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CONOR POPE takes a look at chocolate cereal bars

Mon Sept 19 2011 - 01:00

CONOR POPEtakes a look at chocolate cereal bars

Tracker Chocolate Chip

€2.29 for 226g, €10.13 per kg

“Enjoy the great outdoors with the crunch, the goo, the chew of Tracker . . . Come on, let’s get out there”. What is this? A bar or a bootcamp? We can’t decide. We do know, however, that it is very sweet, very nutty and very pleasant. The bars are on the small side and just one of the little fellas makes up 124 calories, which is a good bit more than most of the competition. It is on the crispy rather than the oaty side and, as crispiness and airiness are bedfellows, it may not keep you going as long as the more (stodgy) oat-filled bars.

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Verdict: Nice and lightweight

Kellogg’s Elevenses

€2.90 for 270g, €10.74 per kg

The name Elevenses probably sounded good at the planning stage but we’re not sure it works on the shelves of our local supermarket. Even if we did have elevenses, we’re pretty sure we wouldn’t be having these spongy, sticky concoctions. The texture is all wrong and we did not much like the taste either. We found them way too sweet and they lacked the wholesomeness of the rivals in our taste test.

Verdict: Stodgefest

Kellogg’s Special K Double Milk Chocolate Bars

€2.25 for 100g

Okay, so, we figured we’d try another Kellogg’s product at the other end of the wholesomeness spectrum, although we’re not sure the company will thank us for that as, truth be told, we did not much care for these either. They boast about their low-cal nature and, at just 80 calories a bar, the boast seems legit. They are, however, less than half the weight of the Kellogg’s Elevenses which contain 182 calories so, really, the difference is marginal. They have a vaguely flapjack-like texture but not much flavour, and they are a ridiculous price.

Verdict: No. Just no.

Jacob’s Why Not?

€1.99 for 138g, €14.42 per kg

These are also claiming to be a low-cal option with 97 calories in each bar. As with the Special K bar, however, the bars are on the small side and, at just 23g, we are not sure that one would fill us up. They are much nicer than the Special K rival, and the chocolate actually tastes surprisingly nice and complements the nutty seediness very well.

Verdict:Surprisingly nice