Salted Caramel Butterfinger, Our Honest Review

Last October, when we first heard about the impending release of Salted Caramel Butterfinger, we were cautiously optimistic. In its 100-year history, the candy bar had never deviated from its original format—and why would it? That combo of crispety, crunchety, peanut-buttery filling with a milk chocolate coating is as iconic as their commercials with Bart Simpson. Why mess with perfection?

Well, sometimes innovation is in order and that’s a good thing because otherwise we’d never have new products to taste and review. Hell, there might not even be a Sporked! Anyway, here’s what we thought of the new Butterfinger Salted Caramel.

New Prodcut!

Salted Caramel Butterfinger

Walmart

Pros: We weren’t entirely sure what to expect from this new Butterfinger, but it’s pretty simple: It’s the crunchy Butterfinger center you know and love dunked in a salted caramel-flavored coating instead of milk chocolate. It’s very tan and it has a very strong, sugary aroma that made me a little nervous; it’s reminiscent of something cloyingly sweet, like maple fudge. Luckily, the candy bar itself is much more balanced than that. There’s enough salt in the coating and the peanut butter filling to give it dimension so it isn’t a total sugar bomb (although, you know, it is still a candy bar). The two flavor profiles go surprisingly well together. If you can get past the smell, it really tastes good!

Cons: I was just talking to a friend yesterday who said she doesn’t consider a dessert a true dessert unless it involves chocolate, and I’m sure there are people who feel similarly about candy bars. If you are a chocolate lover, Salted Caramel Butterfinger might feel like an unnecessary bastardization of a previously perfect concept. But if you’re open to experimentation that doesn’t involve cacao, give this a shot.

Rating:

8.5/10

Sporks

About the Author

Howdy! I’m Gwynedd, Sporked’s managing editor. I live in Los Angeles and have access to the best tacos the U.S. has to offer—but I’m a sucker for a crunchy Old El Paso taco night every now and then. I’ve been at Sporked since 2022 and I’m still searching frozen mozzarella sticks that can hold a candle to restaurant sticks. Why you should trust me: I’ve been a journalist for 20 years (yikes), a consumer of food for 40-plus years, and I’m truly hard pressed to think of foods I don’t like (or that I can’t tolerate at the very least). Oh and one time I cooked my way through Guy Fieri’s cookbook and wrote about the journey through Flavortown. What I buy every week: Trader Joe’s Original Savory Thins. Fat free plain yogurt (usually Fage or Nancy’s). Honeycrisp apples. Sweet cream coffee creamer for my at-home Americanos. A frozen cauliflower crust pizza and some jarred mushrooms to top it with. Old El Paso Stand ‘N Stuff taco shells and Gardein Ground Be’f, even though I think “be’f” is a nightmarish contraction. Favorite ranking: Stouffer’s frozen dinners. I don’t own a microwave (I get my cancers the old fashioned way!), so I love taste testing things that I don’t really buy to eat at home. Least favorite ranking: Soy sauce. Don’t get me wrong, I love soy sauce—but consuming that much sodium in one sitting is probably illegal in some countries. Our frozen enchilada taste test was a close second; the smell of microwaved corn tortillas still haunts me.