194228 Thu Mar 21 23:10:38 -0800 2002 23 18 Manhattan 0 1036755 I had a fun experience today. Had lunch at Fried Dumpling on Allen Street, and then realized that I have been meaning for years to check out Economy Candy, at 108 Rivington Street. Turns out that the place is pretty neat - all different kinds of candy, some of which you have not seen for years. Plus, a good selection of nuts, dried fruit, macaroons, etc. But this is not really why I'm posting. About a year ago, while in London, I spied a large version of Kit Kat bar in a candy store. I've always liked the smaller ones (you know, the 4 "finger" variety), so I figured that I'd check out this new kind. I had one, and was hooked. I could not put my finger on it, but it just tasted so much better. Maybe, I mused, it was the larger wafer. In any event, I wound up having one each day I was there, and brought a bunch home as well. My then-fiance (now wife) tried them, and she agreed that they were great, but she attributed it to the quality of the English chocolate. Thinking she might be on to something, I sought out the US version of this large Kit Kat bar, and found that they were widely available. Bought some, and tasted them side-by-side with the "Brit Kats", as we now called the English ones. I definitely detected a difference. So last May, we got married, and it happened that the honeymoon was to Greece, and it further happened that we would connect in Heathrow for the flight to Athens. Yee-haw - a chance to get more Brit-Kats! (I suppose I could really elevate my Chowhound status to say that I booked this connecting flight solely for chow reasons). We picked up a bunch, and after getting home, I decided that we needed to validate this with a blind taste test. We gathered some friends, cut up US and English kit-kats, and put it to a test. With one exception, everyone agreed that the British. From that point on, any friends who planned to go to Britain, or even pass through, were tasked with bringing some more back for us. Okay, so what does this have to do with Economy Candy? Well, while waiting on line, I spied a basket filled with large Kit Kats in wrappers much like those in London. I read the nutrition information, and when it referred to kilojoules instead of calories, I knew something was up. So I asked the guy at the register where they were from, he responded in a very natural tone, "England - they are much better than the ones from here". Well, maybe it's not a big deal, but I was pretty excited to have my preferences validated, to say nothing of how happy I am to have found a local source! Thu Mar 21 23:10:38 -0800 2002 0 Dave 1 1036760 You should try the Canadian ones. They are just as good as the British Ones. I think that the secret is in the foil wrapping. Fri Mar 22 08:44:53 -0800 2002 1036755 0 Karen the Allergic 2 1036771 Funny you should mention that. We were up in Nova Scotia last summer and I picked up one of the "4 fingers" kit kat bars to do a comparison to the US version, but never got around to doing the test yet. I still have it, but I suspect that since they are not fresh at this point it would not be a fair comparison. Fri Mar 22 11:46:11 -0800 2002 1036760 0 Dave 3 1036781 I'm in agreement about the better kit kat bar but I wanted to add that a few months ago I sent a mixed basket of candies from economy to someone who needed some cheering up and they did a spectacular job filling it with hard to find treats as well as retro candy that all worked like a charm. They also have a great selction of imported black licorices.... And should someone not be in nyc, doing a google search will lead you to many online retro candy sites that will send and deliver all over...... Fri Mar 22 13:37:21 -0800 2002 1036771 0 djk 4 1036814 there's a myers of keswick store in the west village, on 9th ave and a block south of horatio. Fri Mar 22 18:25:41 -0800 2002 1036781 0 ltjbukem 5 1036932 Actually, it's on Hudson St. Mon Mar 25 09:56:00 -0800 2002 1036814 0 Stephanie L. 4 1036817 www.economycandy.com If you don't like what you see, they will put together whatever you'd like in the basket. As a side note, their chocolate covered grahams are AMAZING (and i'm not a big candy person). Fri Mar 22 19:30:42 -0800 2002 1036781 0 thereuare 1 1036761 I agree with you about the superiority of the "chunky" British Kit-Kats. Also, if you're into this sort of thing, they now have white chocolate Kit Kats in England. And Economy Candy rocks!! The last time I was there, right by the front door they had a "movie candy" special--big boxes of Raisinets and Sno-Caps for 99 cents each. I'm going over there this weekend to stock up on dried fruit & chocolate-covered matzos for Passover. Fri Mar 22 09:26:53 -0800 2002 1036755 0 Stephanie L. 2 1036762 Also, if you're into this sort of thing, they now have white chocolate Kit Kats in England.>> A white chocolate Kit Kat - I have to try one of these pronto. Who makes them? Do the have a special name or do they just call them White Chocolate Kit Kats? (as I see that the US and England don't exactly have the same names for the same candy bars) and I wonder how I can get one here, as I have no plans to be in England anytime in the forseeable future. Thanks. Fri Mar 22 09:55:51 -0800 2002 1036761 0 shortstop 3 1036764 It's whoever makes the regular Kit-Kats over there (don't know offhand who that would be). I think they're called Kit-Kat White. I have yet to see a white chocolate Kit-Kat in the States, but I don't really like white chocolate anyway. They seemed to be hard-to-find in England as well--maybe they've just been introduced. Fri Mar 22 10:03:37 -0800 2002 1036762 0 Stephanie L. 2 1036769 Gee, I have to try to find some of the white ones. Maybe I do have reasons to ask friends visiting the UK to bring stuff back. By the way, in the UK I also had Mint Chocolate Kit Kats - they were good as well. Maybe the guy at Economy Candy could bring the white and the mint varieties over as well. Fri Mar 22 11:43:49 -0800 2002 1036761 0 Dave 3 1036770 Mint Kit-Kats?? I've never seen those! If you find a place that has them let me know, 'cause I just love mint chocolate. Fri Mar 22 11:45:49 -0800 2002 1036769 0 Stephanie L. 2 1036816 Oh wow, white chocolate Kit-Kats. When I was in England this fall I went nuts for the orange flavored ones. It took us a couple years to get the big Kit-Kats, so I predict the orange, mint and white chocolate flavors will eventually make their way over. Unfortunately, the chocolate doesn't taste as good in the U.S. versions. Fri Mar 22 19:12:57 -0800 2002 1036761 0 Krista G. 1 1036766 Great Post. My girlfriend is a serious chocoholic and gave it up for lent. We live near Economy Candy and when walking by the other day, she stopped in front of Economy and said "one sec" We walked in the front door and I was thinking that she was about to break lent. Instead she just stepped in and took a big wiff and headed back out the door. She had this big smile on her face that said Ahhh... She's half Irish and English and buys chocolate from Myers of Keswick when there. and some of the other Deli's on First Ave that have English candy. She always says that American Chocolate is inferior to the English Brnads. She's refering to your everyday candy bars not the hi-end stuff. I believe her because this IS her thing and not mine. Oh I can talk about a Cuban Sandwich for days but when it comes to the candy I defer to the expert... Fri Mar 22 10:54:52 -0800 2002 1036755 0 SLAP 2 1036810 Thanks for the BritKat info, Dave! IDNKT (i did not know that)! Btw, Economy has great buys on raspberry jells and dried cherries ($10/lb. for the latter, which is the lowest i've ever seen). So, SLAP, where do you get your Cubanos? Fri Mar 22 17:12:19 -0800 2002 1036766 0 jellyapple 1 1036788 I'm pretty sure they have the English Kit Kats at the Key Food on 5th Avenue in Brooklyn. They have a whole British section of food. Fri Mar 22 14:49:09 -0800 2002 1036755 0 cypressstylepie 2 1036820 BTW, Dylan's Candy Bar on Third Avenue and 60 Street has a wide variety of Chocolate Bars made in the UK by Cadbury, Nestle, etc. Way better than the US ones! Fri Mar 22 20:15:28 -0800 2002 1036788 0 smartblondie 2 1036926 I recind that, I guess. I went to the Key Food yesterday to confirm, but I didn't see them. Although I was in fult tilt distraction mode and my husband was wanting to get out of there. Maybe they were just out of them? Sorry. Mon Mar 25 09:22:18 -0800 2002 1036788 0 cyrpessstylepie 1 1036844 Regarding foreign candy-Fairway used to sell Kinder eggs-hollow chocolate eggs inside which was a tiny toy, usually quite cleverly designed-nothing like Cracker Jacks. Collecting these toys is quite an obsession-there are a million web sites describing them. Unfortunately, someone figured out that these toys were choking hazards and Kinder eggs are now impossible to find. Does anyone know where to find them? Sat Mar 23 10:28:45 -0800 2002 1036755 0 david 2 1036886 They have kinder eggs at the corner grocery on 9th Street and 1st Ave, for sure. I usually stock up on them in Canada, where they're cheap and plenty. Sun Mar 24 04:12:57 -0800 2002 1036844 0 l'il dragon 3 1036887 This is true about Canada, there are several merchants on the internet who will sell you a case (I used one once, about $20 postpaid - really good packing, for a case of 24 eggs) The problem is the ones in Canada are manufactured in Argentina. The quality of the toy is not as good as those manufactured in Germany & Italy. So, look at the label on the egg for clues to it's origin. Wish I didn't know this much! Sun Mar 24 08:49:11 -0800 2002 1036886 0 Phil Pace 1 1037275 If you 'appen to live in Brooklyn, Java Joe's Coffee on 8th Street just east of 7th Ave has a large supply--the owners wife is Irish. I spent one summer as a student in Ireland, and as they then had horrible food everywhere, it seemed, I lived on Brit chocloates (and Guiness)--they have all my favorites, and more, at Joe's. Sat Mar 30 12:35:14 -0800 2002 1036755 0 Lisa R. 1 1037351 So glad to hear I am not alone, although I have friends and families returning from the UK with Cadbury bars instead of Kit Kats. Cadbury has a whole explanation on their website which explains how different countries have different standards. US Cadburys are made at the Hershey factory and taste VERY different from their superior UK counterparts. Can I get these in NY? Sun Mar 31 23:53:37 -0800 2002 1036755 0 chris k 1 1037491 Kit Kats are all very well - but when you go to Myers of Keswick to get them, also get Fry's Chocolate Cream bars. (They might now be called Cadbury's, but they were Fry's when I used to buy them in Bristol, Engand as a kid. They used to be made in Keynsham just outside Bristol.} In any event, be they the ordinary, orange flavoured or mint, they should be regraded as Class A substances. Tue Apr 02 15:50:53 -0800 2002 1036755 0 Nick Bacon