TREK
Dark Chocolate and Sea Salt
TL:DR
In 2 Sentences
A real‑nut base with dark chocolate and sea salt, delivering 10g of plant protein and unusually low carbs—without sugar alcohols or artificial sweeteners. It leans on prebiotic fiber and straightforward ingredients so it tastes like food, not formula.
When to choose TREK Dark Chocolate and Sea Salt
Choose it when you want trail‑mix energy in a tidy bar: a steady, not‑too‑sweet plant‑based snack for commutes, hikes, or late‑afternoon dips. Skip it if you’re chasing a 20‑gram post‑workout protein hit.
What's in the TREK bar?
Inside TREK’s Dark Chocolate and Sea Salt bar, the base isn’t a powdery isolate—it’s real nuts: peanuts (57%) and almonds (10%), lightly bound with a touch of rice syrup and apple juice concentrate, then finished with 4% dark chocolate and a pinch of sea salt.
Protein is fully plant-based, coming mostly from the nuts with a boost from soy protein crunchies, so you get 10. 3g without any whey.
Macros lean higher in fats (from nuts, a little sunflower oil, and the cocoa butter in chocolate) and unusually low in carbs for a bar, helped by a prebiotic chicory fiber called oligofructose.
Translation: more slow-burn nut-and-cocoa energy than a sugar rush. The chocolate-and-salt profile comes from real cocoa mass, cocoa butter, natural vanilla, and sea salt—simple ingredients doing the flavor work.
- Protein
- 10 g
- Fat
- 15 g
- Carbohydrates
- 7 g
- Sugar
- 5 g
- Calories
- 213
Protein
1015LOWProtein here is a plant blend: most naturally from the peanuts and almonds, plus a boost from soy protein crunchies (soya with a little tapioca starch for structure). Soy is a complete protein, which rounds out the amino acids from nuts, but the total lands at 10.3g—lower than many “protein-first” bars—so think hearty snack rather than meal-replacement. No dairy or whey in sight, which is a win if you’re avoiding milk.
Fat
159HIGHMost of the 14.9g of fat comes from whole peanuts and almonds, naturally rich in monounsaturated fats, with a little help from sunflower oil and the cocoa butter in the chocolate. That means a mix of mostly unsaturated fats plus some saturated fat from cocoa butter—largely stearic acid, which tends to be neutral for LDL cholesterol. Net effect: satisfying, long-lasting fuel, though those watching omega-6 might note the use of refined sunflower oil.
Carbs
720LOWWith just 6.9g of carbs, this bar sits at the low end for the category. The digestible carbs come from small amounts of rice syrup and apple juice concentrate (and a little sugar in the dark chocolate), while a prebiotic chicory fiber called oligofructose adds bulk and mild sweetness without acting like sugar in your blood. Expect steadier energy than a syrupy bar, although rice syrup is a fast sugar, so the nuts’ fat and fiber are doing important smoothing here.
Sugar
54MIDThe 4.7g of sugar come from recognizable sources: a touch of dark chocolate, rice syrup, and apple juice concentrate. There are no artificial sweeteners or sugar alcohols—some sweetness also comes from oligofructose, a prebiotic fiber that tastes mildly sweet but contributes few calories. The overall sugar load is modest for a chocolatey bar, and it’s buffered by ample fat and fiber.
Calories
213210MIDAt 213 calories, it’s middle-of-the-pack, but the balance leans decidedly toward fat calories from nuts, oil, and cocoa butter, with protein next and very little coming from carbs. That profile explains why it feels filling for its size. It’s better suited to tide you over than to spike you up.
Vitamins & Minerals
There’s no added vitamin blend, but the nuts and cocoa naturally deliver minerals—most notably manganese, which lands around 26% of daily value. Peanuts and almonds are the main contributors here, with cocoa chipping in smaller amounts. Otherwise, micronutrients are present in food-level amounts rather than fortified levels.
Additives
The recipe leans on a few helpers: oligofructose (a refined chicory-root prebiotic fiber) for texture and binding, and lecithins (sunflower in the bar, soy in the chocolate) to keep fats and cocoa smooth. Sunflower oil is a refined, neutral-tasting oil used sparingly to soften texture. Overall, it’s mostly whole-food ingredients with a short list of functional, fairly common processing aids.
Ingredient List
Chicory root
Soybeans
Cassava root
Sugarcane and sugar beet
Ground roasted cocoa bean nibs
Cocoa beans
Soybeans
Vanilla orchid seed pods
Rice grain starch
Apples
What are people saying?
Sources
Range
“girlies this thing was so good. Definitely worth a try.”
“God I love Trek”
“Trek Cocoa Oat protein flapjacks. GF, GM free, and vegan. Discovered these when doing a lot of hiking, but they're always with me now; car glovebox, backpack, jacket pocket. At 227 Calories a bar, if you get hungry then you don't have to risk an unknown snack, meal. I buy in bulk.”
Main Praise
Taste tops the praise list—chocolate and salt show up cleanly, and the nut base reads as real food rather than candy coating.
Fans on Reddit call TREK bars addictive in the best way, and Amazon reviewers echo that they’re not too sweet and sit comfortably, which makes sense given the absence of sugar alcohols.
The brand also earns kudos for everyday usefulness: hikers stash them, commuters lean on them, and the vegan/gluten‑free credentials make it an easy share across diets. Editorial roundups have highlighted TREK’s range for tasting like a snack you’d actually choose, not just tolerate for the macros, and this flavor follows that pattern.
In short: approachable ingredients, grown‑up flavor, and reliable satiety for the size.
Main Criticism
The loudest knock is protein density. Compared with the 20‑gram heavy hitters, 10g for just over 200 calories isn’t going to thrill macro hawks, as one Redditor bluntly put it.
Price gripes pop up too; some shoppers feel TREK sits on the spendy side for the protein delivered. Texture is a divider: a few commenters find certain TREK bars dry or a bit claggy—this nut‑forward bar is chewy, but if you want fudge‑soft, you might be underwhelmed.
Finally, while many people digest it easily, the prebiotic fiber can be gassy for sensitive stomachs if you’re new to it.
The Middle Ground
So who’s right: the “God I love Trek” camp or the “protein/kcal ratio kind of sucks” crowd? Both, honestly.
If your bar is a numbers game, this one’s modest 10g of protein won’t beat the gym‑style bricks—Reddit user unknown wasn’t wrong on that point. But flavor matters, and this is where TREK quietly excels; outlets like ES Best and IndyBest consistently praise the range for tasting like a snack you’d choose on purpose.
The Telegraph’s critique of a different TREK flapjack as sugary doesn’t land squarely here—this specific bar clocks roughly 5 grams of sugar, which is modest for a chocolate‑topped option.
As for texture, it’s nutty and slightly chewy by design; pair it with coffee or water and it shines, but if you equate “protein bar” with nougat‑soft, you may feel let down.
In other words, it’s less a shaker‑bottle substitute and more a well‑behaved trail mix with benefits.
What's the bottom line?
TREK’s Dark Chocolate and Sea Salt bar is a plant‑based, gluten‑free snack built from real nuts, a snap of dark chocolate, and a pinch of sea salt. It offers about 10g of protein, low carbs for the category, and a flavor that feels grown‑up rather than candy‑sweet—without resorting to sugar alcohols. If you want a lean, high‑protein bar, this isn’t your ringer.
But if you value recognizable ingredients, steady energy, and a chocolate‑salt fix that doesn’t taste engineered, it’s a strong everyday pick. Budget‑watchers may flinch and fiber‑sensitive folks should test it on a low‑key day, but for most, it’s a reliable, satisfying snack that behaves like food—because it mostly is.