Reviewing and ranking the flavors of all of the Nick’s / N!CK’S Protein Bars I’ve tried! After having their ice cream line, I had to try these!
As a side note, personally, I don’t see these bars all too often, with only a few select stores carrying them.
Overall Review & Verdict
They advertise themselves right on the package as “tastes like candy.”
So, does it? Long story short, no. Most are not sweet enough to reach that level, although they generally do have nice mixes of good compositions and textures.
Notably, all of the flavors are authentic and reasonably sweet. Is a candy bar sweet? I wouldn’t say that–they tend to fall around a more mild to moderately sweet side of protein bars, and definitely a lot less sweet than several other brands. Additionally, I would say the flavors here are a little more authentic and less artificial than actual candy bars, of course, and more importantly, other protein bars–all of these really do taste genuine without any notable fakeness.
In terms of what you get: The bars are generally on the thinner, denser, and chewier side. Each one has a thin shell with a protein layer inside. Notably, though, most flavors here have something unique about them, whether it be different crunchy bits or additional layers.
To sum it up, I think these bars are worth a try. Personally, while I’m not a big fan of thinner protein bars, these are some of the better ones I’ve had in that space. On the other hand, these need more sweetness to bring out their authentic-tasting flavors.
Flavor Ranking
1. Triple Chocolate
Definitely multiple chocolates represented here, mostly on the darker side. The inside also has crunchy dark cookie bits, which add to the entire experience. The shell itself is a semi-dark chocolate, and inside as a whole is more milky, however, still lightly dark.
Overall, the taste is a darker chocolate bar that is extra chocolatey, fairly sweet, authentic, and tastes like a sweet dark chocolate candy bar with no artificial tastes and no dark chocolate bitterness. This flavor is absolutely the sweetest on the list, too.
I just love how it’s so chocolatey! It definitely reminds me of a tasty chocolatey candy bar, but better due to its layers and multiple nuanced flavors. My favorite of the bunch, and I also appreciated the generous amount of inner dark cookie bits!
2. Caramel Chocolate
This has a semi-dark chocolate shell, a fairly thick, soft, gooey layer of caramel, then a more solid, thick chewy part. The mouthfeel is great, and it’s a pleasant eating experience!
You can definitely taste the semi-dark chocolate, and while the caramel isn’t as sweet as I’m used to, it’s still noticeable. Interestingly, the caramel itself tastes like an off-brand caramel. It’s not bad, just different. The flavor profile of the bar as a whole is about equal parts caramel and chocolate–both are light but work well together. Lastly, no bitterness or weird artificial tastes anywhere in this bar!
3. Salty Peanut
Four layers! A milk chocolate shell, followed by a layer of lightly crunchy peanut bits mixed with a peanutty goo, then your typical thin layer of solidified, chewy protein filling. Gosh, really, there is so much going on, but what I was especially surprised about is how they combined the peanuts with an actual gooey peanut layer–double peanut goodness and a wonderfully pleasant mouthfeel!
This peanut (and bar as a whole) is authentically tasting, too, with nothing artificial. There is also a hint of saltiness, which does tone down the sweetness a bit, though–this bar is notable not as sweet as it could be. That aside, I do also get a background of regular milk chocolate, likely from the shell itself.
4. Crispy Cookie
Biting in, I’m met first with the semi-dark chocolate shell and then an inside protein filling with a generous amount of soft, crunchy rice-like bits. Its mouthfeel is good and lightly crunchy–there are so, so many small bits in this thing!
That aside, what you ultimately get is mostly a chocolate tasting bar with some cookie-ish flavor. The chocolate flavor itself definitely takes the forefront here, though. In fact, you could convince me this is a lightly crunchy, regular, semi-dark, and moderately sweet chocolate bar. Needless to say, sure, you got some crunch, but this needs more actual cookie taste!
4. Mint Chocolate
A few layers here: A light chocolate shell, inside dark cookie bits embedded in the protein filling part, and a very thin layer of even darker solid filling that sits at the bottom edges.
Overall, it’s lightly crunchy and, for the most part, has a reasonably dense and mild chewy mouthfeel. Weirdly, nothing really stands out too much despite the several layers; it’s kind of a plain mouthfeel. In regard to its flavor, it’s a mild mint taste. Nothing remotely punchy or toothpastey about it as the bar isn’t all too sweet overall. The chocolate here works alongside it, providing an equally not-very-flavorful chocolate. Together, the chocolate and mint are mostly pleasant due to how inoffensive both are trying to be, which, for me, is a bad thing; however, if you don’t enjoy mint, you may very well end up liking this.
In summary, it’s essentially a watered-down chocolate mint candy bar.
5. Almond Chocolate
A milk chocolate shell with a mildly sweet, chewy, and crunchy center from the embedded nuts and dense filling. The taste is a very tame, nutty flavor with an essence of chocolate. Really, if you’re expecting something like an Almond Joy or any other candy bar, you’ll be sorely disappointed. At the very least, the flavors are authentic, and the mouthfeel is great–the combination of textures is great to bite through.
Overall, though, these are perhaps one of the least sweet on the list and really hold back its potential to be a good chocolate nutty bar. As of now, it’s lackluster in the taste department but has an enjoyable mouthfeel.