Just in time for Halloween, Dylan's Candy Bar in New York City has expanded. An additional 5,000 square feet have been added, making it the largest candy store in the world. Opened in September 2001 by Dylan Lauren, daughter of fashion icon Ralph, the store sells more than 5,000 varieties of candy — from bulk chocolate treats and gummy candies to 21 different colors of M&Ms and novelty sweets such as three-foot-tall lollipops and candy mobile phones. A real-life Candyland, Dylan's is a destination for kids and adults alike with its candy-themed clothing and jewelry, a private party room, and a soda shop.
To celebrate the store's expansion, Dylan's hosted a grand reopening party earlier this week that brought out the child in all of its attendees, including yours truly! Here's my behind-the-scenes look at the fiesta.
Behind Valentine's Day and Christmas, Halloween is the third biggest candy-selling holiday of the year. For kids, trick-or-treating makes Halloween one of the year's best holidays; for adults, Halloween is an occasion to buy scrumptious sweets.
I've already purchased Reese's peanut butter cups, because they're my cutie's favorite. But what will you be handing out? Will it be your favorite candy (since you finally have an excuse to buy it!), or will it be something you don't like, so you won't eat it? Are you giving out traditional candy bars, or opting for homemade treats, like caramel apples or popcorn balls?
I was thrilled last weekend when, while out eating Chinese, I came across a Taiwanese small plate that I enjoyed growing up. It's slivered pig's ears, and it's delicious, with a light soy-sauce flavor and both a gelatinous and crunchy texture.
Lately, it seems like people are willing to do anything — including serve jail time — over food. Earlier this month, a Florida man was arrested for trying to pay for his McDonald's meal with pot. This week, two cooks were put behind bars for intentionally contaminating a police chief's food. Now, a man has been arrested for letting his girlfriend eat off his buffet plate while refusing to pay for two meals. On Oct. 21, Dan Linscomb and his girlfriend dined at the Iron Skillet restaurant in Atlanta. While he admitted in a police report that his girlfriend "ate a couple bites from his plate," Linscomb defended his position, saying, "there were no signs in the restaurant that said someone could not have some food off your plate." The restaurant staff called local police, who arrested Linscomb on theft. Two days later, he was released after pleading guilty to a lesser charge of disorderly conduct.
In today's tough times, should restaurants charge both parties regardless of how much they eat, or do establishments need to go easy on customers like Linscomb, who may simply be trying to scrape by? Have you ever eaten "two-for-one" at a buffet before?
Elixir, the bar where LibertySugar and I are hosting our town-hall style election-night bash, is offering guests a selection of drinking specials for the party. With fabulous names like "Bye Bye Miss American Rye," the menu will feature only American brands like Bluecoat gin, Square One vodka, and Sam Adams brew. I plan on ordering the "Red, White, and Night" a potent, sangria-like concoction made with vodka, red wine, and lemonade. To serve up this slinger at your own election-night soirée, get the recipe and read more
Since you seem to know your candy classics so well, I thought I'd put you to the test again: I picked up some more traditional favorites, and I'm curious to know how well you can identify them. Do you know your candy? There's only one way to find out!
No Romeo
Fabi
Ben Sherman