I Tried Dubai’s $5 Chocolate from Lidl: Truly Tasty or Just Trendy?

The Dubai-style chocolate bars, filled with pistachio cream and roasted angel hair pasta (kadaif), have taken social media by storm, especially on TikTok. European brands have quickly caught on—given the unending demand, they are eager to capitalize on this trend. Following Lindt’s lead, Lidl launched its own version of the viral chocolate bar on March 27. The discount chain is selling a 122-gram bar for just 4.99 euros, which is half the price of Lindt’s version (priced at 9.95 euros for 145 grams) and far cheaper than certain bars imported from Turkey (priced at 16.99 euros for 200 grams). But at such a low price, what kind of quality can we expect?

The Lidl Dubai-style chocolate bar does contain a lot of sugar, but no more than other commercial milk chocolates. According to nutritional values, Lidl’s version contains 39.8% sugar, which is 7% less than Lindt’s. If we compare this to a typical milk chocolate, like Nestlé, the sugar content can be even higher, at 51.4%. However, Lidl’s bar has significantly fewer pistachios—only 12%, compared to 45% in Lindt’s. This reduced content explains the lower price of this Turkish-imported product. The same goes for the kadaif; Lindt’s chocolate contains 10%, but Lidl’s has only half that amount. Having analyzed the ingredients, let’s move on to the taste test… Is it worth it?

It’s actually quite delicious! The moment you bite into the bar, the thick, creamy filling bursts with flavor. The taste of pistachio is quite pronounced, with a slight salty kick from the grilled kadaif. It’s melty, crunchy, and extremely indulgent… It’s easy to see why this product has become so popular. Visually appealing with its filling, it combines various textures and echoes the flavors of Middle Eastern pastries. Add to that a massive amount of sugar, and you get a highly addictive product that delivers on its promise. Unique? Definitely! But should you rush to the store for it?

Either way, you might end up leaving empty-handed. According to numerous reports, Dubai-style chocolate bars are already sold out in many stores. In some places, employees had to ration them at the checkout on launch day. You might be better off visiting a grocery store to buy some pistachios and kadaif and try making it at home. Here’s our recipe for a homemade version that won’t run out of stock.