FRUITS AND NUTS
Today I visited one of my favorite stores, Economy Candy, on Rivington Street. It's pretty much the greatest place ever, unless you're a diabetic or claustrophobic. But if you're neither of those and you love candy then definitely go to Economy Candy, because it will entertain and delight you to no end, as well as offer you all manner of current and nostalgic candy treats.
I don't want to sound like a Fame Whore or anything but the last time I visited, about 8 months ago, I saw AN OLSEN TWIN shopping there, and it was honestly one of the most disturbing things I have ever witnessed. Remember those fuzzy-haired toy trolls that were so popular in the '80's? It was like seeing one of those, dressed in a dirty caftan, accompanied by an enormous bodyguard, grabbing at candy indisciminately and with a kind of rabid, glassy-eyed enthusiasm I can liken only to a lobotomized Muppet who has retained the ability to be rabidly enthusiastic. My point is that if AN OLSEN TWIN shops at Economy Candy, you know it's good stuff.
The shelves are lined, floor to ceiling with everything from Pez, to olde timey Violet lozenges, candy cigarettes, Nerds, Big League Chew, caramels, licorice, Lindt chocolate, bulk candies like jelly beans, gummy bears, red hots, and even those gross kosher jelly fruit slices. But my favorite stuff is the old-fashioned candy, and Economy Candy has it all: Sky bars, Mallo Cups, Black Jack Gum which is totally gross but the packaging is amazing, Mary Janes, Smarties, those disgusting Necco Wafers (again, great packaging!) and just like, a bazillion more that I can't even think of.
Wait, did I say my favorite stuff was the old-fashioned candy? No, that's not right. My favorite favorite stuff is the Imports. I lived in Brighton, England for six months when I was just a girl of twenty years, and because I was sometimes lonely in that grey resort town I became addicted to British Chocolate Bars. Years have passed since my Brighton residency and while I've no taste for the loneliness, my palate still craves the chocolate. Economy has all my favorites! Cadbury Flake, which is just the most horribly-textured chocolate in the history of the world, but so typifies British cuisine that I adore it; Cadbury's Crunchie which has a super-crispety honeycomb center; Nestle's Lion Bar, which, if I remember correctly, is chocolate-covered wafers and crisped rice and maybe some caramel? But my Ultimate Favorite continues to be the Cadbury Dairy Milk Fruit and Nut Bar. It's simple: raisins and almonds in milk chocolate. I LOVE THIS CANDY BAR! I love its shiny purple foil wrapper! I love the creamy richness of the chocolate! I LOVE LOVE LOVE the sweetness and chewiness of the raisins intermingled with the crunch and saltiness of the almonds! And I also LOVE the surprise of each bite: will there be an almond, or a raisin, or neither, or, best, BOTH, in a single square from the bar? Fruit and Nut is MYSTERIOUS and SURPRISING and it is one of the only foods that I will allow to pass my lips that has those qualities!
I bought one today. And I ate it today. Yes, it was only a minor treat in what will no doubt be a major lifetime, but Economy Candy is a small store in what is no doubt a big city, so what is that if not the perfect ratio of something to something else? I should maybe not use math metaphors but hopefully you get my meaning.
I don't want to sound like a Fame Whore or anything but the last time I visited, about 8 months ago, I saw AN OLSEN TWIN shopping there, and it was honestly one of the most disturbing things I have ever witnessed. Remember those fuzzy-haired toy trolls that were so popular in the '80's? It was like seeing one of those, dressed in a dirty caftan, accompanied by an enormous bodyguard, grabbing at candy indisciminately and with a kind of rabid, glassy-eyed enthusiasm I can liken only to a lobotomized Muppet who has retained the ability to be rabidly enthusiastic. My point is that if AN OLSEN TWIN shops at Economy Candy, you know it's good stuff.
The shelves are lined, floor to ceiling with everything from Pez, to olde timey Violet lozenges, candy cigarettes, Nerds, Big League Chew, caramels, licorice, Lindt chocolate, bulk candies like jelly beans, gummy bears, red hots, and even those gross kosher jelly fruit slices. But my favorite stuff is the old-fashioned candy, and Economy Candy has it all: Sky bars, Mallo Cups, Black Jack Gum which is totally gross but the packaging is amazing, Mary Janes, Smarties, those disgusting Necco Wafers (again, great packaging!) and just like, a bazillion more that I can't even think of.
Wait, did I say my favorite stuff was the old-fashioned candy? No, that's not right. My favorite favorite stuff is the Imports. I lived in Brighton, England for six months when I was just a girl of twenty years, and because I was sometimes lonely in that grey resort town I became addicted to British Chocolate Bars. Years have passed since my Brighton residency and while I've no taste for the loneliness, my palate still craves the chocolate. Economy has all my favorites! Cadbury Flake, which is just the most horribly-textured chocolate in the history of the world, but so typifies British cuisine that I adore it; Cadbury's Crunchie which has a super-crispety honeycomb center; Nestle's Lion Bar, which, if I remember correctly, is chocolate-covered wafers and crisped rice and maybe some caramel? But my Ultimate Favorite continues to be the Cadbury Dairy Milk Fruit and Nut Bar. It's simple: raisins and almonds in milk chocolate. I LOVE THIS CANDY BAR! I love its shiny purple foil wrapper! I love the creamy richness of the chocolate! I LOVE LOVE LOVE the sweetness and chewiness of the raisins intermingled with the crunch and saltiness of the almonds! And I also LOVE the surprise of each bite: will there be an almond, or a raisin, or neither, or, best, BOTH, in a single square from the bar? Fruit and Nut is MYSTERIOUS and SURPRISING and it is one of the only foods that I will allow to pass my lips that has those qualities!
I bought one today. And I ate it today. Yes, it was only a minor treat in what will no doubt be a major lifetime, but Economy Candy is a small store in what is no doubt a big city, so what is that if not the perfect ratio of something to something else? I should maybe not use math metaphors but hopefully you get my meaning.
posted by Megan at 1:26 AM
2 Comments:
hey megan, I thought you were refering to all of the people you meet at the corner Bistro place. get it?
ha haha ha.
All those Cadbury chocolate bars are available everywhere in Canada. Like all regular convenience stores and the grocery store and 7-11, not just specialty candy stores. Mmm! I love the fruit and nut too!
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