This New Trader Joe's Chocolate Find Has Customers Doing A Double Take

Comedian Chris Fleming has a bit about snacks at Trader Joe's that only women can see: "Women are just making these paleobotanical discoveries, discovering new edible things from the sea floor every day at Trader Joe's," he joked, like an esoteric seafood dessert called Everything The Seagull Didn't Want (via YouTube). Well, with TJ's new snack item — Milk Chocolate Sardines with Sea Salt — you'd be forgiven for thinking grocery store took that joke as a challenge. These aren't chocolate-covered sardines, of course, but more than a few Trader Joe's fans had to do a double take.

"Cute but when I read the title, [I] was like WHAT?" said one commenter on Reddit. "I gotta start reading all the text on boxes, haha," said another. A third, having a bit of fun, asked the original poster, "Are you cross posting to the TinnedFish group, lol?" (Yes, of course there's a subreddit devoted to tinned fish; do you even have to ask?) Though folks that have tried these chocolate fish are fans, they aren't technically a Trader Joe's seafood item you shouldn't pass up — despite what shoppers might think at first glance.

The Milk Chocolate Sardines with Sea Salt aren't the only pescatarian confection offered by Trader Joe's, which also sells a version of Swedish Fish called Scandinavian Swimmers (a Trader Joe's candy you need to grab on your next trip). But these aren't gummy candies, no sirree bob. These sardines are pure milk chocolate, made by a supplier in Slovakia that seasons them with salt — both to enhance the chocolate's flavor and to tie into the saltwater theme. Each one is wrapped in shimmery sardine tin foil. "I got these today and really enjoyed them. Not too sweet for a milk chocolate, with a noticeable crunch of salt. I included them as a dessert for a tinned fish spread dinner," shared one satisfied TJ's shopper (via Reddit).

Why is Trader Joe's selling these fish? Well, sardine-shaped chocolates have long been a treat in Europe, where they were popularized after World War II (when rationing Europeans probably had more than their fill of real sardines). It's even a tradition in France to give chocolate fish around Easter or on April Fool's Day. While Trader Joe's is a few months late for that, there really isn't a bad time to enjoy some of the best TJ's chocolate bars, fish-shaped or otherwise.