26 Canadian Snacks Only In Canada & Other Treats

Are you looking for Canadian snacks only in Canada?

I’m a true snacker. I love eating snacks every chance that I get. Growing up in Vancouver, Canada, as a kid, you were exposed to the many savoury and sweet snacks only found in Canada, especially at the grocery stores.

I discovered as a teenager that most of the snacks and sweets I grew up with were only found in Canada. So, if you’re looking for a Canadian snack only found in Canada to try, gift back home, or looking to stock up for yourself to bring home, I’ve got you covered.

I’ll be discussing popular savoury snacks and include sweet treats that you can find almost all over Canada and that many Canadians love to snack on daily.

Canadian Snacks Only In Canada

Here are all the Canadian savoury snacks, chocolate bars, and candy you can try that are only found in Canada.

1. Poutine

Poutine is a Canadian classic that started in Quebec and is one of the most popular snacks in Canada. A classic Canadian poutine consists of crispy fries topped with fresh cheese curds and gravy.

While the classic version is cherished, poutine has also inspired creative variations, featuring additions like pulled pork, mushrooms, caramelized onions, bacon, and more. 

2. Ruffles All Dressed Chips

Ruffles All Dressed is a top chip flavour in Canada. I’m a chip monster, and they’re in my top 10 favourite chips. It’s a light, smokey flavour with a mix of salt and a hint of sweetness.

3. Lays Ketchup Chips

You’ll either love them or think they’re out there, but Lays Ketchup Chips are a Canadian staple. They’re potato chips with a mix of tangy and sweet ketchup flavours.

4. Hickory Sticks

These thin, matchstick-like potato chips can be addictive. Hickory Sticks are known for their smoky flavour. They’re seasoned with a distinctive hickory barbecue taste that’s a hit at any Canadian gathering.

5. Lays Dill Pickle Chips

Lays Dill Pickle chips are another popular Canadian chip flavour. With the distinct zing of dill pickles, the result is a chip flavour-balanced mix of saltiness and tanginess. It’s also another one of my favourites.

6. Hawkins Cheezies

Hawkins Cheezies is known for its distinct crunchy, bright orange, bold cheesy flavour. The corn-based snack of Hawkins Cheezies is deeply ingrained in Canadian snacking culture and enjoyed at gatherings and for everyday snacking.

7. Kraft Dinner

Kraft Dinner, or KD to Canadians, is a mac and cheese in-a-box fast and easy comfort food. Since Kraft Dinner is quick and easy to make, it has become a reliable last-minute meal option for busy individuals, families, and college students.

8. Pizza Pops

Pizza Pops look similar to a calzone but smaller. Inside, it’s a simple yet flavourful filling with tomato sauce, cheese, and other toppings inside a letter D-shaped dough. It’s another staple for college students and children and a quick, easy snack.

9. Montreal-Style Bagels

Montreal-style bagels, also known as Montreal bagels, offer a unique twist on the classic bagel. In contrast to the traditional New York bagels, these are smaller, thinner, denser, slightly sweeter, and have larger holes.

Another way to distinguish them is that they’re always baked in wood-fired ovens instead of burlap planks, which is how the New York ones are baked.

10. BeaverTails

Picture yourself at a winter festival or event, indulging in a BeaverTail — no, not an actual beaver’s tail, but a delicious, fried-dough pastry. These treats mirror the shape of a beaver’s tail and are a Canadian specialty.

Toppings range from cinnamon sugar to chocolate hazelnut spread. My favourite is a BeaverTail with Nutella and sliced bananas.

11. Nanaimo Bars

Originating from the West Coast city of Nanaimo, British Columbia, Nanaimo bars are a no-bake dessert you must try. They’re a layered dessert that’s more popular on the West Coast.

The Nanaimo Bar has a smooth chocolate layer on top, either vanilla or custard-flavoured butter icing in the middle, and crushed graham crackers and nuts mixed with chocolate at the bottom.

Grocery stores sell boxed baking mixes with most of the ingredients to make Nanaimo Bars at home.

12. Butter Tarts

Butter tarts are small pastries with a buttery filling that often includes raisins or nuts. While they’re well known in Canada, they’re a more popular sweet treat on the East Coast.

13. Maple Shaped Cookies

Enjoy a special Canadian snack: maple leaf-shaped cookies. It’s a unique treat with a sweet maple flavour and creamy filling. Not only do these cookies taste delicious, but they also make for an excellent gift as a Canadian souvenir.

14. Coffee Crisp

One of my favourite chocolate bars is Coffee Crisp. It’s a Canadian staple consistently ranked as the top favourite Canadian chocolate bar.

With alternating layers of vanilla wafers, a foamed coffee-flavour soft candy inside, and a milk chocolate coating, it’s no wonder the chocolate bar is so wildly popular among Canadians.

During Halloween, you can buy these distinctive red boxes containing a mix of four different chocolates: KitKats, Smarties (the Canadian way, which I’ll mention next), Aero (I’ll mention them further down in this post), and Coffee Crisp.

If you bring one of the mixed boxes over during a party or hand it out to office workers, the Coffee Crisp bars are almost always the first to go.

15. Smarties

Smarties may sound familiar to you if you’re an American or have seen them in the United States. However, Canadian Smarties are different from American Smarties.

In fact, the small round condensed power candy called Smarties in America are called Rockets in Canada.

Canadian Smarties, in my opinion, are way better, although I do like Rockets when they’re around for Halloween.

Smarties in Canada are dragée, a bite-sized confectionery* with a hard outer shell. They’re colourful on the outside with chocolate on the inside.

💡 Note: *Confectionery – candy

16. Aero

Aero chocolate bars are famous for their distinctively bubbly texture inside. The innovative use of aerated chocolate creates a light and airy feel, different from your other typical chocolate bars.

Breaking off a piece reveals the delicate bubbles, creating a smooth, creamy texture that melts in your mouth. Various flavours include classic milk chocolate, mint, and caramel. Mint is my favourite, mostly because I’m a mint-flavour-loving gal.

17. Crispy Crunch

Crispy Crunch chocolate bars are a simple combination of a hard chocolate bar and flakey peanut butter inside. While they’re not as popular as Coffee Crisp, they’re only found in Canada.

18. Big Turk

Again, not as popular, but still only found in Canada is Big Turk. It’s a different type of chocolate bar with a dark red Turkish delight in the middle and coated in chocolate.

19. Caramilk

Another classic and simple milk chocolate bar with caramel in the middle is the Cadbury Caramilk chocolate bar. They’re wildly popular among Canadians.

20. Mackintosh’s Toffee

Mackintosh’s Toffee has been a classic Canadian confection for over a century. The golden buttery slab, born in 1890, delivers a pure, chewy deliciousness. You can break it into bite-sized pieces.

21. Purdys Chocolatier

Purdys Chocolatier, a well-known Canadian chocolate brand founded in Vancouver, is the most popular location to buy quality chocolates. 

Purdys has become a go-to store in Canada for those looking to gift chocolates to anyone during holidays or birthdays or even bring them back home. 

Their assortment includes a variety of chocolates, from classic milk to rich dark chocolate options, as well as the use of candies and nuts.

22. Swedish Berries

Swedish Berries are a soft, chewy, red berry-shaped gummy candy. The flavour is hard to pinpoint unless you try it yourself, but it tastes like a mix of strawberry and raspberry.

23. Sour Cherry Blasters

One of my favourite candies is Sour Cherry Blasters. They’re small, soft, chewy cherry-shaped gummies. I can handle sourness; to me, they’re not sour but can be sour for others.

24. Maple Syrup Candies

Maple syrup is for more than a topping on pancakes. Maple syrup candies are a staple sweet in Canada, crafted from pure maple syrup and nothing else. They’re shaped into little leaves or other Canadian-themed shapes, delivering a sweet caramelized flavour.

25. Glosette

Glosettes are chocolate-covered raisins. And while you may think it’s “gross” because of the raisins, they’re good, and I enjoy them, but to each their own, and it’s a Canadian candy only found in Canada.

26. Jos Louis

Jos Louis is a Canadian small cookie-size cake with two chocolate cake layers with a creamy filling, creating a perfectly balanced and satisfying treat.

Where To Find Canadian Snacks

You can find most candies and chocolates in stores such as Walmart, The Real Canadian Superstore, Save on Foods, gas stations, and any stores that sell chocolate and chips.

BeaverTails will have to come from winter festivals or, if there’s a local location, wherever you’re in Canada. You can find maple syrup candies in souvenir shops or sometimes grocery stores.

What Is The Most Common Snack In Canada?

While there’s no specific most popular snack item in Canada, savoury snacks are the most common snack type overall.

Conclusion

As you can see, there are many Canadian snacks only in Canada. These snacks are a part of almost every Canadian’s life, including mine; I love my snacks. Whether it’s the famous Lays Ketchup Chips, Nanaimo Bars, Coffee Crisp, or poutine, these snacks hold a special place in Canadian hearts.

Have a good day 🙂