Australia’s favourite chocolate bar is not what you’d expect

The votes have been counted and news.com.au can now reveal Australia’s favourite chocolate bar. But it’s causing a lot of controversy.

The chocolate bar world is a beautiful place to visit — like Willy Wonka’s Chocolate Factory, it’s a place where your tastebuds come alive and your favourite sugar-jammed bar makes anything seem possible.

But this world has a darker side to it, too — one where division is rife, allegiances are strong and suddenly, battle lines are drawn and you find yourself in a fight to the death, to protect your favourite bar’s good name.

We opened Pandora’s box, and it was filled with chocolate lovers and their favourite bars.

News.com.au released a poll on Tuesday to uncover Australia’s favourite chocolate bar after the recent announcement that the very retro Polly Waffle chocolate bar was making a comeback.

In the space of 24 hours, almost 24,000 Aussies voted but the poll inadvertently opened a Pandora’s box, filled with chocolate bar loyalists, prepared to fight for their bar to reign supreme.

In short: You guys are serious about your choccies.

Many people expressed dismay, in the news.com.au comments, that their favourite bar hadn’t made the list.

“Chokito bars were the best,” Spud4 declared.

User DOH asked: “No Violet Crumble? I could murder one of those right now.”

Another commenter, Adrian, asked for the return of a particularly rare Cherry Ripe edition.

“Wish they would bring back the Blue Cherry Ripe with milk chocolate, they were awesome,” he said.

Even the old Milo Bar got a mention from user Lono, while others claimed an old-school Aussie favourite, the Scorched Peanut Bar, deserved a comeback.

So many options, but only one could win in this survey.

So, without further ado, let’s check out the final countdown, as voted by Australia, to the nation’s number one chocolate bar.

#10 MILKYBAR

Remember the adventures of the Milkybar Kid, strolling into that saloon with his pistol and delivering treats to children who were far too young to be in a licenced venue?

The creamy, white chocolate treat has been kicking around forever and was your number 10 favourite bar.

The Milky Bar was ranked number 10 on the list.

#9 CADBURY DAIRY MILK

The OG of chocolate bars, the Cadbury Dairy Milk came in at number 9 on the list.

Like an old friend, the Dairy Milk is constant, reliable and always there when you need a fix.

Old faithful, the Dairy Milk bar.

#8 TWIRL

A texture explosion of milk chocolate curls, covered with Cadbury Dairy Milk chocolate, this light-as-a-feather chocolate bar deserves its spot at number 8.

Twirl is a gobful of milk chocolate fun.

#7 FLAKE

Whether you prefer yours crumbled in a milkshake, sticking out of your McFlurry or jammed in your piehole, the Flake is an integral part of Australian fun times.

And who can forget the rather sensual ’90s Flake bath ad featuring a Demi Moore lookalike spruiking the “crumbliest, flakiest milk chocolate in the world”? We’ll take two, thanks.

Possibly one of the most versatile of chocolate bars, you can shove this baby in anything.

#6 MARS BAR

Over the years, the Mars Bar has been melted, mashed and even deep fried at local school fates.

It’s an icon and a gooey legend and deserves a standing ovation.

Take a bow, Mars, you’ve earned it.

Ever tried a deep fried Mars Bar? Don’t, it’s not worth the cholesterol.

#5 CRUNCHIE

This heavenly honeycomb concoction received a huge amount of votes from devotees.

Start with a honeycomb and toffee centre, and dip that sucker in some milk chocolate, and you’ve got yourself a bloody good chocolate bar.

The Crunchie is a staple in supermarkets, servos and showbags around the nation

#4 KIT KAT

This chocolate needs no introduction.

Handed down from generation to generation, the Kit Kat is the national symbol for “taking it easy” — a truly Australian characteristic.

So get yourself a finger, or three, while you read on and enjoy yourself.

The iconic, snappable Kit Kat. Four delicious fingers of fun.

#3 SNICKERS

This bar is chocked full of peanuts, caramel and nougat, coated in a delicious milk chocolate.

It may have been made in the US, but it’s ours now, and we’re not letting it get away.

It comes in at number 3 on the list of the nation’s favourite chocolates.

Snickers puts a smile on anyone’s dial … unless you’re allergic to peanuts. Then please don’t try this.

#2 CHERRY RIPE

The Cherry Ripe is Australia’s oldest chocolate bar, and one of the highest selling confectionary products across the land.

It’s cherry and coconut combo is the inspiration behind hundreds of slices, cakes and tarts around the nation.

Cherry Ripes are beloved by all and deserve their spot in the top two favourite chocolate bars in Australia.

But what, pray tell, could possibly rival the Cherry Ripe for the number one spot on this list?

Cadbury Cherry Ripe, keeping Aussies happy for decades.

#1 POLLY WAFFLE

Unbelievable, we know, but the Polly Waffle — which technically doesn’t even exist yet and certainly cannot be purchased anywhere — took out the top spot in our poll.

It’s no secret the chocolate bar has a loyal following, with more than 56,000 “Polly Wafflers” fervently campaigning on a daily basis to bring back the retro treat.

And it turns out they are not alone with the treat attracting 25 per cent of the total votes in the poll.

So congratulations to this yet to be launched Australian icon, you are the number one chocolate bar in Australia.

Here it is, Australia's number one chocolate bar — The Polly Waffle

A SECOND OPINION

The official results of the poll were always going to be contentious so we decided to conduct a second poll of about 20 people in the news.com.au newsroom — to help settle the debate.

Despite fierce arguments and some rather unusual suggestions, like Cadbury’s Marvellous Creations and a single vote for Creme Egg, we finally arrived at our top five.

NEWS.COM.AU’S TOP 5 CHOCOLATE BARS

#1 CHERRY RIPE

The majority of the news.com.au team voted for this delicious cherry treat, citing the sweet cherry and bitter dark chocolate as a major drawcard.

#2 CRUNCHIE

There’s nothing like a mouthful of honeycomb to calm the nerves before deadline around these parts.

Check out that golden centre. Cheers, Crunchie, for being your beautiful self.

#3 SNICKERS

This nutty surprise was a major clear crowd pleaser.

#4 FLAKE

The classic Flake was a big crowd pleaser among news.com.au staff. Both for its milky chocolate taste and its adaptability to many different dishes.

Shove a Flake in anything and you've got yourself a party.

#5 TWIX

Finally, our fifth favourite chocolate bar — or bars if you will — was the undeniably delicious Twix.

Two slender fingers, filled with biscuit and caramel, coated generously in milk chocolate — perfection.

Twix offers two fingers: one for now, and one for later. So very clever.

Let us know what you think of the final result in the comments below.

Continue the conversation @Rhi_lani or email [e-mail]