Unless you have been living under a rock, you’ll likely know all about Dubai Chocolate – the sweet treat that continues to dominate the internet.
The confectionary known for its indulgent pistachio filling combined with kanefeh, a shredded Middle Eastern pastry, is sold in many different iterations since its creation in 2021 – and one supermarket has joined the party.
This week, Lidl brought its own Dubai Style Chocolate from its own brand J.D Gross after a massive sell out. The supermarket is the first to sell its goods on TikTok shop, the company’s own selling platform built integrated within the app itself and recently released the bar here for a limited time.
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The firm’s recent announcement that it would be making the bar a permanent product sent shoppers into a frenzy, prompting Lidl to enforce a two bar per person rule. Our own Trends Editor (and chocaholic) Lucy Farrell managed to get her hands on Lidl’s Dubai Style Chocolate on its supermarket release date today (March 29) – and she has shared her thoughts.
As Lucy had never tasted Dubai Chocolate in any form, she also compared the supermarket version to an authentic bar ordered in from Dubai for a costly sum.
According to her, one stands out above the other – read on to find out which.
I’m not the kind of person who gets up super early on a Saturday morning to wait outside a supermarket in the hopes of getting my hands on a “must-have” viral product. But today I’ve made an acceptation.
I’ve never tried Dubai Chocolate and after seeing countless videos on social media of fans singing its praises while showing thick, chocolate bars with generous green fillings, I decided this had to change.
Once Lidl confirmed it would be stocking its own Dubai Style Chocolate, I began looking into what bars I could buy to compare and see which one would come out victorious.
Dubai Chocolate bars are the creation of British-Egyptian entrepreneur Sarah Hamouda, originally made to satisfy her pregnancy cravings. This developed into her side business, leading to the founding of her own Dubai-based Fix Dessert Chocolatier.
While I wasn’t able to order one of Sarah’s original creations, I did order the Dubai Chocolate pistachio and Kunafa chocolate bar from another Dubai based brand called Le Damas sweets on Amazon. The 200g bar cost me £14.90 after being reduced from £23.99 and is currently slashed to £13.16.
The bar arrived pretty quickly and while I was going to wait to open it until I got Lidl’s, I couldn’t help myself. I could feel how dense it was in my hand and once opened, I was hit with a strong, luxurious aroma of chocolate nuttiness.
After unwrapping its delicate gold paper, I was greeted to a bar of 10 squares (as you can see from the picture above I couldn’t control myself) with a cute painted decoration. It was clear this bar was made with love.
The next day, I begrudgingly got up at 7am to get myself ready and head down to my local Lidl before it opened an hour later. I arrived a few minutes before this, panicked that I would be greeted by a massive queue that would surely grab all the stock.
Luckily, there were only a few regular shoppers and a couple of teenagers I assumed were only up this early for the same reason as me.
I immediately headed the the chocolate aisle and briefly panicked when I couldn’t see it, but was told by an employee that Lidl’s chocolate, which costs £4.99 per bar, was only available on request from the tills to “make things easy for everyone”.
Taste Test
With the goods secured, it was finally time for the taste test. A side by side comparison shows that Lidl’s 122g bar is thinner than its chocolatier counterpart. Given the price difference I expected this, but I was more interested on whether their flavours would differ.
I had already tasted the more expensive bar the night before, so I new what to expect on my second go. Upon biting, its soft, smooth chocolate quickly melts to combine with the sweet pistachio flavour that, to me, mimics a praline or hazelnut cream taste. Paired with the crunchy kanefeh pastry, it was really delicious and left a long lingering sweetness.
While Lidl’s bar is noticeably smaller, that doesn’t mean it skimped on taste. The chocolate also combined with its sweet filling, but I did feel that it contained less kanefeh, making for a smoother bite. I would say Lidl’s bar wasn’t as sweet and definitely had a more subtle flavour, but I don’t consider that a bad thing.
Winner
So, which one for me came out on top? A chocolatier’s artisan confection that costs over £10? Or a budget retailer’s take that won’t break the bank?
I should start by saying both of these chocolate bars are really delicious and I enjoyed trying both of them. As someone who loves chocolate with nuts in any form, I have determined that Dubai Chocolate is right up my street.
However, I have to say that I personally preferred Lidl’s version, not only for the price, but because I found it to be the less sweeter of the two. When comparing, I realised how sweet the original Dubai Chocolate is, to the point of it being sickly.
As such, I feel like it would be too much if I just wanted something small to satisfy my sweet tooth, and that it would be more suited for a special occasion, say, if the King and Queen were to come around for tea.
In contrast, Lidl’s Dubai Style Chocolate is the option I’ll go for to enjoy with a cuppa on the couch. While I won’t be getting up early to get it, I will certainly be stocking up when it becomes more readily available (while making sure to leave some for other fans).