But you’ve gotta be careful when it comes to chocolate. You don’t want a “fake” chocolate-syrup-like taste. Nor do you want a powdered-chocolate taste. Those who choose chocolate ice cream want the chocolate flavor to taste strong, sweet and natural.

We recently put five popular brands of chocolate ice cream to the test with our panel of reviewers from the York Daily Record/Sunday News Teen Takeover staff and found out they also pay attention to texture.

They don’t like ice chips marring the smoothness of their treat. Nor will they accept a slimy or heavy texture. Light and airy, smooth and well-blended seem to be the key.

Blue Bunny and Edy’s tied for the top spot, but both brands got some less-than sweet comments from members of our panel. Store brand? Forget about it, the teens say.

Below, check out their comments on the best brands in the freezer case, then choose for yourself.

Brand: Blue Bunny
Price: $3.99
Serving size: ½ cup
Servings per container: 14
Nutritional information: 150 calories, 7 grams fat, 35 mg cholesterol, 45 mg sodium, 16 grams sugar, 16 grams carbohydrates, 4 grams protein

Sophie Bushwick, York Suburban Senior High School: 4.5. This ice cream has a light, fluffy texture that melts deliciously. The flavor is mild, with an almost-marshmallow undertone. As a major chocoholic, I could use more flavor, but overall, this is excellent!

Jake Mokris, home-schooled: 2.5. If it were possible to turn the chocolate milk powder drink stuff into heavy, cold froth, it would taste like this ice cream. It’s all right.

Samantha Provenza, York Catholic High School: 4. Delicious! This ice cream had a light and airy texture and smooth chocolate flavor blended perfectly.

Brittany Preston, Central York High School: 4. It tastes chocolatey, pretty good but not amazing. I would say it’s average, run-of-the-mill chocolate ice cream.

Average rating: 3.75

Brand: Breyer’s
Price: $3.99
Serving size: ½ cup
Servings per container: 14
Nutritional information: 140 calories, 7 grams fat, 20 mg cholesterol, 40 mg sodium, 16 grams sugar, 17 grams carbohydrates, 3 grams protein

Sophie Bushwick, York Suburban Senior High School: 2.5. The texture of this one is a little lumpy — I can taste little bits of ice in it. Because of the ice, it lumps together and melts more slowly. The flavor is a bit stronger than the first one, but not as pleasant.

Jake Mokris, home-schooled: 3. It tastes a little watery, but that makes it almost like a Frosty from Wendy’s.

Samantha Provenza, York Catholic High School: 4. I really liked the rich, dark chocolate flavor.

Brittany Preston, Central York High School: 2. Not much flavor here. It reminds me of Styrofoam with a hint of chocolate (and a bit colder!).

Average rating: 2.875

Brand: Giant
Price: $2.79
Serving size: ½ cup
Servings per container: 14
Nutritional information: 150 calories, 8 grams fat, 30 mg cholesterol, 35 mg sodium, 13 grams sugar, 17 grams carbohydrates, 3 grams protein

Sophie Bushwick, York Suburban Senior High School: 2. This texture is heavier than the first, but more even and consistent than the second. Unfortunately, the flavor is marred by a cardboard-like undertone.

Jake Mokris, home-schooled: 2.5. It’s nice and creamy, but not as chocolatey as I’d like.

Samantha Provenza, York Catholic High School: 1. This tasted unlike any chocolate ice cream I’ve had before. There was a somewhat slimy texture and a cardboard aftertaste.

Brittany Preston, Central York High School: 1. Is this chocolate? I can’t tell what flavor it’s supposed to be. I’ll pass.

Average rating: 1.625

Brand: Edy’s
Price: $3.99
Serving size: ½ cup
Servings per container: 14
Nutritional information: 150 calories, 8 grams fat, 25 mg cholesterol, 35 mg sodium, 15 grams sugar, 17 grams carbohydrates, 3 grams protein

Sophie Bushwick, York Suburban Senior High School: 4. This ice cream has the thickest consistency and strongest flavor so far. On the other hand, the flavor tastes more like chocolate syrup than chocolate.

Jake Mokris, home-schooled: 4. All I can say is that it’s very chocolatey — and very good.

Samantha Provenza, York Catholic High School: 5. This ice cream was amazing. Very sweet! It’s rich, chocolate color looked succulent before I even took a bite.

Brittany Preston, Central York High School: 2. This tastes chemical-induced. I’m worried it will give me a disease.

Average rating: 3.75

Brand: Turkey Hill
Price: $3.99
Serving size: ½ cup
Servings per container: 14
Nutritional information: 150 calories, 7 grams fat, 25 mg cholesterol, 45 mg sodium, 14 grams sugar, 19 grams carbohydrates, 2 grams protein

Sophie Bushwick, York Suburban Senior High School: 5. The flavor is chocolatey, but without the chocolate-syrup harshness. This and the first one are my favorites.

Jake Mokris, home-schooled: 1. When you look at it, you think it’s chocolate. But it’s barely chocolate at all — more like caramel.

Samantha Provenza, York Catholic High School: 4. I really liked this flavor. It tasted similar to chocolate soft-serve.

Brittany Preston, Central York High School: 4.5. The best of the bunch, I’d say. It looks like chocolate ice cream and tastes like chocolate ice cream.

Average rating: 3.625