The Chocolatey Snack That Has Seriously Divided Costco Shoppers

Customers across the country are intensely loyal to Costco for its top-notch customer service, food court offerings, and product selection (both private label and national brands). Among all those various products sold in bulk are a range of candies and chocolates, from well-known brands like Hershey to hidden gems just waiting to be discovered by sweet-toothed shoppers. One crispy sweet snack that has captured customer attention (and received mixed reviews) is Rip Van Wafers.

Rip Van Wafers are a stacked snack cookie that feature layers of dark chocolate creme sandwiched in nostalgic ice cream parlor-style wafers. This true-to-Costco-size bag features 24 individually wrapped packs of treats, touted for their low-sugar, low-calorie, and fiber-packed contents. These small sweet fixes contain a quarter of the sugar of many wafer cookies thanks to a reliance on stevia for some of their sweetness. Some of the polarizing feedback amongst Costco shoppers on Reddit comes down to their taste, ranging from a reviewer who exclaims "I absolutely love these! I love dark chocolate, and don't feel guilty afterwards" to one who laments they "tasted too much like dry cocoa powder."

While some Costco customers seem eager to return to the store to buy more, others seem put off by their texture. Of those, the issue that seems to bubble up is that the wafers are extremely dry and crumbly. While some seem willing to accept the bevvy of crumbs (some even mention eating them over the sink) and that they've "accepted it as part of the wafer lifestyle", others are put off by the brittle form factor. Still, some shoppers claim to be "obsessed," according to reviews on Costco's website, where the wafers have a middling 3.2-star rating.

Many customers had the biggest issues with the aftertaste of Rip Van Wafers. While stevia adds to the allure of this low-sugar snack for some, it does come with some drawbacks. Namely some bitterness on the back end as stevia, a plant-based natural sweetener indigenous to South America, is known to stimulate bitter taste receptors along with sweet ones. While some are willing to look past this for a wholesome hit of candy-bar-esque delight, others just can't get on board. In a review, one customer went so far as to call the wafers "​​the anti-Kit-Kat. If you pass these out at Halloween, your house is gonna get egged."

If your snack bingo card includes a healthy crunch, some silky-feeling dark chocolate, and a conservative amount of sugar, don't sleep on Rip Van Wafers on your next Costco run. Only you can decide whether you're a fan or not. And if they aren't to your taste, try the beloved Costco Caramel S'mores Clusters, or a couple tried-and-true Costco snacks, such as Kirkland Signature Milk Chocolate Almonds or Chocolate Sea Salt RXBARs.