Ranking 10 Chocolate Bars A Guest Post by Winnie Bachman

Do you ever browse the candy section in the checkout line at the grocery store and always end up choosing the one of the same three chocolate bars instead of trying something new? I’ve been a picky eater for most of my life, so I would always play it safe by choosing a more classic or simpler chocolate bar, like a Milky Way or Reese’s Peanut Butter Cup.

Recently though, I’ve been attempting to broaden my palette by trying some new foods that have been recommended to me by friends and family over the years. So, during quarantine, I decided to begin my adventure by conducting a taste test of all of the chocolate bars that I’ve either recently discovered or have previously disregarded.

Every weekend for the past few months, I would go to my local grocery store and choose a chocolate bar at random that I had never previously eaten but was curious about or had always wanted to try. In no particular order, I’ve rated and reviewed ten, not-so-famous chocolate bars that are easily found at most US grocery stores.

Heath

“Milk chocolate English Toffee Bar” made by The Hershey Company.

Rating: 4/10

As described on the dark brown wrapper, a Heath bar is basically just a rectangular chunk of toffee covered in a thin coating of Hershey’s milk chocolate. I was really surprised to discover that the Heath bar is made by Hershey because the chocolate does not taste anything like the classic milk chocolate Hershey flavor that all American citizens know and love.

Instead, the chocolate is pretty generic, like the hollow, chocolate Santa Claus candies that school children receive in a Christmas goody bag. Because the chocolate coating is so thin, it’s really hard to savor. I ended up just biting off a smaller piece of the bar and allowing the chocolate melt in my mouth first before chewing the toffee in order to really taste the milk chocolate.

Prior to tasting a Heath bar, I don’t believe that I had ever eaten toffee before. The only other type of candy that I can compare toffee to is homemade peanut brittle. And like peanut brittle, the toffee inside of the Heath bar was incredibly crunchy and stuck to my teeth so much that I couldn’t really enjoy the candy. Overall, the Heath bar was pretty basic and would not be my first choice.

Nestle Chunky

“Milk chocolate with peanut and raisins” made by Nestle.

Rating: 8/10

I first discovered the Nestle Chunky bar from a Mukbang YouTube video a few years ago. Introduced in 1930s, the Nestle Chunky bar was created in New York City and originally sold for five cents per bar. As a result, I thought that Nestle discontinued the Chunky bar years ago and that I would only be able to purchase one online.

To my surprise, I stumbled across them at my local Dollar General. Packaged in a shiny, silver wrapper, the Nestle Chunky bar is a palm-sized, square chocolate bar that is cut into four smaller square, bite-sized pieces.

When I opened the packaging, I immediately smelled both the peanuts and raisins. Other than the more popular Nestle chocolate candy, Raisinets, there are very few chocolate candies sold anymore that contain raisins. What is also really unique about the Chunky bar is that it is both crunchy and chewy.

The whole peanuts rolled into the filling first creates a crunch, but quickly turns chewy as your teeth sink into the California raisins. None of the three flavors overpowers the other, but the mixture evenly balances out into a smooth chocolate, crunchy, and chewy treat.

Zero

“Caramel, peanut, and almond nougat covered with white fudge” made by the Hershey Company.

Rating: 9/10

When I used to see Zero chocolate bars at the grocery store, I always assumed that they were filled with coconut or marshmallow because of the bland, grey packaging with “Zero” written in a white font. Upon opening the Zero bar’s wrapper, the creamy, white chocolate aroma immediately reminded me of Hershey’s white chocolate Cookies n’ Creme bar.

Unlike the Cookies n’ Cream bar however, the Zero bar’s white chocolate tastes much sweeter and smoother. Additionally, the filling is a really exceptional mixture of caramel and nougat that makes eating it slightly less messy than other caramel filled chocolate bars.

While I did not taste either of the peanuts or almonds, there are whole pieces of both of the nuts mixed into the caramel nougat filling so that it has a slight crunch. Similar to the Nestle Chunky bar, none of the flavors overpowers the other, so the perfectly blended filling is really smooth to bite into.

Out of all of the chocolate bars that I tested, I really thought that the Zero bar would be my least favorite because it has a strange combination of flavors. But ultimately, I would rank the Zero bar as my second favorite chocolate bar that I’ve tasted for this experiment.

Skor

“Delicious Milk Chocolate/ Crisp Butter Toffee” made by the Hershey Company.

Rating: 5/10

I was actually gifted a Skor bar a few weeks ago, but I have never previously seen one in the grocery store. Yet another Hershey candy, the Skor bar is packaged similarly to the Heath bar in a dark brown wrapper with a snapshot of the chocolate coated toffee displayed on the front.

On the back of the Skor bar wrapper, the label exclaims that the chocolate bar is “Delicious chilled!” Many people have raved about frozen chocolate bars, but I’ve never really been a big fan because it makes the candy more difficult to eat and it also diminishes the sweet, milk chocolate flavor.

As stated on the wrapper, the Skor bar is basically just a slice of English toffee covered with a very thin coating of the iconic Hershey’s milk chocolate. The only real difference in taste between a Skor bar and a Heath bar is that the toffee in the Skor bar is much crunchier and has a more buttery taste. Overall though, I think I prefer the Skor bar over the Heath bar mostly because the toffee stuck less to my teeth.

Kinder Bueno

“Crispy Creamy Chocolate Bar” made by Ferrero.

Rating: 8/10

Until recently, the only Kinder candy product that I had seen before was the Kinder Joy, an egg- shaped chocolate candy that contains a small toy inside. I only discovered the Kinder Bueno chocolate bar on a TV commercial a few weeks ago and have been really curious about them ever since.

The candy comes packaged in two individually wrapped bars, which are sliced into four smaller, bite sized pieces. The filling inside of the chocolate bar contains a crispy wafer and a really delicious whipped cream mixture of hazelnut and vanilla. The outside milk chocolate coating is semi-sweet, unlike the classic Hershey chocolate that seems to have dominated most of the American made chocolate candy.

I really can’t think of an American chocolate bar that is comparable to the Kinder Bueno’s creamy filling. In the US, chocolate candy companies typically make nougat or peanut butter the main filling in a chocolate bar, in addition to other sweet flavors. However, the Kinder Bueno’s cream filling is a more gourmet taste compared more popular US chocolate bars.

I believe this is due to the fact that the Kinder bueno favors hazelnuts over peanuts, which is more common flavor in the US. I will definitely be perusing the grocery stores for other types of Kinder candy products.

Charleston Chew

“Chewy flavored nougat with a delicious chocolately coating” made by Tootsie Roll Industries.

Rating: 3/10

Of all of the chocolate bars that I’ve eaten for this experiment, I was most excited to try the Charleston Chew. Unfortunately, it ended up being my least favorite of the bunch.

I remember seeing the huge, 13-inch bars in the candy store when I was younger, but I never purchased one because I was afraid that I would hate the taste. Recently, I had only seen the theater box sized candies in the grocery store. But, I ended up finding a full sized bar at Five Below for only $1.00.

Honestly, I really struggled eating the Charleston Chew because of how obnoxiously chewy the nougat filling was to consume. While the wrapper indicates that the coating is chocolate covered, I would compare it more to a Tootsie Roll consistency.

I admit that the vanilla flavor of the nougat was really sweet and made eating the candy tolerable, but it was still not worth the jaw workout that I had to go through to finish eating the bar. Honestly, it probably took me ten minutes to eat the entire bar. If I were to purchase another Charleston Chew, I would definitely grab one of the theater box, bite sized candies rather than a full sized bar.

Whatchamacallit

“Made with chocolate, peanut flavored crisps, and caramel” made by The Hershey Company.

Rating: 6/10

Created in 1978, the Whatchamacallit chocolate bar is a really great choice for peanut lovers who are not craving the whole peanut crunch of a Snickers bar or the smooth, peanut butter filling of Reese’s Pieces. I purchased a king sized bar at the Dollar General one afternoon on a whim after being drawn in by the bizarre name.

The Whatchamacallit bar is basically a thick, rectangular milk chocolate bar filled with a thin layer of caramel and crisped rice. I expected the crisped rice to taste more like crunchy layers of a wafer, but the filling is more comparable to a Nestle Crunch bar.

Instead of being filled with whole peanuts or peanut butter, the crunchy rice has more of an artificial peanut flavor. I think that the thick layer of crisped rice really overpowered the caramel, at least in the king sized version of the chocolate bar.

The thin caramel layer under the chocolate coating didn’t really have much flavor, but I still noticed the stringy pull of the caramel with each bite. I think the king sized bar might have been too large of a serving for me to fully enjoy, but I still really enjoyed the combination of flavors.

Snickers Cinnamon Bun

“Peanuts. Cinnamon Bun flavored nougat. Caramel. Milk Chocolate” made by Mars Wrigley.

Rating: 9/10

Recently introduced in October 2021, Mars Wrigley released the classic Snickers bar in a limited edition cinnamon bun flavor. I’ve never really been a big fan of the original Snickers bar, but I was really excited to try the cinnamon bun version.

When I ripped open the beautiful, baby blue wrapper, I could immediately smell the artificial cinnamon and milk chocolate. While the consistency of the bar was the same as a regular chocolate Snickers bar filled with nougat, caramel, and peanuts, the sweet cinnamon definitely overpowered all of the other flavors.

The creamy nougat was really smooth and the cinnamon flavoring tasted just like the Cinnabon brand coffee creamer and cereal products that I’ve previously tasted. Snickers Cinnamon Bun bar was so delicious, and I think I actually prefer this version to the original.

Toblerone

“Swiss milk chocolate with honey & almond nougat” made by Mondelēz International.

Rating: 9/10

Developed in Switzerland in the early 1900s, the Toblerone bar is possibly the most visually distinct chocolate bar of all time. Cut into nine pyramidal pieces, the Toblerone bar was made to resemble the Swiss Alps as illustrated on the yellow, cardboard packaging.

Unlike the typical candy bar that you unwrap and immediately bite into, the only way to easily eat a Toblerone is to break off one triangular piece at a time. The Swiss chocolate is much smoother and richer tasting than a sweet, milk chocolate Hershey bar.

Large pieces of almonds inside of the chocolate make the bar really crunchy, and it reminded me of the crisped rice inside of a Nestle Crunch bar. However, the honey mixture inside of the chocolate also causes the almonds to stick to your teeth.

Toblerone would be a really fun chocolate bar to share during the holidays with family because the pieces of a full size bar are large enough to break apart and display in a candy dish. And after reading more about other Toblerone treats, I would really like to try the dark and white chocolate versions as well.

Ice Cubes

Rating: 10/10

Ice Cubes are a German chocolate candy developed in the 1930s by the Alberts/Moritz Company. Similar to the Chunky chocolate bar, I discovered Ice Cubes on a Mukbang Youtube channel a few years ago and became immediately obsessed. After discovering the candy, I did some research and was only able to find them sold online in a 100 piece pack for about $30.

About a year ago however, I went into a local candy store and surprisingly found a five-piece pack for only $1.50. Packaged in gold and red foil, Ice Cubes come individually wrapped in bite sized pieces that resemble actual ice cubes.

The ingredients of the candy are pretty basic. Ice Cubes are mainly just a cube of solid milk chocolate with hazelnut flavoring. What makes Ice Cubes so unique though is the additional hydrogenated coconut oil ingredient which elicits a chilling sensation that literally makes the chocolate feel cool on the tongue.

I’ve been hooked on these candies ever since I’ve eaten my first piece, so I think it would be dangerous for me to purchase the 100 piece pack online because I would end up eating them all in one sitting. Ice Cubes are definitely my favorite chocolate that I’ve tried for this experiment, and they’ve quickly been added to my list of top 5 favorite chocolate candies of all time.

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Final thoughts on chocolate bars

After being a picky eater for most of my life, I was really surprised by how much I enjoyed the majority of the chocolate bars that I taste tested for the experiment. I’m not sure how I never noticed before, but the Hershey Company really dominates the chocolate candy in the US.

However, there have been many international chocolate companies developing chocolate candies, like Kinder and Toblerone, that are becoming more popular in the US. While there are some chocolate bars from this experiment that I will never purchase again (mainly the Charleston Chew), I feel some sort of accomplishment that I can now say that I’ve at least tried them.

On the flip side, I was fortunate to discover a few new favorite chocolate bars, like the Zero bar and Nestle Chunky, that I’m already anxious to buy again. I’ve already been putting together a list of other chocolate bars that I would like to try in the future, so keep an eye out for a possible part 2 of my Chocolate Bar Taste Test!

Also by Winnie Bachman: Hangin’ Out at Elvis’s House: A Visit to Graceland. 

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