Review: Magnum Gold Ice Cream Bars...Pass the Salt

Salted caramel is one of the new crazed food trends hitting every frozen yogurt bar, ice creamery, and Starbucks. It hits your salty and sweet tastebuds while satisfying your deepest dessert desires. I’m a huge fan of salted caramel frozen yogurt, but when I first bit into the Magnum Gold?! (yes, it does have both the question mark and exclamation point for emphasis) I was disappointed. Although the bar wasn’t as sweet as normal ice cream, the only hint of sea salt I got was from the description on the box.

Obligatory gold-themed box

Inviting gold ice-cream packaging

Let’s start with the packaging and price. As I walked up to the freezer, the excited little kid in me screaming, YES, ICE CREAM!, I noticed that a box of three Magnum Gold?! bars was $4.79. I feel that’s a little pricey for three ice cream bars. It could have been that I shopped at Safeway instead of Walmart, but still…$5 for 3…I could get an entire gallon of ice cream for that price. Yet, I bought it anyways. The packaging was extremely inviting and a name with a question mark and exclamation point made me wonder whether I should be excited, confused, or curious.

When I opened the box, it was as if I stumbled upon a Wonka Golden Ticket. The gold wrapper and color-specific swirls fit well with the motif. You gotta buy the package to get the product. I liked the first impression Magnum Gold?! made on me but I still had to perform the ultimate test: taste.

Silky golden outside complete with pearlescent shine ice cream

I went in for the kill. Breaking the shell that looked like a golden candy paint job on a pimp mobile, I got mostly caramel, a slight ping of chocolate, and vanilla bean ice cream. I could tell there was something in the ice cream and maybe, if I dug deep enough, it was salted caramel. Don’t get me wrong, the caramel was smooth, creamy, and delectable. The chocolate, even though there should have been more, paired well with caramel.

I feel as if the box was a bit generous with the portions of each layer and photoshopping. Enhancing the amount of chocolate in the bar and the drizzling in the ice cream makes me feel cheated in the end. Magnum should have taken a bigger chance with a little more salt. The salted caramel insanity won’t last forever; take advantage now, Magnum Gold?!

The meat of the bar

As I finished the bar I realized the “?!” were supposed to indicate, where’s the salt?! If I ask for mint chocolate chip, I should get both mint and chocolate in each bite. If I ask for steak and potatoes, both should probably be on the plate. In the end though, I would recommend buying any of the Magnum bars if you’re in the mood to spend some money on a sweet treat.

However, take caution and consider the following points:

Don’t expect everything the box advertises. You may not get both sea salt and caramel, mint and chocolate, or mochaccino.
Be careful when you eat it. After the first two bites, the rest of the chocolate just breaks off. Suggestion: Bib or plate.
Be ready to lay down some cash.
If “?!” is on any package you buy, don’t be surprised if you’re surprised.
Enjoy it…it’s ice cream after all!

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Mandy Ellis

I am in deep-fried love with food and travel. With Italian roots, I have a weakness for bread, marinara, and mozzarella. I’ll try anything once and am constantly searching for intriguing places to visit. When I'm not savoring the last bite or organizing my next trip, I'm indulging my inner bookworm and writing about my adventures. If you turn on college football and give me a local craft beer, you’ll see the happiest Hokie on the West coast.