The “LÄRABAR is a delicious blend of unsweetened fruits, nuts and spices. Made from 100% whole food, each flavor contains no more than nine ingredients. Pure and simple, just as nature intended.” (website)
The first time I ever sampled a LÄRABAR was yesterday. In previous “Is It Healthy” posts, I received requests to feature the LÄRABAR and decided it was probably wise to actually sample the bar. After all, I want to bring you products that are healthy AND delicious!
My overall consensus? HEALTHY! Gluten, dairy, and soy-free, non-GMO, vegan, AND kosher, super simple ingredient lists (no artificial colors, flavors, or preservatives), and each bar is ~200 calories with 3-5 g of fiber! While the sugar content is high, there are no added sugars. I would say this is an excellent choice for an afternoon snack, especially for those with special diet needs.
I sampled the Cherry Pie flavor and really enjoyed the chewy texture and sweet flavor. With just 3 simple ingredients; dates, almonds, and unsweetened cherries, and a FULL serving of fruit, I felt satisfied for a good 2 hours. Now I am curious to sample more flavors!
The only downside of the LÄRABAR is they are a teensy bit expensive. I noticed each bar was between $1.39-1.69 EACH. I suppose, in this day in age, you get what you pay for, but this price is just a tad high for my taste.
Ultimately, although I thoroughly enjoyed my sample, I wouldn’t regularly purchase the LÄRABAR bars. However, if I was in a bind and NEEDED a quick snack (say from the gas station), LÄRABAR would probably be one of my best bets! Otherwise, I might just nosh on a trail mix made with nuts and dried fruit.
QUESTION: Have you sampled the LÄRABAR? If so, what are your favorite flavors?
i like the larabars with coconut in them. i should just eat a handful of shredded coconut.
I just did a post on my blog about them as well. They are expensive but i get them at the local shoprite when they are on sale 10 for 10 that swhen i stock up on them. i LOVE them, so fresh!!
Thy are sooo expensive, but I do like them on occasion! I also make my own in my Vitamix!
I love Larabars for quick snacks; however, my bank account despises them!!!
Larabars are my guilty pleasure (only guilty because of the price!) I eat one almost every day. Apple Pie is my favorite! Thank you for sharing your review with me…and for making me smile. Your words are a source of joy in my life, and in the lives of many others. I hope you have a happy Friday. The weekend is almost here, and I’m ready for it!
I love Larabars! They are expensive though, I have read some recipes on blogs on re-making them – I would think it would be rather easy. I bought a bunch when traveling for healthy on the go snacks.
I have to admit, I was a little scared to read this post. I LOVE Larabars, and I was going to be crushed if you said they were unhealthy. Hahaha what a relief!! My favorites are apple pie and peanut butter cookie!
I like Larabars but they don’t seem to keep me full for very long! I love the apple pie and lemon flavors…or the chocolate for dessert. The short, real, ingredient list is stellar!
Love’em! My Kroger has them on sale a lot and the company loves to send out the mini ones to bloggers to give out and review!
They’re a perfect 2 bites worth of yummy nutrition!
I’ve been a Lara Fan for a while. I like the Cherry you mentioned and Coconut. I don’t think they give people a ton of staying power (your homemade trail mix probably better) but they are a good standby/desk drawer item.
I can always find Larabars on sale at whole foods for about $1 each! If i dont plan on eating them all week (1 per week) it’s not too bad! MY favorite is blueberry or banana
I couldn’t agree more with your analysis! I always show these bars to customers. I love them because they are only naturally sweetened (as in FRUIT, not “organic sugars”). I also think they are a bit pricey, so I take advantages of pushing them more when they are on sale. And I stock up as well!
I tried the bars a while ago and really enjoyed them!
I’ve only tried Larabars because I won them in a giveaway. They’re tasty, but I would never buy them myself- too expensive!
LOVE LOVE LOVE LARABARS!!!
[...] even more than ALL of the different flavor choices, and I love that their ingredient lists are so Healthy and SIMPLE. Essentially—- Fruit and Nuts. (aka, WHOLE [...]
i looooooooooooooooove larabars!
Ashely for The Edible Perspective has a recipe for some homemade larabar equivalents and they are totally yummy & super easy to make at home (and a great way to save $$$)! I just made the chocolate coconut balls this weekend, and enjoy one each night as my “dessert”
http://edibleperspective.com/2011/01/lemony-gingery-goodness/
What a timely post! i just bought a box at Sams the other day and I liked them! I LOVED that the ingredient list was 2 to 5 things long and I knew all of the ingredients! Awesome!! I like the Apple Pie the best!
LOVE LARAS!!1! peanut butter cookie is DA BEST.. and pbj and choc chip cookie dough.. and jocalats!
LOVE cherry pie larabars!
They are prefect if you are on the run and not going to be eating for a while. When I left the gym today, I had a bunch of errands to run and ti was lunchtime…I stopped at TARGET to get some things and they have boxes there for pretty cheap. Dangerous though, pregnant me, starving at 1 1/2…yikes! Hahaa…oh well. I was huuuungry.
I could give you a shorter answer if you asked “which flavor larabar don’t you like?” haha I love them all!
I’ve been wanting to try a Larabar but I haven’t just because of the hefty price tag
I have tried Luna Bars and thought they were delish 
I love larabars! My favorite is probably cashew cookie.
I love larabars but sometimes wish they weren’t so calorie dense. I do love that the only ingredients are usually fruit and nuts.
thanks for sharing your revieew, erin! it IS one of the healthier bars out there.
i’m not a fan – i find all the flavours taste more or less the same and they are really TINY! (and in canada, we don’t get all the great new flavours!)
to be honest, i’d rather eat a less healthy bar that is bigger but that i enjoy more (ex: myoplex bar, protein plus bar).
Heck yeah they are healthy! oh wait.. i’ve never tried one though! gasp! I’m such a cheapo when it comes to bars. I need to find them super on sale before I shell out the cash monies! =) but i’m glad we agree that they are healthy! hehe
I tried a larabar once and wasn’t too impressed. Maybe it was the flavor that I tried!
I have been reading all about Larabars on different blogs, so I was just dying to try one. My grocery store actually gave me a sample, and I thought they were delicious. However, they are WAYYYY too expensive for me! I wish they were more affordable!
I like Larabars for a late afternoon snack if I’m going directly from work to the gym. My issue is that I am not a huge date fan. I like the bars, but I don’t love them and in Canada they can be up to $2 for a bar!
I love larabars! I know they are expensive but I feel like they are worth it and I don’t eat them daily. I just stash 1-2 in my purse for emergencies and restock when I run out. My favorites are blueberry muffin and gingersnap!
I have never had a Larabar, but have been wanting to try them forever!
Larabars are definitely healthy. Some only have 2 ingredients and their always natural!
My favorites are the blueberry muffin and coconut cream pie!
I keep a Larabar in my purse and one in my gym/tennis bag. I don’t eat them regularly cause I agree that they are a bit pricey and dried fruit + nuts is also a good snack. However, for convenience you can’t beat a Larabar! I think I like all the flavors!
I love larabars, but I don’t buy them often because of the price. The flavors are great (try the cookie dough flavor!), and the ingredient list is short & sweet. They’re the perfect afternoon snack.
so love larabar! my fav flavor is the cookie dough
I love larabars but don’t buy them regularly. Like you mentioned, I will occasionally buy a few so on the weekends if I’m running around, it is a quick and healthy snack.
I try to snag them when they are on sale since they are pricey!
I love larabars but they are just too small for me. In fact, I wrote a post about how I had to take a break from the larabars. Kind of funny.
http://www.imanokie.com/2010/09/we-need-to-take-a-break/
I think they’re ok- but I’m not into the whole hype about them… very expensive and very small…
I love the idea of Larabars, but don’t LOVE dates and unfortunately that is the base of most of them! I love the simple ingredients though!
I LOVELOVELOVE Larabars!!! So glad you like it too. My favorite flavors are coconut cream pie, chocolate chip cookie dough, and blueberry muffin
The cherry pie is actually my least favorite. My two favs are cashew cookie and apple pie, YUM! I try not to eat them too often because they are expensive, but they are good to keep in my purse for emergencies.
Yep, I’ve sampled Larabars – I like the apple pie one, and LOVE the ingredients list, but my problem is that they don’t fill me up very much. I tend to need a bit more volume in my snacks. However, mixed into something like yogurt might do the trick!
If they’re too expensive you can make your own. Here’s a recipe for Rosemary Sea Salt Larabars
The banana bread is by far my favorite. I agree that they are a bit pricey but I’ve found coupons for them fairly often that help cut that price a bit. I think its a great thing to carry around when you get in a pinch and need a healthy snack or between meal option.
I looove larabars!!! Such a great snack!!!! My favorite flavors are banana bread (which contains a whole banana!!!) and apple pie! I haven’t tried any of the pb or chocolate flavors, but would looove to!!
I tried one over the weekend (a freebie) and it was the apple pie flavor. I really liked the texture and the taste!
I like the Amazing Grass bars better than Larabars. Sometimes the date flavor can beb overwhelming…with that said thought, the cookie dough flavor rocks!
Larabars were the first bars I started eating after I went gluten-free. They are great for travelling when you never know what gluten-free options are available. Cashew cookie is one of my favorites and I just tried the cookie dough which is pretty good too. Other gluten-free bars I like are: Perfect Foods Bars, The Good on Ya Bar, and Zing Bars.