Thursday, April 9, 2026

Dubai Chocolate

Back in November, before Thanksgiving, I saw an advertisement for "dubai chocolate." I had no idea what it was. But it looked tempting and chocolate was part of the name, so I was intrigued. I spent the next month trying to find it in local stores. I especially wanted to give it to P and J for Christmas.

Art Mart, a specialty food store, seemed promising. But not there. I researched a little bit on the Internet, and it seemed like Dubai Chocolate could be found just about anywhere -- Walmart, Meijer, Target, grocery stores, candy aisles of drug stores. I looked in all those places. I even found it on the local online Meijer store site with a note saying available and what aisle it was in. I printed this info, and took it with me to Meijer. I presented my printout to an employee and asked him to help me find it. He looked in the aisle that was listed, plus he looked in the candy aisle. I followed him around. He asked another employee who said "It always says available in the online store." I finally gave up.

Sometime towards the end of January, I was walking from one side of the Schnucks store to the other. I came to a screeching halt halfway through the store when I randomly saw a stand-alone display full of Dubai Chocolate. I looked it over, and I do not recall if there was a price attached. But I had already decided that I was going to buy a package if I ever found it anywhere no matter the cost.


The upper left was the package (3.5 oz.) that I purchased at Schnucks. I do not recall precisely, but I think the price was around $8. I snacked on it over several days. It was different, but good. The shredded kataifi (phyllo dough) did not have much of a taste, but it added a nice texture.

Several days later, I found the Dubai Style chocolate bar (3.53 oz.) pictured on the right at Aldi. As I recall, it cost $3.99. I was afraid the chocolate would have a cheap plastic chocolate flavor, but it was good.

Then awhile later, I came across the 3rd chocolate bar (pictured at the bottom) at the checkout counter at CVS. It was the smallest of the three (1.4 oz.) and cost around $12 I think. Wow. That Lindt brand sure carries a hefty price.

I have now given up my quest. 

But wait . . . . . . . .

Just when I thought the hunt was over, I stumbled on another name-brand version of Dubai chocolate. I was at Walgreens looking through the Easter candy to make a couple selections to take to P and J's. There was no price on the shelf. But I consider myself independently wealthy, so I picked up a bag. This Ghiradelli brand (4 oz.) cost $15. I sampled one piece. As expected, it was good.


Conclusion: Dubai Chocolate is good, but expensive. The name-brand varieties are especially pricy.

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Dubai Chocolate is a viral food trend featuring a milk chocolate bar filled with a creamy pistachio and tahini filling mixed with crispy, shredded kataifi (phyllo dough) pastry, inspired by the Middle Eastern dessert knafeh. The combination of rich chocolate, nutty pistachio cream, and crunchy pastry creates a unique texture and flavor that became a social media sensation, leading to imitations and inspired desserts worldwide.