Klondike Bar

Normally when I go to the grocery store, I have a plan for what ice cream I want to buy. However, when I went to Gerbe's this past Monday night, I did not. All I knew was I wanted to get something unlike anything I had reviewed before. I didn't think there would be too many things that fit into that category.

I am constantly surprised by the American food system. Even at a pretty small grocery store like Gerbe's I was dumb struck by the number of ice cream options that I hadn't tried. How would I ever decide? Well I wandered up and down the ice cream isle for a bit looking like an idiot before I decided. I swear I looked at the Klondike Bars a few times before I even noticed them and decided to buy them. I don't think I have had a Klondike Bar in years. Despite their really aggressive marketing campaigns (can you even say "What would you do for a Klondike Bar?" without singing it??), Klondike Bars aren't really that special.  Just plain old vanilla ice cream covered in plain old chocolate, right?

Or maybe not.  In this post, I am going to wrestle with one of the most important questions in the ice cream universe. Are Klondike Bars really that good? Are they really that special?

To answer the second question, yes they really are that special.  From my extensive internet research it seems that Klondike Bars were the first ice cream bars ever sold; starting in 1922. However, the ice cream sandwich did come out before the Klondike Bar, around 1900. In the Bowery neighborhood of Manhattan, a man who sold ice cream out of a push cart started selling ice cream sandwiches. But any ice cream eater would tell you how different ice cream bars and ice cream sandwiches are, so I still think Klondike is pretty special.

But now to answer, are the good? Well yeah they're good. It's vanilla ice cream covered in chocolate. I guess what I really want to ask is, are they great?

First the chocolate: it's okay. Pretty sweet, pretty thin, and breaks pretty easily. The vanilla ice cream: it's great. The vanilla flavor is very classic. It is also very smooth and creamy and thick. It almost reminds me more of frozen custard than ice cream. There is one other thing about Klondike Bars. In my opinion, they have some flavor/after taste that other ice cream bars don't have. I'm not totally sure what it is and I'm also not sure that I'm not just making it up. Please comment if you agree so I can get some answers on my sanity. I think the taste may be from the chocolate.

Pro Tip: If you are going to eat Klondike Bars in the summer in your un-air-conditioned apartment, eat them quickly. Do not try to write a blog post in the process. 

Then again it may be more of a lack of flavor. For example, there is not vanilla in the ice cream, only natural and artificial flavors. There is also not much actual chocolate in the "chocolate flavored coating". Thank you Klondike.

Lastly, even though the ice cream is made with nonfat milk, these little guys still pack a decent caloric punch for their size. In my opinion, 250 calories is a lot for these little guys.

Chocolate Sauces: http://www.klondikebar.com/#Main&o=AboutKlondike
http://www.captkool.com/history.htm
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Klondike_bar