We Tried a Burger Made by a Robot and Liked It

Our Thoughts On The Keto Starbucks Pink Drink

First, we tried the OG Pink Drink to know what the Keto version is up against. The original is a blend of coconut milk, Strawberry Acai Starbucks Refreshers (a caffeinated juice, basically), and freeze-dried strawberry slices. One sip, and OMG. We get the craze.

The Starbucks Pink Drink tastes like a pink Starburst, a party in your mouth. It was really an explosion of sweet and tangy strawberry flavor.

When it came to make the Keto version, our barista was not super enthusiastic about this tall order, and was confused, TBH. To order the Keto Pink Drink from Starbucks, ask for the following:

• Iced sugar-free strawberry green tea infusion
• 1 pump of sugar-free vanilla
• Heavy cream
• Freeze-dried strawberries

My barista accidentally made me two drinks: one with the sugar-free passion iced tea, and the other with the sugar-free strawberry green tea infusion.

I do not recommend the one with the sugar-free passion iced tea base. While the color is still that perfect pink, the flavor is lacking. It tastes like a semi-sweet iced tea with cream, which tastes just as weird as it sounds.

The sugar-free strawberry green tea infusion is so much better. It’s more like a strawberry shortcake, but not as sweet. The drink’s hint of green tea balances the flavors, plus offers a caffeine boost (passion fruit iced tea is herbal and non-caffeinated).

All this said, compared to the OG Pink Drink, the sugar-free, Keto version is disappointing. It tastes nothing like a pink Starburst, and even the strawberry flavor was pretty subtle!

The original Pink Drink still wins our hearts, as it’s much sweeter than the other drinks (because of the sugar, duh!), but also has a lot more flavor. Ultimately, we learned that the diet versions of our favorite beverages never taste as good as we expect them to, so be open-minded.

If you’re not comparing the the Keto Pink Drink to the OG Pink Drink, you might enjoy the Keto version for what it is: a refreshing, slightly sweet, and creamy pink beverage, ideal for hot summer days.

If you wished you could get your hands on even more of the strangely wonderful Hi-Chew flavors, listen up! To honor the 10th anniversary of the launch of the Japanese candy in the United States, Morinaga, the makers of Hi-Chew, are asking fans to vote on the next flavor release in its East Meets West Flavor Challenge.

1. Lilikoi: Based on the Hawaiian fruit, Lilikoi offers the best balance of flavors from all the Hi-Chew flavors we tried. The tart, tropical flavor is reminiscent of tropical punch, with a slight kiwi-and apricot-like taste.

20. Strawberry Cheesecake: We wanted to like this flavor, but it just wasn't in the stars. We found the sour notes with the strawberry sort of clashed. That's okay, though. There are PLENTY of Hi-Chew flavors we're obsessed with.

As a Power of Women honoree, Mariska was recognized in regards to her work as an advocate for sexual assault survivors. She took the stage and used her platform to discuss rape and assault conviction reversals, shining a light on the recent overturned ruling in Harvey Weinstein's landmark NYC case. Here's what she said:

Today I want to talk about reversing convictions, and more specifically I want to talk to you about how impossible it is to reverse mine. It’s impossible to reverse my conviction that survivors matter. It is impossible to reverse my conviction that what happens to us matters, and that our society must respond to survivors with a more a compassionate, holistically, deeper, and more nuanced understanding of what healing means.

It is impossible to reverse my conviction that after a trauma, survivors can reclaim lives of hope, of possibility, of audacious risk, beautiful intimacy, and glorious, glorious abundant joy. And I stand before you as evidence of that statement.

It is impossible to reverse my conviction that we must listen to survivors as experts on what justice means. It is extraordinary how little their voices are consulted, let alone incorporated, in the process of deciding how to repair harm. Justice is not a one-size-fits-all journey.

It is impossible to reverse my conviction that patriarchal impunity has to end. Patriarchal impunity is when a male-dominated system exempts perpetrators from punishment. Studies show that only 20% of all rape cases in the U.S. are reported to the police, and that between 5 and 0% of all rapes result in a guilty plea or a conviction. So why do 80% of victims not report? Because they're met with a system that grants impunity to perpetrators; a system that blames victims; a system that accepts only those victims who are experienced as "real" rape; a system that completely misunderstands the neurobiology of trauma, which causes behavior in women that doesn't fit the picture of how a "real victim" would act.

Is that change needed that victims should just pull themselves together? Just buck up and report anyway? No. No, it's the system that receives them that needs to change

It is impossible to reverse my conviction — and the conviction of my extraordinary team, The Joyful Heart — that the backlog of untested rape kits can be brought to zero; that the testing of all new kits must be mandated; that we need a statewide kit tracking system; and that survivors have the right to access the status of their kits.

It is impossible to reverse my conviction that grammar — yes, grammar — that we use when we speak about rape must change. In the sentence, "A woman is raped," there's a crime and there's a victim, but there's no perpetrator. Where's the perpetrator? Where is he? Statistically, as we know, most likely he's walking free. He's so free that he doesn't even appear in the language about the crime that he committed. Is that not extraordinary? It's extraordinary that in the very grammar, the perpetrator goes free. Reintroducing perpetrators in the language of rape will make some very unwieldy grammar, but that's the nature of change. It's unwieldy, it's messy, it's uncomfortable, but it's necessary.

Hargitay continued on in her prolific speech to describe that rape shouldn't be considered a "crime of passion" because it's "not simply the next step in the trajectory of his passion" when a man takes a consensual hookup too far and assaults a woman against her will. She stated that it's "an exercise of power," doubling down that the language we use is important.

The speech went on to address that rape is both about power and control, as a "construct" that was "built, and assembled, and reinforced over time." She noted that there are people with these positions of power — and she specifically called out those in the entertainment industry — that could make a difference and aligned themselves to victims and survivors.

After this and some other remarks, Hargitay specifically called out the Weinstein conviction reversal. She said:

I do want to say something about the Harvey Weinstein conviction, specifically about the reason that it was overturned: too many women's voices. Too many women's voices were allowed to speak. Hallelujah! Amen! I can't imagine anything more beautiful than that. The Daily podcast episode talked about how it was so risky for the prosecution to have that many women testify. Risky to let women speak? You're damn right it is!

Too many women speaking brings change. Too many women speaking shakes the establishment. Too many women means we get listened to more, and people might actually hear what we have to say. Look what happened when women started saying just two words, right? Me too — just as an example — a tidal wave of change. Me too.

And then of course, there was the response: the Me Too Movement. The backlash. The examination of whether the changes that have come are lasting, or are even positive. Of course there's a backlash! What did they expect? For women to speak repeatedly, loudly, together, with a purpose — for there to be no backlash? The backlash is evidence of how powerful those voices were, how powerful those voices ARE.

Watch Mariska Hargitay's Full Speech Here

Turns out that your TV heroes really can be your IRL heroes after all. Long live Olivia Benson! Long live Mariska Hargitay!