Let’s get one thing straight: in my world the best candy store is the one I’m standing in, preferably with chocolate in hand. Looking through my thousands of photos I recently realized that I have been through a lot of candy stores over the years and every place has been a delight.
Interestingly, many The Vacation Gals posts have a candy theme as well. For example, ColoradoGal has been to Chutters in Littleton, NH, where you will find the longest candy counter. Last winter my family toured the Jelly Belly Visitor Center in Kenosha, WI and we went to the opening of the temporary Minnesota History Center’s Chocolate: The Exhibition which included chocolate tastings from local shops. And then there was our ultimate candy adventure last fall: Hershey Park in Hershey, PA which also includes some pretty fabulous candy stores. But there have been more candy stores to add to my list…
In October my crew (I work for an airline) got stranded in Kansas City due to power outage at the airport. So what did we do for five hours? We sweet-talked the hotel van driver to take us to a local shopping center where we stumbled upon this chocolate store called the Chocolaterie Stam. This is the most elegantly decorated chocolate shop I have even seen – think gorgeous ceiling tiles, royalty-inspired furniture and sparkling chandeliers and, naturally, truffles for every palate.
During my family’s two-week long road trip to the East Coast last fall we stumbled into the Candy Man found on the main street of Lake Placid, NY. The massive assortment of chocolates and truffles made it a challenge to choose just one so we left with an overflowing bag.
Jim’s Apple Farm in Jordan, MN (aka the big yellow barn), boasts it’s the Largest Candy Store in Minnesota and indeed, it is.
Shelves and tables are neatly piled with every type of candy imaginable, including favorite classics like Dots and licorice, as well as tubs of local homemade treats. I believe I even saw some candy cigarettes (controversy anyone?). In other words, if you love it they most likely have it.
I look forward to finding more candy shops during my travels. Do you have a memorable candy store? Please share, we’re always looking for great places to satisfy our sweet tooth.
Yum – lots of good shops here. I would also add Dylan’s Candy Bar (multiple locations!) and the candy shop at FAO Schwarz in Manhattan. Candyland indeed. Thanks for the post!
There’s Daffin’s Chocolate Kingdom in Sharon, PA. It’s out of the way, but claims the title as the world’s largest candy store. Our reviewer thought it was a letdown, although he did like the taffy selection!
you DID see candy cigarrettes – I blogged about them once.
I can’t believe it but my dad used to buy them for me when I was a kid! WHAT?!?
Yikes!
One a trip to Costa Rica I went to a Cocoa Plantation and had a tour around it. It was quite beautiful. We tasted the raw fruit that comes from the Cocoa plant. Was interesting… had the consistency of a booger so I had a hard time getting past it. Regardless it was a neat experience to see the journey that the Cocoa plant travels to get to taste the final product.
I have also been to the Jelly Belly Factory in Vacaville California. Delicious little factory where you can go in and see how the beans are made. They also have a tasting bar and a restaurant where you can get tons of delicious treats. I also liked the discount area where you can buy belly flops for like $2.00 a lb. What a treat.
ROFL — That “World’s Largest Hershey’s Kiss” is almost as big as the head of the little girl holding it.