”
Image source: reddit.com
#34
EntropyBier said:
“Hop extract.
I brew beer and use the hop extract in certain processes as an alternative to fresh or processed hops. It smells great if you love the smell of beer, particularly an IPA. Got some on my finger once, just a small drop, and without even thinking licked it off. F’ing ruined me. Destroyed my taste buds for like 3 days, all I could taste was bitter.”
Stagism replied:
“This is how I feel after tasting an IPA. Just palate destroying bitterness. I think it’s literally the only type of beer I don’t like.”
Image source: EntropyBier
#35
korinthia said:
“How has nobody said McDonald’s pancakes? They smell like heaven and taste like regret.”
Nickgio999 replied:
“You watch your mouth… those are delicious.”
korinthia replied:
“Well, then I pity you for never having had a quality pancake.”
Image source: korinthia
#36
“Truffles.”
Image source: deliciouschicken
#37
“Bacon. I think part of the problem is that people often overcook it to the point that it’s charred. This isn’t acceptable for most other kinds of meat, so I’m not sure why it’s commonplace with bacon. I like it on the chewier side.”
Steev182 replied:
“Back bacon is where it’s at for that. The problem with belly bacon is that by the time the fat is mostly rendered, the meat has lost all moisture even when it isn’t charred. But back bacon, there’s only a light rind of fat, so it’ll render much quicker and leave you with a decent amount of meat.”
Image source: Billiesoceaneyes
#38
AllysonAmbrose said:
“The roasted nuts on the streets of NYC.”
Basketball312 replied:
“Roasted chestnuts they sell (or used to) around London were like this. Smelled so good, tasted not bad but nowhere near as good as they smell.”
Image source: AllysonAmbrose
#39
Tedtox77 said:
“A nose?”
Moonlight_Darling replied:
“The nose actually does most of the tasting for you. Try eating something with your nose plugged and unplugged. You’ll be able to tell the difference since the plugged taste will be much more bland.”
Image source: Tedtox77
#40
jzpidtzqsyvcsulrnb said:
“Grass.”
_i_own_this_username replied:
“Never tried it but tbh it seems like it’d be nice too. Chuck it in a blender and you got green juice too.”
Image source: jzpidtzqsyvcsulrnb
#41
nbarry1425 said:
“Purple gluesticks.”
Verminnesotanboio replied:
“The only thing worse than how a gluestick taste is how “well” it sticks.”
Image source: nbarry1425
#42
“Tide pods.”
Image source: Kjetil Ree
#43
hcos612 said:
“Beggin’ strips. “Dogs don’t know it’s not bacon” but I sure did.”
KevinFrane replied:
“My older brother tried one of my dog’s Milk Bones once out of curiosity and from then on he’d dead-a** snack on them now and then.”
Image source: hcos612
#44
wtfhassan said:
“Subway.”
Shadowchaos replied:
“I honestly like Subway too but it’s the first thing I thought of when I saw the question. It’s not bad but it’s not great either, but the smell of the bread and the restaurant itself is amazing.”
Image source: wtfhassan, TAC PlazaMaster
#45
“Rosemary.”
Image source: misslesintothesea
#46
“Bread. Whenever I drive past a bakery, I’m like “That smells delicious!”, but when I eat a slice of plain white bread, I’m like “Meh. It tastes like bread. That being said, the brown cracked wheat bread from the Cheesecake Factory tastes as good as it smells.”
Image source: TheBagman07
#47
clutchcitycupcake said:
“Nail polish.”
BuffsBourbon replied:
“I prefer nail polish remover.”
Image source: clutchcitycupcake
#48
“Ginger root. I was tricked, okay?”
Image source: murderofcrows90
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