A Canadian woman who went viral for revealing her shock at a "half-pound bar" of Whittaker's chocolate has spoken out after her video made headlines in Aotearoa.
Dr Ellie, who goes by the username @callherdoctore on TikTok, made local news after she shared her astonishment at the size of a standard block of Whittaker's Berry and Biscuit chocolate - initially believing the 250g slab was a super-sized, single-serving bar.
"I know we all say that Americans have really big portion sizes, but I'm from Canada and a normal size chocolate bar is 45g and a large size chocolate bar is 100g... do you want me to break some off? Is this normal in New Zealand?" she asked in the video, which has since been viewed almost 80,000 times.
Now, Ellie has responded to her newfound fame in Aotearoa, sharing a clip to her TikTok on Monday with the caption: "Should I add this to the featured section of my LinkedIn?"
"I ended up on the news in New Zealand," she began, before briefly explaining she had been given the "giant chocolate bar" by a co-worker who had family visiting from Aotearoa.
"I'd never seen a 'chocolate bar' this big before, with the exception of the big blocks of bakers' chocolate," she said.
"So, a bunch of New Zealanders came into my comments and corrected me, and told me it's not a chocolate bar, it's a chocolate 'block'. The intention is to eat it slowly and share it.
"I ate it over two days, which is slow for me, and I did not share it because it was some of the most delicious chocolate I've ever had in my entire life."
Ellie added she woke up to a direct message that morning alerting her to Newshub's article on the video, which was published on Monday.
"I thought, 'This is a unique situation I'm in'," she smiled, before showing a snippet of the story to her viewers.
"I'm so flattered, and I'm so happy that the video seems to have reached the right people - and everyone is lovingly chiding me for thinking that the block of chocolate was a bar of chocolate intended to be eaten by one person. In my case it absolutely was eaten by one person," she joked.
"Thank you to the people of New Zealand for educating me on the proper way to consume Whittaker's 250g chocolate block - not bar. I really hope to be able to visit New Zealand someday to try all the different kinds of Whittaker's chocolate... the 'Berries and Cookies' one was the only kind I've ever tried, so now I need to go and try all of them."
The response from Kiwi viewers was overwhelmingly positive, with many taking to the comments to reassure Ellie that keeping the block to herself was absolutely acceptable.
"As a Kiwi I don't think I have ever bought a block of Whittaker's with the intention of sharing - and that block never lasts more than a day," one shared, with a second adding: "Most Kiwis don't share their Whittaker's with no one, we normally eat it by ourselves and in less than a day."
"That makes me feel better! I was thinking, 'Damn, those guys have amazing self-control'," Ellie replied.
"I am from NZ and no, you eat it all to yourself gurl! Don't worry about those, 'You gotta share' ones," a third joked. "You only share Cadbury!"
"Whittaker's over two days. You are strong. Mine lasts two hours," a fourth quipped, while a fifth weighed in: "Considering I watched your first video, I find it absolutely amusing that you made it to NZ news."
"It's definitely a story I'll be sharing for years!" she responded.
Others recommended their favourite flavours, while several tagged Whittaker's account in the comments and urged them to send Ellie a box of chocolate to taste-test for her newfound fans.
Ellie is currently living in Seoul and often shares videos documenting her day-to-day life in South Korea, including local activities and recommendations. In February, she graduated from Korea University with a PhD in North Korean Studies, and currently works as a regional security analyst and advisor.
