Don’t get me wrong, I completely understand the appeal of the viral Dubai chocolate bar.
Stuffed with pistachio cream and crunchy knafeh (crispy shredded phyllo pastry), the gooey, nutty delight feels like it’s been a social media staple for years now.
It looks delicious, and it’s meant to be so unbelievably popular that retailers Waitrose and Lidl have imposed two-per-person limits on their versions of “Dubai-style” bars.
So why don’t I know anyone who’s eaten one? I live in pretty central London next to loads of trendy food spots; I’d try the bar if I saw it on any shelves near me, but I haven’t.
Am I just too far into my 20s to know anyone cool enough to try the trend? Is the price tag (Lindt’s version will run you a tenner for 145g in Waitrose) too high for my cohort? Or is the UK’s fascination with the sweet mostly confined to our screens?
I asked as many people as I could about their experience with it; here’s what I found.
I struggled to find many people who’d actually eaten the bar in the UK
Most of the people I spoke to said they’d seen the bar more often in Europe and (duh) Dubai than they have in the UK.
Jelena Skene from PressFlow says that while she’s eaten one of the bars, she’s the only one she knows who has.
“I actually got one from my mother-in-law who went to Dubai,” she told us.
“She got it as a present (I love chocolate in any form) – she said it was incredibly hard to get because there are always queues so she ended up ordering one on Deliveroo!”
Meanwhile, Kristin Herman, a food editor at Academized, said “I’ve only got one colleague here in the UK who actually buys and eats the viral Dubai chocolate.”
But, she added, “I’ve noticed it’s more popular among my colleagues in Europe. Particularly in Germany. Over there it seems to have gained more traction.”
She agrees that the high price might be why it’s not “as mainstream” in the UK yet, though as she points out, “I do think people are eating it. It’s just circulating in different circles.”
A friend of mine thought the viral chocolate was actually from France, because that’s the only place she’d seen it in the wild.
Maybe the Lindt bar, and brands like it, will buck the trend – but as of now, I found it hard to find many people who’d actually eaten the tasty-looking dessert in the UK.
So… why?
It could just be down to taste. “Perhaps it’s a case when trends catch on at different speeds depending on the market,” Herman said.
I reckon part of the problem could lie in how the bar is made, too.
Something like a Hobnob or a Twix is pretty manufacturing-friendly; their base is usually made from inexpensive ingredients (oats, wheat, syrup) and is sturdy enough to withstand chocolate, caramel, and more.
But pistachios, which can take decades to mature, are undeniably pricey and labour-intensive; knafeh is delicate; the chocolate, which is expensive right now, must be tempered for that signature snap (no wonder Lindt’s bar cost a tenner).
Then, there’s the fact that the trend was an online one first.
Perhaps, because TikTok allows us to see crazes from around the world, I, a regular scroller, have simply gotten it into my head that everyone knows about Dubai chocolate.
Not so! UK friends without the app had to search the name online to find out what it is.
Only time will tell if the (honestly, quite gourmet) snack becomes popular enough to finally, finally break into my friend group’s cupboards…
#Dubai #Chocolate #Mega #Viral #Whos #Eating
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