The Candy Kid

Almost two years ago, I left a review highlighting a negative experience I had with The Candy Kid. Heather F, the owner at the time took the time to message me and got to the root of the problem — there was an apology, and the issue had been laid to rest. I hadn’t returned, but as far as I was concerned the issue was rectified.
Until today — I open up my e-​mail to see that someone had left a «compliment», this was no compliment, this was the presumed new owner and/​or employee of The Candy Kid berating me, and telling me I should be ashamed of myself for writing a negative review. Yes, you have every right to protect your business from accepting counterfeit bills, but a good portion of Canadian bills do not have the shiny strip, and are authentic. This was my experience two years ago, and I was humiliated as the cashier told me it was fake — I felt like I was being viewed as a criminal at the time. To this person (Karen), I didn’t blow this situation out of proportion, and you weren’t there to see how the employee behaved towards me. I interpreted her behaviour as rude, don’t tell me there’s «No way she would have been rude».
Thank you for telling me I should be ashamed of myself for using Unilocal to leave a negative review for a negative experience I had.
If anything this reassures that I will never return to this business, and I have already told my friends about this negative experience and recommended that they do not shop here.
To Heather, thank you for taking the time to respond to my concerns.
To Karen, this incident was nearly two years ago. What. Are. You. Doing?! You cannot go and attack customers for incidents that you have no knowledge on.

Ahhh candy. I love you so.
Popped into this store to check it out and see what they had as we happened to be in Kensington for the day.
Great location.
We were greeted by the cheeriest woman on the planet and she was proud to show off what they carried.
I love, love, love sour candy. I looked and looked and what they had did not fit the bill for me thus I left empty handed. :(
Not a lot of bulk product, a lot prebagged.
The store was clean and well organized and there were many things that allowed me that nostalgic trip down memory lane. There were a few stools that faced out to the main street for people watching.
Not cheap but most quality candy stores are not.
There was a coffee shop located in the back of the store, smelled amazing.
Lots of gift ideas as well for people, lots of stuffed animals on the shelves etc.
We will drop in again for sure if for nothing else just to be greeted as an appreciated guest in the the store and to try a java.

I get pretty excited about pick your own candy: the sours, the gummies, the suckers. I might even go so far as to call myself a bit of a candy connoisseur. I mean, I have been eating candy since I first convinced my parents it was okay for me to walk alone to the corner store to buy 5¢ candy at the tender age of 5 AND told them my dream was to marry someone who owned a candy store — true story… But I digress…
These days, it’s manifested itself in your run of the mill, full grown, slight yearn for the good old days and refined sugar craving. And every time I see a candy sign, I’m beckoned in. I can’t help myself – a candy store is like a sick addiction!
The Candy Kid has a remarkable selection of licorice, lollis, fudge, old school candies like gobstoppers and nerds, and randomly, tea. I love that their choose your own is served up in a cup that you can stuff for $ 2.25. I would have liked to see more choice in the choose your own tho. It was only one bank of bins and unfortunately, some of the candy choices were a wee bit stale. But regardless, candy is candy is candy and part of the fun is deciding what to pick!
Also, there’s a debit card minimum of $ 3 which only means one thing: buy more candy!

I like candy and I like this place. A friend of mine recently moved, he has a mean sweet tooth so shops like this come in super handy for whipping up a sweet lil care package. He’s especially a fan of lemonheads, and this place has got ‘em. I wish they had a larger selection of sour candies and maybe this shack is not the king of all candy shops — but it IS handy to have a candy shop in my ‘hood.

Being a kid has never been so easy as it is at the Candy Kid! When I’m in Kensington I will most always allow myself the pleasure of stopping in this wonderful little shop. I never knew of this place at the Calgary Farmers’ Market, but am sure glad I do now.
Here you can find candies that you haven’t seen since you were small. Or, if you are small right now, candies that your great great grandparents would drool over. It really doesn’t matter. You can find gobstoppers, jaw breakers, sour gumballs, and licorice. Candies from Holland, Poland, and various other countries are also available. Who wouldn’t want to try those, especially if you’ve never heard of, seen, nor tasted them before?
If you’re looking for something along the lines of a toy, the plush microbes might be what you’re looking for. You can get chlamydia, gonorrhea, and a variety of other lovable stuffed microbes. In addition to these lovelies, you may find Pez dispensers and candy, as well as a few other happy play things.
Wander your way towards the back of the shop, past the till, and you will find a nice, calming section filled with a beautiful selection of loose leaf teas. Really, what more can you ask for? Candy and tea in one convenient location? Unreal! This way you can get yourself worked up into a sugary frenzy, and then (attempt to) use the tea to calm down a bit.
Check it out. If you love candy and/​or tea, you are bound to love the Candy Kid!

A client chose to meet at The Candy Kid yesterday. I have to say, as a chocolate lover, I was disappointed. There just isn’t enough selection of chocolate items for my taste and I’d rather buy chocolate almonds at Superstore. I was excited to see fudge and bought the Eggnog. It’s okay but not overly flavorful. I wish I could have chosen the weight rather than having to purchase a brick, which was double what I wanted.
While deciding about a beverage, the staff encouraged me to try the Baked Apple Fog because «it tastes like hot apple pie in a mug.» Um, no it doesn’t. It was good but not overly hot and the apple flavor was very mild. I would get it again, though.
Seating is very limited but the tiny lounging area in the back was quiet and felt private, but of course no one else was sitting there.
The store has some fun knick-​knacks and I hadn’t actually seen Giant Microbes before (
), which made me laugh. It’s a clean and tidy place and I had very friendly service. It actually feels like a store that should be tucked away in a remote area or small town because of the crazy combination of items for purchase.

What can I say? What a sweet treat this store is!
I really can’t understand why people would have a problem with this place being a tea/​coffee shop and a candy store. Personally I think it’s a brilliant combination and sorry but candy draws in kids and kids like webkinz/​toys, so that is just a smart business decision (it’s called add on sales!). In this day and age business owners need to be smart and make the most out of every square inch of space to earn enough money.
I personally don’t drink tea but if I did I would excited to walk into this store and choose from their huge selection. Some people have reviewed this place and said it doesn’t carry enough candy variety… This must have been just during the opening weeks because they have got a great selection now, old and new brands… My darn hubby goes in here almost everyday to buy candy (probably not great for the diet) but it makes him happy, he’s a candy junkie. My fav is the berry penguins!
The owner of this store, Heather is so super sweet and goes out of her way to help customers… And lots of people don’t know that they have space on the 2^nd floor that they rent out for seminars and stuff.
Another thing I love about this place is their frontage of the store. They have set up a beautiful «courtyard/​patio» with flower pots, music and seating. It’s very inviting and makes for a great stop during your shopping day in Kensington. This store has certainly added to the «Urban Village» as Wendy P said!
If you have not given this place a try I recommend you do. Also think this would be a great spot to start a date night, a stopover before a movie or concert… Because all that candy is an easy conversation starting point to help break any tension.

So you’re a candy store AND a tea shop? Certainly not two things I’d put together, in my opinion specialize in one or the other.
I went in on Sunday to check it out and was quite disappointed. It looked cool with buckets full of salt water taffy (which I strongly dislike) and the front half of the store sporting giant lollipops and (what used to be) «5 cent» candies. As I browsed through I saw a lot of other chocolates and candies that could be found at your local 7 – 11, which I’m confident is lower in cost there too.
I was hoping the store could possibly bring back some nostalgia of being a kid in a candy shop where you could have a spree with $ 5, filling up on cheap little candies and maybe squeeze in a chocolate bar. Unfortunately this wasn’t the case.

I really don’t get this place.
While it does have a large selection of sugar coma inducing varieties, I just don’t get it. It is very confused. As if they have chosen to sell teas from the same supplier as a teahouse literally across the street, and down the street from an organic, fair trade source.
I also find the corner with all the Webkinz creepy. While the staff was friendly, I really don’t think this space will thrive in Kensington.

What person in their right mind doesn’t want to feel like a kid again? Personally, I seize every opportunity I can to feel a rush of excitement that kids experience so easily. That includes candy stores.
Having initially had its home at the Calgary Farmers’ Market, The Candy Kid now occupies the first half of this space in Kensington after the market closed at the Currie Barracks last December. Kensington touts itself as an «urban village.» All it was missing to complete the look was a candy store.
The selection of treats at The Candy Kid in no way compares to the variety of items you’d find at Welch’s out in Banff, but it does have gummies sold by the cup full, barrels filled with salt water taffy, pieces of Turkish delight, fudge, and a myriad of other goodies that are sure to have your dentist running for the hills.
I came home with three bars of fudge and a bag full of lego shaped candy. Out of the Strawberry Cheesecake, Coffee Mocha and Pralines’n’Cream fudge flavours I bought, I think I like the Pralines’n’Cream the best (it’s also my favourite kind of ice cream-​my one grandma quality).
Next time I’m going for a bag full of salt water taffy. I love that stuff!
If you haven’t checked them out yet, why not pop in for a quick boo? There’s nothing like feeling like a kid in a candy store.