I Tried the Viral Dubai Chocolate Starbucks Order—Here’s My Honest Review

When it comes to my Starbucks order, I have pretty basic taste. My typical go-to is an iced coffee with vanilla syrup and milk—unless there’s a seasonal beverage on the menu, or I’m redeeming my free birthday drink for something fun. However, I’ve always been fascinated by Starbucks’ “secret menu” to create new, unique flavored drinks. I won’t lie: the Cotton Candy Frappuccino is a delicious sweet treat when you don’t actually need a caffeinated pick-me-up.

The latest secret menu craze is inspired by a viral dessert that has everyone rushing to try it: Dubai Chocolate.

Starbucks' Viral Dubai Chocolate Drink

Dubai Chocolate hit the TikTok scene in late 2023 when user Maria Vehera shared a video of herself eating the “Can’t Get Knafeh of It” chocolate bar from the Dubai-based Fix Dessert Chocolatier. The chocolate, which is filled with a creamy mixture of pistachio, tahini, and crispy knafeh (a phyllo dough pastry made with sweet cheese and rosewater syrup), quickly became one of the most popular flavors of 2024.

Despite its immense popularity, Dubai Chocolate has yet to become widely available in the U.S.—though the new Bouchard Dubai Chocolates pieces at Costco may change that. Many people are turning instead to other avenues to bring the pistachio and chocolate flavor to life—like at Starbucks.

Social media users have been sharing their secret menu Dubai Chocolate drink order from Starbucks, saying it tastes like a “dessert in a cup.”

The trending order starts with an Iced Matcha Latte, then you add Starbucks’ Pistachio Sauce, which is on the menu for a limited time thanks to the returning Pistachio Latte, and Chocolate Cream Cold Foam. The pistachio sauce is meant to mimic the creamy green filling and the chocolate cold foam provides the decadent flavor—I assume the matcha latte base is really just for the color. Some users are also adding Starbucks’ White Chocolate Mocha sauce for an even more chocolate-forward flavor.

With so many social media users raving about the Dubai Chocolate secret menu drink, I knew I had to give it a go—and here is my honest review.

I Tried the Starbucks Dubai Chocolate Order

I’m not a huge fan of matcha, so I enlisted my coworker's help to try the Dubai Chocolate Matcha, and I tried the drink as a coffee instead. I ordered an iced coffee with Pistachio Sauce and Chocolate Cream Cold Foam.

In the coffee, the pistachio sauce is quite subtle, with only a hint of nuttiness. It feels overpowered by the strong coffee and heavy chocolate cold foam flavors.

In the matcha, the pistachio comes through stronger with more of a floral flavor, but my coworker didn’t think the pistachio flavor blended with the malty, cocoa powder-tasting cold foam.

The biggest thing the drink is missing is the texture that Dubai Chocolate is known for. Without the crunchy pieces, it really is just a nut butter-filled chocolate bar.

As with many Dubai Chocolate “copycats,” the viral Starbucks order is more about the chocolate and pistachio aesthetic without actually playing into the candy’s flavors. My coworker and I agreed that a true “Dubai Chocolate” drink would be a mocha with pistachio sauce or syrup and some kind of crunchy topping. While you won’t get the green-to-brown gradient, you’d at least get the chocolatey and pistachio flavors working together.

If you don't compare it to true Dubai Chocolate, or simply like matcha and chocolate flavors together, then you'd probably enjoy the viral Starbucks creation. However, I'll wait until Dubai Chocolate is more widely available in the U.S. before trying any copycats again.

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