The 8 Best Pocky Flavors, According to Pro Taste Testers

Pocky, a sweet Japanese snack invented in the ‘60s, has established itself internationally, spreading not only throughout the continent of Asia, but also in North America, Europe (particularly France), Australia, and New Zealand. While reading about Pocky’s history, two of the most interesting things we learned are: They were often used as stir sticks for alcoholic drinks (genius), and there was once a brand of Pocky specifically for men called Pocky Bitter. Imagine your dad eating bitter Pocky simply because it’s marketed towards men. Masculinity is hilarious.

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What is Pocky?

Okay, sure let’s begin at the beginning. In short, Pocky are slender, delicate biscuits—they’re kinda like animal crackers but long and skinny—dunked in a variety of coatings. Milk chocolate Pocky is the kind you’ll probably see most often here in the U.S., but if you go to stores like World Market, you’ll find way more interesting imports. It’s a sweet treat, but it’s not too sweet. A highly dignified snack when you need a little sugar. And fun fact: Pocky is so popular, it has its own day in Japan (11/11, because it looks like sticks).

The biscuit-y little sticks themselves aren’t the draw; this taste test was all about which coatings taste the best. Some flavors just work, others don’t have the magic. Not everything goes well with a biscuit. So which Pocky flavors came in clutch? Stick ‘em up and let’s discuss!

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Pocky Milky Matcha: With this Pocky flavor, you get the earthy, grassy tea flavor from the matcha, with the added bonus of creaminess. It’s quite a lovely combination, almost like a matcha tea latte. I also tasted a little bit of nuttiness that I quite enjoyed. This is like eating a wonderfully creamy, aromatic tea biscuit. Hard to argue with the flavors here. It all makes sense and delivers something familiar and delicious. —Danny Palumbo
Pocky Choco Mint: Some of the other Pocky flavors we tried are made with “cocoa” biscuits, but these are the only ones we tried that actually taste like cocoa—it’s subtle, yes, but it’s there, and it gives these a wonderful Thin Mint sort of flavor. The biscuits themselves are fat (the fattest of all the Pocky we tasted) and they’re limited edition, so get them while you can (we got these at World Market). This is a fresh nice mint flavor—not at all toothpaste-y. If you love Thin Mints, you’ll love these. —Gwynedd Stuart
Pocky Almond Crush: Is it corny to say we’re “nuts” about these? Yeah, well, live with it. Almond Crunch Pocky is packed with almonds, and they provide a delightful crispy crunch you don’t get with most other Pocky flavors and coatings. The texture is wonderful, and it also makes these Pocky sticks look fantastical and chef-like. That said, I kind of wish these contained something other than almonds. They don’t do much flavor wise—maybe they need to be roasted and salted? Or perhaps some pistachio would make this Pocky flavor sing more. More Pocky flavors with nuts, please. —Danny Palumbo
Pocky Crunchy Strawberry: The biscuit stick here is darker and has more of a roasted, bitter (For Men™) taste. But this isn’t about the biscuit, it’s all about the zippy little bits of freeze-dried strawberry that are embedded in the creamy coating. If you see Crunchy Strawberry and regular Strawberry Pocky on a shelf, this is the one to choose. —Danny Palumbo
Pocky Coconut Chocolate: We love coconut around here and this Pocky flavor is no exception. There are little shreds of coconut embedded in the chocolate coating that provide both texture and flavor—and there’s a lot of coconut. Really, the biscuit is the last thing you taste here, and I think that’s great. Give us chocolate and flavor add-ons. If I wanted a plain biscuit, I’d be looking to the French. —Danny Palumbo
Pocky Crushed Fruits Passion Fruit Yoghurt: I’m not a fan of how thick it is to spell yogurt with an H like that, but this is a downright delightful variety of Pocky! Passionfruit flavored things almost never taste quite right—but this coating tastes like passionfruit AND it tastes like yogurt. It’s wild! And there are little dried mango bits up in there, too, that are tart and crispy. If you’re not a chocolate guy, you have to try this fruity Pocky. It kind of blew us away. —Gwynedd Stuart
Pocky Chocolate Winter Kiss: These are so much better than regular chocolate Pocky. The biscuit is thicker AND it’s coated in more chocolate. A lot more chocolate and better tasting chocolate, too. It’s got a very light dusting of cocoa powder that’s downright sophisticated for a light after-lunch snack. These are apparently seasonal, so grab them if you see them. —Gwynedd Stuart
Pocky Butter Chocolate: Gorgeous. Beautiful. Delicious. Critics (i.e. us) are calling this the Pocky to end all Pocky. There’s something whimsical and wonderful about this butter chocolate biscuit stick. This Pocky is definitely thicker compared to the other flavors. And the taste? Bro, the taste is magical. The chocolate does in fact taste lusciously buttery, and when paired with the lightly sweet biscuit; it almost tastes like a homemade pie crust. The depth of flavor here is off the charts. You get the decadent fattiness of the butter, the creaminess of the chocolate, and the crispy sugariness of the biscuit. Masterful. Truly, though, the butter is what puts this over the top. Simple is king, and fat is flavor. That’s why this is the best Pocky flavor of them all. —Danny Palumbo