Sweet Dish: The Review

This weekend my friend Lisa took me to Sweet Dish, a candy store in the Marina district of San Francisco.

Those of you who know me know I'm a candy fiend. I've loved candy since I was a kid, when I would eat all of my Halloween candy within the first few days of getting it, and then search the house for the candy my sister would hide and forget about.

I'm very particular about my candy. I love hard candy, and have grown to love chocolate as an adult. When Lisa suggested we visit the store, how could I refuse?

The setting: the store is not very big; it's narrow and deep. The walls are lined with colorful jars of all types of candy (heavier on the non-chocolate kind). There is a very good selection and I liked the look of the displays.

The method: here is where the store loses points with me. Most of the candy in jars was only available in little pre-packaged bags under the jars; you could not simply open each jar and take out what you wanted. (Now, it's possible you could ask for smaller portions from the staff, but to me that takes away all the fun. I'm not going to ask the staff to pick out two pieces of 20 different types.)

I understand why candy stores do this: it cuts down on stealing, and keeps people's grubby paws off the candy. But one of the signs of a great candy store is the pick-and-mix method: letting you get all different types of candy, and being able to try something new without getting stuck with a whole bag of something you don't want.

The service: I was looking for some gummy sour type of candy for a friend but didn't see what I was looking for. They had a lot of soft sour candies, but none of them seemed to be what I was looking for. I asked a staff member which ones were gummy sours, and he said they were all gummy! No no no no, my friend, there is a huge difference in texture! (Perhaps technically they're all gummy in that they're soft, but I am talking about the difference between sour patch kids and gummy bear sours. If you can't tell the difference, you are no candy freak!)

The purchase: I managed to restrain myself somewhat. Prices were high, so I didn't want to go overboard. I got: mint chip caramels; celestial sour stars; and violet cremes. The verdict: all very tasty.

They had a lot of imported candy (like Yorkie Bars--It's Not For Girls!) and there were lots of additional things I'd love to try.

Overall, I give a thumbs up for selection and presentation, but a thumbs down for the fact you can't pick-and-mix. Also it's not cheap, so not the kind of place a kid with their dollar allowance is likely to find happiness.

Final verdict: I'd go back.