(From Did You Know…? )
The series from the History Channel called “The Food that Built America” , that you really should get a chance to check out, talked about how chocolate has a fascinating history in Chicago- going all the way back to the World’s Fair. That’s when Milton Hershey visited and got the idea to open a chocolate factory based on the confection he tasted here. Mars was one of Hershey’s biggest clients, even. Milky Way was Mars’ first big hit, as they trying to replicate the taste of a milk shake in a candy bar.
Yes, Mars, Inc., which owns the Wrigley Company (as in the gum, and yes, as in Wrigley Field where the Cubs play!), is awesome and all, but some of the best sweet treats in Chicago are on the smaller side. DeMet’s is here, the Turtles chocolates folks, and are Tootsie Rolls, and- you may not know the name, but you most likely know the smell: Blommer Chocolate Company. Anyone who’s ever even driven through the West Loop knows that distinctive baked brownie smell.
And speaking of which, when I was a kid in the 80s, from Albany Park and Ravenswood down through Avondale, every so often, I would smell butterscotch in the air. That’s because Chicago doesn’t do just chocolate, but sadly, there aren’t as many candy companies here as there used to be. If you saw the 2008 Batman movie The Dark Knight, then you remember the scene where Gothan General Hospital was blown up. That implosion was actually the abandoned Brach’s candy factory back in 2007!
And since we’re on the subject of famous locations, I absolutely must mention Margie’s Candies in Bucktown. Not only did Al Capone visit there regularly (yes, it’s that old!), but the Beatles visited too after a show in the former Comiskey Park. Now true, they’re mostly known for their ice cream, but they are a confectionery, so we’ll go ahead and include it.
<— and now back to Did You Know…? for more interesting facts!
Lori Dake, an Illinois Licensed Broker
www.LoriDake.com
P: (773) 697-4474
F: (773) 717-5500
E: LDake@KaleRealty.com
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Kale Realty
2447 N. Ashland Ave.
Chicago, IL 60614
www.KaleRealty.com
(312) 939-5253