Can't get enough of knafeh, already?

How a popular Middle-eastern dessert became a global phenomenon, with retailers and brands sweetening the deal by offering their own versions

- VAISHALI DAR

YOU 'CAN'T GET knafeh of it', quite literally. Unless you've been living under a rock, you're likely aware of the viral Dubai chocolate bar that has now become a global phenomenon and garnered quite a cult following in no time.

For the uninitiated, 'knafeh', or what is popularly known as 'kunafa', is a milk chocolate shell with pistachio cream and kataifi, a shredded phyllo pastry, and inspired by the popular Middle-eastern dessert.

It was first created by Dubai-based Fix Dessert Chocolatier in 2021, and its versions are now sold worldwide. British-Egyptian Dubai expat Sarah Hamouda, founder of Fix Dessert Chocolatier, created bars offering a selection of flavourful treats in classic pistachio, tahini infused milk, Dubai pistachio, dark Dubai pistachio, dark lotus Dubai pistachio and dark pistachio. The exclusivity of this chocolate brand goes a notch higher as its Instagram says it is "available only in Dubai & Abu Dhabi on @deliveroo_ae with limited supply, open daily for orders between 2 pm and 5 pm."

The chocolate bar shot to global fame in December 2023, when Dubai-based food influencer Maria Vehera uploaded an ASMR video of herself eating it on TikTok. The video received over 90 million views, and since then, kunafa has become an everyday story for food lovers, chocolatiers, and influencers alike.

The irresistible dark side While the chocolate is inspired by the Middle-eastern dessert, legend has it that kunafa originated in 15th-century Egypt, especially created to satisfy the hunger of caliphs during Ramadan. Even so, the popularity of Dubai chocolate has inspired chocolatiers to create their kunafa versions available across the world, without having the need to travel to the Arab world.