A Grown-Up In A Candy Store

I don’t have much use for candy, but I do love candy stores. I must be nostalgic for, well, nostalgia. Chocolate cigarettes and candy necklaces aren’t a part of my past, but wouldn’t it be fun if they were? For me, Jawbreakers and Lemonheads occupy the same fecund emotional territory as Brooklyn egg creams and the Twist. Other than through my childhood fondness for Archie comics and Roald Dahl, I can’t think how they all got there.

There’s something a little seedy about candy stores, too. So many items assembled for your gratification, vying for your attention with lurid colors; the shame of diets broken and teeth eroded. I wouldn’t go so far as to compare it to a porn shop, but I’ve never seen a kid in Economy Candy, the sugar superstore on Manhattan’s Lower East Side.

Economy Candy is the perfect antidote to the current New York trend of selling eight items per boutique, five of which are $45-a-bar “artisanal” soaps. (Ladies, you know what I’m talking about.) Shelves from floor to ceiling are stacked with Elvis Presley Pez dispensers, vintage gumball machines and obscure Cadbury products Britons had given up hope of finding in this city. Wasabi peas are scooped from open bushels, lollipops are bigger than your head, and Halloween seems much nearer than you thought. It’s all presided over by the charming son of the original owner–the family business is now in its 71st year.

There’s something for everyone at Economy Candy.

Girls:

boys:

smokers:

and jokers:

You’ll also find misnomers (shouldn’t these tamales be considered “cold”?):

fresh-made halva and Turkish Delight:

and a veritable mosaic of Ritter Sport varieties (if you haven’t tried these milk chocolate treats of German provenance, I particularly recommend the “Joghurt” flavor):

Aesthetes will appreciate these dainty boxes of fruited mints:

the licorice marketed to Vikings:

and candy-covered sea-shells that really look like they’ve weathered the tides:

Economy Candy is true to its name. Lindt bars of all varieties are now on sale for 99 cents, ten-pound grab bags of Halloween favorites are available year-round for $18, and they’ll beat anyone’s price on dried fruits and nuts.

Whether you’re genuinely sweet-toothed, or just a nostalgia tourist like me, you’ll find sustenance at this wonderful store.

Economy Candy
108 Rivington St
New York, NY 10002
(212) 254-1531

The Turkish Delight delivery was just arriving as I took this picture.

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COMMENTS / 14 COMMENTS

Few things (that cost less than $5) make me happier than hazelnut Ritter. Your photos give me such a nostalgia trip…for New York.

Diana added this comment on September 17 2008 at 1:51 am

My favorite candy store!!! We go there every December with our nieces to buy candies for making our annual gingerbread house project.

Kian added this comment on September 17 2008 at 8:37 am

I have an unhealthy passion for Ritter chocolates. I would be in heaven in that shop!

Jules added this comment on September 17 2008 at 11:45 am

Diana: aww, sorry to reference your former neighbourhood!

Kian, I expect a detailed blog post thereon. I’m holding you to it.

Jules, the best part was that there were all sorts of flavors that you normally never see. Did you know they had a strawberry yoghurt flavor, for example? Incidentally, if you know what makes Ritter Sport sporty, please share.

Michele Humes added this comment on September 17 2008 at 11:53 am

Candy smokes FTW! I LOVED those when I was a kid…and YES, I did just kick my very real smoking habit. There’s something to be said, there, I think…

turtle added this comment on September 17 2008 at 1:40 pm

Awesome! I have to go here!

justJENN added this comment on September 17 2008 at 4:08 pm

I want gummy brains!
Oh, wait…

Calum Proctor added this comment on September 17 2008 at 8:17 pm

Hi! I’m a Genealogy enthusiast and wanted to say hello and ask where your family roots are? My husband’s are in Crawford County Pennsylvania (later to Pagosa Springs Colorado then San Diego). I enjoyed your post about the candy store. Many fond memories of many of those. Gerry

Gerry Humes added this comment on September 18 2008 at 10:31 am

Turtle, perhaps you should resume your candy smokes habit–should be a pleasant crutch.

Gerry, my (late) grandfather has a page on Roots Web. I descend from the Joy Nachod branch. And my non-Humes grandfather is from Xiamen, China.

Michele Humes added this comment on September 18 2008 at 10:40 am

Thanks for the link. Can’t see a link between the families, but I appreciate the response. I enjoyed reading your blog. Gerry

Gerry Humes added this comment on September 18 2008 at 8:28 pm

I LOVE Economy Candy! They have Razzles! Now if I could only find a place that has After Eight dinner mints…(I’ve been weirdly craving those for the past month despite not having had one in about 24 years…but peppermint patties are just NOT cutting it!).

aimee added this comment on September 19 2008 at 8:32 am

Aimee, are you sure they don’t have After Eights? They have a pretty extensive British collection, and it might have been filed away in there…

Michele Humes added this comment on September 19 2008 at 10:19 am

Hmmm…may be worth another shot. They didn’t have the dark chocolate Flake bars that I was after either…(at least, I didn’t see them, and for some reason, I’m always reluctant to ask…not sure why…probably the same reason I don’t like calling for delivery orders).

aimee added this comment on September 19 2008 at 10:59 am