Wafel Teatralny Classic

Product name: Wafel Teatralny Classic
Purchase details: £0.69 for a 46g bar (Tesco Superstore)
Calories: 243 per bar
Country of origin: Poland

The gold, brown and red wrapper of this Wafel Teatralny Classic bar didn’t give much away about what was within but, on examining the blurb when I found it in-store, I found it was actually quite an exciting concept of ‘peanuts cream wafer in chocolate’.

The  wide and slim bar was made by Kopernik Torun and, according to their website, was a ‘theatrical wafer’ with ‘real nuts’ (can you get fake ones?!) and ‘natural chocolate’. Apparently, the thinness of their wafers was something they were particularly proud of.

As with a lot of wafer bars, the chocolate coating on this was relatively thin, despite being 30% of the overall product. It had the appearance and aroma of dark chocolate but it had been spread particularly thinly on the base and it had also suffered some blooming around the edges. The inside looked a lot more promising, though, with regimented layers of wafer and chocolate-coloured cream that emitted a slight peanut scent that blended with that of the outer cocoa.

The first thing I noticed on taking a bite was how fantastically crispy the wafers were – they were extremely satisfying. However, they were also nice if left to soften in the mouth, and they produced a surprisingly strong flavour, either way, that provided a lovely sweetness.

Based on the dark colour and rich aroma, I’d expected quite a bitter chocolate flavour from the coating but, in reality, it was pretty mild. The cocoa was much more evident than it had been in the Mrs. Freshley's Buddy Bars: Peanut butter wafers, and it did taste more of dark chocolate than milk, but it was a perfect balance with the sweet wafers rather than an overpowering taste.

Somewhat disappointingly, the peanuts (3.5%) were completely lost in this bar. I couldn’t taste them at all which resulted in an experience that was very tasty, but not unique. All in all, it wasn’t much different from eating a Nestlé Blue Riband, although the large size was a bonus!

Appearance: 6.5/10
Aroma: 7/10
Taste: 7.5/10
Texture: 8.5/10
Overall score: 7.38/10

Nestlé Lion: White

Product name: Nestlé Lion: White
Purchase details: £0.29 for a 42g bar (Home Bargains)
Calories: 200 per bar
Country of origin: Poland

I’ve not had a Nestlé Lion: White for a while but it is a bar I love. Featuring the usual Lion branding, the creamy wrapper looked appetising, and it stated that that the ‘caramel filled wafer (35.7%)’ was now ‘more crunchy’.

Interestingly and, perhaps worryingly, the coating that made up 39.5% of the product wasn’t white chocolate but a ‘white glaze’. Remembering that the Peanut version was covered in a ‘cocoa icing’ rather than chocolate, but still tasted ok, I decided not to be put off by this.

The bar was a really, really pale white colour – closer to snow than ordinary white chocolate! Some brown from the filling was visible through this but I wouldn’t have described it as a thin coating. Inside, the bar had the same brilliant appearance as the Peanut, although the cereal didn’t look as prominent against the white backdrop as it had done against the darker one.

I really liked the deep, sweet milky scent that came from the bar. It didn’t smell like white chocolate but it reminded me of vanilla candles instead – I could have sniffed it all day long!

Once again, the bar was very crispy, but it was hard to differentiate between the wafer and the cereal. There was no added crunch here, due to the absence of peanuts, but the caramel remained chewy and provided a delicious juicy flavour. The different elements of the bar combined to provide a thick texture in every mouthful and I enjoyed the extremely sweet flavour from the glaze. I don’t know if it was the white chocolate and wafer combination that reminded me of the Nestlé Princessa: Kokosowa, but I could have sworn there was a coconut flavour in there too! There was no mention of this on the ingredients list though...

As much as I enjoyed this tasty Lion: White, I think I would have preferred it if it had been coated in proper white chocolate. However, it was still a very good product, even with the fakery!

Appearance: 9/10
Aroma: 8/10
Taste: 7.5/10
Texture: 7.5/10
Overall score: 8/10

Grupa BGK Flips: Chrupki kukurydziane (czekolady)

Product name: Grupa BGK Flips: Chrupki kukurydziane (czekolady)
Purchase details: £0.69 for a 70g bag (Tesco Superstore)
Calories: 142 per 25g serving (398 per bag)
Country of origin: Poland 

There was something about this bright yellow bag of Grupa BGK Flips: Chrupki kukurydziane (czekolady) that filled me with both excitement and fear. It was the cartoon bunny juggling pieces of chocolate against a background of corn puffs that caught my eye. As a kid, I loved sandwiching a piece of chocolate between two crisps and I love the idea of crisp-filled chocolate, but chocolate flavoured crisps? I wasn’t so sure...

Thanks to Google’s translating function, I can tell you that ‘Chrupki kukurydziane’ means ‘corn crisps’ and ‘czekolady’, predictably, is ‘chocolate’. This was reassuring since the English description on the bag simply stated ‘chocolate flavoured corn puffs’! The ingredients mentioned a ‘chocolate flavoured cream’ that contained cocoa powder, and the whole bag consisted of 1% chocolate.

On opening the packet, I was stunned by the appearance which was not what I’d had in mind! The curved crisps were huge. Unfortunately, there was something about their pale brown colour that was flecked with darker speckles that I found really off-putting. This didn’t feel great either – it was a little moist and rubbery. On the plus side, every single piece was intact, and the inner corn puff appearance was nicely familiar. The gentle but deep scent was also pleasant. Whilst not smelling specifically of chocolate, I did associate it with children’s cocoa-containing cereals.

The next thing to surprise me was the texture. Biting through the surface presented the kind of crispiness you’d expect but, past this, the crisps were very soft and squidgy. If I wasn’t certain the bag had been completely sealed, and the puffs were in-date, I would have assumed they were stale. This took a bit of getting used to but there was something quite fun about the way, part way through each crisp, the rest of it pretty much dissolved by itself. (Letting the whole thing melt on the tongue was also an option.)

Now the part I’d been dreading a little bit – the taste! Slightly awkwardly, I wouldn’t say these tasted anything like chocolate. BUT...they were actually pretty nice! They had a delicate, sugary flavour that tasted just like sweet popcorn and I had no problem munching my way through the huge amount provided in the bag (in my defence, they didn’t weigh much!). The crisps also had a corn-like aftertaste which I recognised from sucking the cheesiness of Walkers Wotsits.

So, a bit of a mixed experience for me here. They didn’t look great, they didn’t taste like chocolate, and the texture could definitely have been crispier, but do you know what? I think I’d actually buy these again!

Appearance: 6/10
Aroma: 6.5/10
Taste: 7/10
Texture: 6/10
Overall score: 6.38/10

Nestlé Princessa: Kokosowa

Product name: Nestlé Princessa: Kokosowa
Purchase details: £0.49 for a 33g bar (tesco.com)
Calories: 185 per bar
Country of origin: Poland  

I’ve really started to appreciate supermarkets’ foods of the world sections in the past few months so, when I saw this bar of Nestlé Princessa: Kokosowa, I decided it was another snack I had to try. 

Since my understanding of the Polish language is, well...non-existent, I was pleased to see that the distributors of this bar (Osem UK) had helpfully provided a translation on a sticker on the back of product. From this, I knew that ‘kokosowa’ meant ‘coconut’ and that this was going to be one enjoyable treat since it was a ‘coconut cream filled wafer covered in white chocolate’. 

Judging by the name and silhouette of a woman on the wrapper, the Princessa: Kokosowa seemed to be aimed at the female market. I’m not sure if it was intentional or not but the pale blue and white colour scheme also made me think of healthy diet foods. There was no image of the product itself but the picture of a piece of coconut resting on a curl of white chocolate still managed to look appealing. 

I realised early on that this bar was likely to be competition for the Milka Nussini: Cocos which also hails from Poland. However, whilst the basic idea of the Princessa was the same, they weren’t identical bars.  

First off, the Princessa’s chocolate was a yellower colour, and it was also smoother due to not being combined with pieces of coconut. The inner wafer was also relatively dark in appearance which resulted in more of a contrast between the two elements – I actually thought its shade hinted at caramel. 

I was pleased to see that a decent proportion of the bar was the white chocolate (34.5%) although I did find it felt quite greasy to the touch. Pleasingly, the 2% desiccated coconut that the bar also contained, combined with the chocolate to provide a lovely creamy, coconutty smell. 

Taste-wise, the best way to describe the Princessa: Kokosowa would be like a very sweet milk. As soon as I swallowed one mouthful I wanted another – it was beautiful. The coconut flavour was decent but I was also glad that the white chocolate was able to hold its own in terms of strength. Even the wafer had a part to play in the overall taste. 

Like the Nussini: Cocos, this bar was very crispy with fluffy-style wafers. However, I found I preferred not having the extra bits of coconut to chew on, and the white chocolate coating and coconut cream were so moist that the Princessa wasn’t at all dry. I think the shape of the bar also contributed to this since it was wide rather than massively thick which meant the wafers weren’t stacked too high. However, they were still deep enough to provide a satisfying chewing experience. 

This really was an enjoyable product so I’m kicking myself for not making use of the multibuy offer it was on! 

Appearance: 7/10 
Aroma: 7/10
Taste: 8/10
Texture: 8/10
Overall score: 7.5/10