Barebells
Birthday Cake
TL:DR
In 2 Sentences
A candy‑bar texture—crisp shell, chewy middle—with 20 grams of complete dairy protein and just 1 gram of sugar, achieved with a modern sweetener and fiber blend rather than cane sugar.
When to choose Barebells Birthday Cake
Great for dessert‑leaning protein cravings post‑workout or mid‑afternoon if you tolerate sugar alcohols and aren’t avoiding dairy or artificial colors.
What's in the Barebells bar?
Birthday Cake in bar form can go two ways: syrupy and sugary, or sweet-without-the-sugar thanks to a bag of modern ingredients.
Barebells takes the second route: you get a top‑decile 20 grams of protein from a milk‑protein blend (casein + whey) with a little soy and collagen for texture, just 7 grams of fat from cocoa butter and sunflower oil, and carbs built mainly from low‑calorie fiber and sugar alcohols rather than oats or fruit.
The “birthday” comes from natural and artificial flavors and a white‑chocolate‑style coating with colorful confetti sprinkles (synthetic dyes included), so it eats like a frosted treat while keeping sugars very low.
Below, we unpack what that mix means for protein quality, energy, and how your stomach may feel after.
- Protein
- 20 g
- Fat
- 7 g
- Carbohydrates
- 20 g
- Sugar
- 1 g
- Calories
- 210
Protein
2015HIGHTwenty grams of protein puts this bar near the top of the pack. The heft comes from a dairy blend—calcium caseinate plus whey isolate and concentrate—backed by a little soy protein isolate; these are complete proteins with high digestibility. There’s also bovine collagen peptides in the mix, which help texture but aren’t a complete protein on their own, so it’s good that casein and whey do the heavy lifting.
Fat
79MIDFat lands on the lighter side and comes from cocoa butter, sunflower oil, and a bit of milk fat from the dairy powders. Cocoa butter brings mostly stearic (a saturated fat often considered neutral for LDL) and oleic acid, while sunflower oil adds unsaturated omega‑6; the total—7 grams—keeps richness without tipping calories. If you prefer extra‑virgin‑style fats, note these are refined confectionery and seed oils used for coating and texture.
Carbs
2020MIDThose 20 grams of carbs are mostly engineered rather than from grains: polydextrose (a low‑calorie soluble fiber), maltitol (a sugar alcohol), and glycerin provide bulk and sweetness, with small amounts of refined starch from tapioca and the sprinkle blend. This combo tends to be gentler on blood sugar than straight sugar, but some people get bloating if they eat large amounts of sugar alcohols. If you want ‘whole‑food’ carbs for steady energy, this skews more toward processed functional ingredients.
Sugar
14LOWOnly 1 gram of sugar shows up because the sweetness leans on sugar alcohols and fiber (maltitol, polydextrose) plus a tiny boost from sucralose, with a touch of natural milk sugar from the dairy ingredients. That keeps blood sugar swings in check compared with a frosted bar made with sucrose, though sensitive stomachs may notice sugar‑alcohol effects. Low sugar isn’t a moral victory—it’s simply a different sweetening strategy than fruit‑ or honey‑sweetened bars.
Calories
210210MIDAt 210 calories, this is a middle‑of‑the‑road bar, with roughly half its energy from the 20 grams of protein and the rest split between a modest 7 grams of fat and carbohydrate sweeteners/fiber. Because some carbs here (maltitol, polydextrose) contribute fewer calories than sugar, you get a coated, sprinkle‑studded bar without a big calorie bill. Still, sugar alcohols do add energy, so portion size matters if you’re counting.
Vitamins & Minerals
You get a small calcium bump—about 10% of daily value—thanks to the milk protein blend and dry whole milk. Beyond that, there’s not much in the way of vitamins or minerals, which is typical for confection‑style protein bars. Think of it as protein first, micronutrients minimal.
Additives
This formula leans on several functional additives to hit its texture and flavor targets: polydextrose for fiber and body, maltitol and glycerin for sweetness and moisture, sucralose for a tiny zero‑calorie lift, lecithin to keep the coating smooth, and citric acid for balance. The confetti sprinkles use synthetic colors (Red 40, Blue 1 and 2, Yellow 5) for that birthday‑cake look. If you’re trying to limit highly processed sweeteners or artificial colors, this is something to weigh.
Ingredient List
Cow's milk casein
Cow's milk whey
Cow's milk whey
Fats and oils
Cattle hides, bones, connective tissue
Corn or wheat
Cocoa beans
glucose
Rice grain (Oryza sativa)
Potato tubers
What are people saying?
Sources
Range
“I bought two of the cookies and cream protein bars for my boyfriend and I to try…. These protein bars are absolute FLAMES 🔥 they’re so delicious, they taste like a straight up chocolate bar… with barely any sugar and 20g of protein!!!!”
“Best protein bars out there. I’ll die on this hill.”
“Barebell protein bars are genuinely some of the only protein bars I can eat - I hate the weird flavors and bars that are disgustingly chewy - as someone who struggles with binge ed, I’ve been so grateful to have a brand of protein bars that can satisfy that sweet tooth and keep me full so I don’t gravitate towards all that junky food!”
Main Praise
Taste and texture lead the parade.
Food editors at Bon Appétit and SELF singled out Barebells for a rare combo: a chocolate‑coated snap on the outside and a dense, satisfying chew inside, with Allrecipes calling it the best protein bar they’ve tried.
Reddit and Amazon buyers echo the same theme—“tastes like a candy bar,” “no grit,” and “actually enjoyable,” which is not a sentence you can attach to every protein bar.
The macros help the case: 20 grams of protein in about 210 calories with just 1 gram of sugar is a useful trade for folks who want sweet without a classic sugar spike.
Many reviewers also say it’s a reliable sweet‑tooth stopgap that keeps them full, an underrated benefit when the alternative is raiding the pantry for cookies. And across thousands of ratings, the brand sits at an impressive 4.
4 average, suggesting the experience holds up beyond a single flavor.
Main Criticism
The sweetness strategy won’t suit everyone.
Barebells leans on maltitol (a sugar alcohol), polydextrose (a low‑calorie soluble fiber), a touch of glycerin, and a micro‑dose of sucralose—ingredients that can cause bloating or an aftertaste for sensitive folks.
Several Redditors specifically called out maltitol and sucralose as deal breakers, especially if eaten on consecutive days. Flavor is polarized here too: while many love the brand’s lineup, the Birthday Cake variation splits the room—some find it nostalgic and fun, others find it aggressively artificial.
Texture preferences vary as well; if you want the shattering crunch of something like Fit Crunch, Barebells’ chewier center may not feel as exciting. Finally, this is a confection‑style bar with refined ingredients and artificial colors in the sprinkles, which won’t align with a “whole‑foods‑only” checklist.
The Middle Ground
So who’s right—the “I’ll die on this hill” Barebells fans or the birthday‑cake skeptics who want it deleted from the protein bar galaxy? Probably both, depending on what you value.
On one side, the fundamentals are strong: 20 grams of complete milk protein from a casein‑whey blend, 210 calories, and a texture that’s been championed by multiple food publications is no small feat.
On the other, the formula is purpose‑built with engineered ingredients: maltitol and polydextrose for sweetness and body, glycerin to keep it soft, sucralose for a tiny sweet lift, plus synthetic colors in the sprinkles.
That’s how you get “candy bar” flavor with just 1 gram of sugar—but it’s also why some stomachs protest.
If a Redditor says the banana flavor should’ve gone full Laffy Taffy, that’s a reminder to choose your flavor lane carefully; Barebells’ Cookies & Cream or Caramel Cashew get broader praise if Birthday Cake feels too perfumey for you.
The truth lives in the trade‑off: craveable taste and protein density, delivered by a modern sweetener toolkit that won’t please every palate or gut.
What's the bottom line?
Barebells’ Birthday Cake bar is a dessert‑style protein play: big on nostalgia, bigger on texture, and anchored by 20 grams of high‑quality dairy protein. It’s engineered to taste like a treat with minimal sugar, which it achieves by swapping cane sugar for sugar alcohols and fiber—great for steady energy, not so great if those ingredients bother you. If you’re after whole‑food simplicity, this isn’t it.
If you want a legitimately tasty, protein‑first sweet that eats like a candy bar, it’s hard to beat. Condensed listicle take: Candy‑bar bite, 20 grams of complete protein, 210 calories, 1 gram of sugar; fantastic if you tolerate sugar alcohols and don’t mind artificial colors—skip if you prefer whole‑food formulas or have a sensitive stomach.