Chefs' chocolate wars!

They have had the knives out for each other since their professional rivalry simmered over on a reality TV programme.

Antony Worrall Thompson and the outspoken Gordon Ramsay last crossed Sabatier steel on the Scottish chef 's show Hell's Kitchen earlier this year.

Now their spat is being continued at a different venue - on a supermarket shelf near you. Both Ramsay and Worrall Thompson have launched a range of fancy chocolates and are battling for supremacy in the Christmas confectionery department.

There the boxes of chocs sit, nestling almost alongside each other on the shelf at Waitrose.

But which of these two culinary heavyweights will win the great truffle scuffle?

Gordon Ramsay's Just Desserts (was that pun really necessary?) are smartly packaged in a silver and purple box and include flavours such as "pistachio truffle" and "blossom honey".

Worrall Thompson's Original Chocolate Collection comes suavely presented in a matt-black box, featuring the grinning features of their creator - which may appeal to some chocolate-lovers more than others.

Ramsay's retail at £5.99 and AWT's at 4p less.

Enough about the packaging, though - how do the chocolates measure up?

To guarantee impartiality, the Evening Standard asked Martin Christy, editor of seventypercent.com - a website devoted to fine chocolate - to taste the rival products. And Mr Christy did not pull his punches.

Turning first to Worrall Thompson, whose packaging claims the treats have "nothing unnecessary added", he pointed out that there are five E-numbers (artificial colouring) and artificial flavouring among the long list of ingredients.

Crushingly for Worrall Thompson, Mr Christy concluded: "Not a good way to spend your money if you want a chocolate fix."

The verdict on Ramsay - who once referred to Worrall

Thompson as a "squashed Bee Gee" - was almost equally withering. Although he emerged the winner by a "sugary whisker", Mr Christy concluded: "Better to spend your money on good fine chocolate."

Oh dear. The heat has just been turned up under the the Ramsay/Worrall Thompson feud.