11/1/05 | Hershey Milk Chocolate Bar
[ Currently Eating: Turkey Melt Sandwich ]
In honor of the post-Halloween candy bellyaches you probably all have, I decided to feature some candy in some upcoming episodes of Cheap Eats. (For constant candy craving addicts, you need to visit Cybele’s Candy Blog to get a constant candy fix!)
First up is the venerable Hershey Milk Chocolate Candy Bar. Founded in 1894 by Milton S Hershey, the Hershey company is the world’s largest according to Wikipedia. I have lots of good memories from Hershey bars when I was a kid. The one pictured here is the small snack size, which is actually not too much smaller than what passes for a “full size” bar nowadays.
In the 70s, which is when I ingested the most candy, you could buy a Hershey bar for 30 cents if I remember correctly. Interestingly, I remember it wasn’t always the cheapest candy bar per size and weight. The one thing it had going for it was that it was a solid chocolate bar. No nuts, nougat, caramel. Solid. I know some people who swear by the bar as opposed to kisses but I like both of them.
I actually got these Hershey bars for free from my in-laws which is why they qualify for Cheap Eats. Let’s face it: candy in general ain’t cheap, nor is it necessary to survive (though many might argue that’s not true!). You can get much cheaper chocolate from any number of companies. But Hershey bars strike me as sort of the blue collar working man’s milk chocolate bar. The chocolate ain’t anywhere near top notch. Personally, I’ll take their Special Dark Chocolate mini bar any day over the normal bar. The milk chocolate isn’t very smooth and it just seems way too sweet. But I guess it’ll do in a pinch and for the price it’s not horrible.
Cheap Eats Score: 6/10
November 1st, 2005 at 8:41 pm
I ATE THESE TODAY! The same little 4-piece bar (er, barS…three of em). For free. Leftover Halloween candy from my supervisor. I remember eating a Hershey chocolate bar once last year but otherwise, I almost never eat it (my chocolate consumption is less choosy when the chocolate is free).
I was happy enough with the chocolate. Nope, not smooth, but it tastes like chocolate and sugar, two of my most favorite things.
November 1st, 2005 at 8:53 pm
robyn - it was free and you only ate three? =) I must agree that when chocolate is free I tend to eat much,much more of it… the folks gave us a whole bag actually but I’ve only gotten through four of the bars so far.
November 1st, 2005 at 9:02 pm
I ‘ve never really liked chocolate - untill recently - I dunno what happened. I bought a Nestle Crunch bar thinking I’d take 2 or 3 bites of it and toss it… OOOOOHHHH how wrong I was. Now I can’t stop. What gives? I do remember as a kid my granpa taking me to Bentons Store where they had the little chocolate footballs for a penny but other than that no chocolat for me. Now I got a cabinet full of it, hell I almost went tricker treatin. Blasted nestle crunch bar…
November 1st, 2005 at 9:06 pm
shawn - yes… it starts with just one bite! I’ve found that as I’ve grown older, I really don’t like sweet foods at all. But I still make an exception for chocolate quite often! I like the Nestle’s Crunch a lot. One of my favorites is the Mars Bar… apparently dip these in batter and FRY them at some pubs? That’s insane!
November 2nd, 2005 at 8:06 am
They do that at county fairs too, fry up different chocolate bars. I can’t bring myself to try one though. LOL As a woman it’s required that I eat chocolate at least once a month.
November 2nd, 2005 at 8:34 am
I must not be getting older yet, then, since I love sweet things. I’ll have an ultra-sweet chicken teriyaki for dinner, and then crave something sweet for dessert.
As for the fried candy bars - my wife and I split a fried snickers bar at the county fair this past summer (It was the Orange County Fair, but I suspect they have them at the LA County Fair, too). I am almost ashamed to say that it was delicious. Before biting into it, it looked like a corn dog. It had a stick, and batter, and everything. Except for the nice coating of powdered sugar. Cheap eats? Definitely not. It was quite pricey, in fact (like $4, as I recall). But, since we’ve never done it before, and likely will never do it again, I guess it was okay.
November 2nd, 2005 at 9:44 am
andie - yea, i’ve seen them advertised but never had the heart (quite literally) to try them.
BF - yea, I don’t have a clue where the sweet tooth has gone too! I went to the OC Fair when I was a kid but haven’t been to the LA one ever. They have local fairs near me as well once a year, but I don’t know if I’ve seen the fried snickers! That sounds like a heart attack and a half…
November 2nd, 2005 at 4:30 pm
I see that photo, and my heart breaks. I love product packaging so much, and that is just a travesty. What happened to the silver foil? It’s just not the same, clearly not the same. I don’t even have to provide evidence. This wrapper is terrible, does not distract you from the inferior chocolate.
November 2nd, 2005 at 5:26 pm
bingsy - yeah, it was a little bit sad. I don’t know even know if the silver wrapper exists anymore on the “real”-size bar. I haven’t bought an honest to goodness full sized Hershey bar in awhile. On a lighter note - am I the only one who likes the Hershey bar that has almonds in it? =)
November 3rd, 2005 at 12:27 pm
It’s weird, I wasn’t that keen on Hershey’s plain milk chocolate as a kid. Sure, I’d eat kisses in a pinch, but they never really grabbed me and I preferred Reese’s cups, Heath bars or Mounds.
Now there are days where I just have a jones for plain old Hershey’s chocolate. I think of it like American cheese. It’s not great, but it’s so incredibly particular. I could pick out Hershey’s chocolate blindfolded from Mars or Nestle.
I took have some of those little bars on my desk. I brought in the leftover Halloween candy for the staff meeting today … which was cancelled.
Re the wrapper - they got rid of the folk as the vacuum sealed tyvek (or whatever that plastic is) keeps the candy fresher and locks out moisture and odors (chocolate will absorb other smells). I miss the foil because it was easier to save some for later. Now I have to eat it all at once or share.
November 7th, 2005 at 12:49 pm
Hershey released a ’special’ Special Dark bar. Almonds and blueberries. Oooh my. It’s good to live near Hershey, PA!
November 7th, 2005 at 1:21 pm
cybele - hehe, that is a good analogy with American Cheese!
amy - that sounds really good. Is that a regional special trial only, or are they already distributing it nationwide?