Fake mashed potatoes are better than many a cook's "real" mashed potatoes.

Potato Buds brand is ok. I won't use any of the cheaper brands that look like fish food flakes (Potato Buds is more like little potato nuggets). But none of the fake are as good as the real thing.

I heard that the reason McDonald's soft serve has that texture is that they add artificial potato shavings...wonder if that's true.

Fake mashed potatoes are like ash in your mouth.

Fake potatoes are horrible, go genuine whenever possible

I'll agree only because of how badly some people make mashed potatoes and because I consider most of the instants to fall in the fake category (and because I've had a relatively good experience with them).

Some instant mashed potatoes are really good, especially when compared to the ones that have skins in them, or the really thick, dry ones. Fake ones whipped up with a bit of sour cream or using milk instead of water are almost as good as the good homemade ones.