When we recently ranked the 25 best American candy bars, we made it clear that we were strictly ranking American candy bars. But our commenters had none of it, and insisted on bragging about the superiority of British candy bars. Case in point:
"Do Americans not have Crunchie bars from Cadbury's? I know Cadbury is a British company but you really NEED to try one if you haven't."
"Obviously, the author never had a Lion bar "
Okay, okay! We get the point. So in true HuffPost Taste spirit, we knew we had to set up a taste test. We visited the magical London Candy Co. here in New York, and the friendly Brits there helped us round up all their favorite must-try chocolate bars from across the pond. (P.S. They also have all the English gummies and chips -- ahem, crisps -- you could ever hope for.)
One thing you should know about English chocolate bars: They're made with glucose syrup rather than the high-fructose corn syrup that we're so (disgustingly) familiar with here in the States, and it makes a BIG difference in terms of texture and quality of sweetness. Also? The Brits LOVE a good crunchy texture. There are bits and bobs of crunchiness in a great deal of their candies, and we really, really like it.
Now let's take a look at the 16 bars we tried, and see how they ranked.
DOUBLE DECKER FOREVER.
As always, this taste test is in no way influenced or sponsored by the brands included.
"Marshmallow-y!" "Chewy, not too sweet. Love the crunch." WHAT. Is there marshmallow in this?
"It's got the texture of a Butterfinger, without the peanut butter flavor." "Chocolate, honey, crispy perfection." "Amazing! So, so crunchy." "
"Yes! Texture winner. And not too sweet!" "Nicely balanced." "There's a lot going on in here, and it's all good."
"This is like a Cadbury Creme Egg, but in a long bar. I LOVE IT." Very sweet, but if you need a fast sugar fix …" "Cadbury eggs forever." "Way, way too sweet."
"Yum. A lot like Caramello." "Gorgeously textured caramel filling." "Yes. This is an English Caramello and I love it." "Not oppressively sweet! Good, gooey caramel."
"Dear texture, you are lovely." "Good, airy and light, but a little boring." "A little lighter than a normal chocolate bar. Nice." "This is like carbonated chocolate."
"Reminds me of Petit Ecolier cookies." "Gosh, I never thought I would say this, but I like milk chocolate Kit Kats more."
"Super soft inside, with crunchy little nuggets. I like it!" "Mushy. Don't love that." "Taste like there's bubblegum inside." "Better than I expected, but still a little weird." "I like the texture, but otherwise it's too sweet."
"A little too sugary for dark chocolate." "Oh no! This is really hard to bite through." "Almost cracked a tooth."
"Hmm. I like this." "Dry and flaky." "This is mushy chocolate." "I love this texture. Very unusual!" "Yummy Cadbury flavor but way too crumbly."
"Dry. So dry." "Dusty and crumbly in appearance and sugary sweet in flavor." "Powdery, in a great way." "Polarizing texture that I am not a fan of."
"Inoffensive but not a destination candy bar." "The raisins are a little dry and plasticky." "Weird fruitcake flavor." "Raisins, get out of my chocolate!"
"This tastes like nothing." "An insult to a chocolate bar." "The texture is rather clay-like." "Almost fruity, but in an artificial way."
"Tastes like it's filled with toothpaste." "Why is this terrible inside and why would this happen?" "Yeesh. This tastes like it has aftershave in it!" "Tastes like chemicals." "Too sweet! Granular. Not nice."
"Flowers, ew!" "No no no no no. I don't want gelatin in my chocolate." "Grandma covered in chocolate." "A little floral and weird, but not awful." I CAN'T BELIEVE THEY SELL THIS IN A STORE."
