Do you remember the aesthetic of Candy Land? Imagine all of those bright pinks, reds, oranges, yellows, and greens. This is how you can imagine Winter Park, FL for the length of this article. Just like how the board game has sweet spots around each twist and turn, such as Lollipop Woods, Ice Cream Slopes, and Licorice Lagoon, anyone walking down Park Avenue can expect these places in real life.
During the week after Easter I tried out some new sweet spots around campus like a little Easter bunny. Lent had come to a close, during which I had been trying to avoid sweets. But, the wait was then over and man was I excited. Here are the locales I checked out.
1. Le Macaron
Discovering this store is like playing Candy Land because you have to step off of Park Avenue, where what may look like any other storefront leads you to several other boutiques and restaurants, protected not by Gramma Nutt from Candy Land, but by large Koi fish in the ground. It’s really a mystical place.
You walk into Le Macaron and see the endless colors and flavors of macarons, gelato, chocolates, pastries, and cakes. Oui, c’est magnifique! I was instantly charmed by the delicate Eiffel Tower chocolates I saw sitting in the window amongst the pastries. It was like love at first sight. The one pictured is raspberry flavored, with seeds and all. Plus, the pink color puts you in the mood for love. Not pictured is a sparkly gold Eiffel Tower chocolate. If that doesn’t say ‘extra,’ I don’t know what does.
2. Krungthep Tea Time
Krungthep is a Thai tea, sandwich, and dessert shop. Sweet, clean, and minimalistic describes the shop’s interior and sweet can definitely describe the menu as well. I highly recommend the Toast or the Brick Toast. While the Brick Toast is featured in the picture with a crown of fresh toppings, the center of the show is the toast itself. I don’t really want to give up how delicious it is to you all because it would ruin the surprise. But let me just say that there is a lot of butter- in the best way possible.
Pro tip: This is also a super relaxing location to pull out your laptop or journal to satisfy your soul along with your sweet tooth.
3. Sweet Fifi
Again with the twists and turns, this ice cream is all rolled up in the world of sweet. Literally. Sweet Fifi makes rolled ice cream on a frozen slab of stone with clever names like ‘Rollins in Berries,’ for example. I chose the ‘Brownies in my Tummy’ flavor. It has a pretty presentation as seen in the photo. However, I probably wouldn’t get it again. It is a tad bit pricy, and since it is rolled, it is a tad bit hard, not creamy. But it all depends on how you like your ice cream! It is a must try if you are on Park Ave and have never had this ice cream trend.
But that’s not all… they offer gelato and regular ice cream as well, which is worth a shot for me to go back and try. Plus, it is like the actual real life Candy Land in there with gum balls lining the walls, taffy, and unusual, foreign chocolates for sale.
4. Ben & Jerry’s
This storefront just recently opened and has taken Park Avenue by storm. Not only do they accept Rollins R-Cards, but you cannot beat the rich, creamy Vermont-style that already fills aisles of freezers in the grocery store. Except now, you have it in a sweet, fresh cone-size serving. Treat yo self.
But, I am warning you because I say this with urgency: make sure you indulge in your favorite flavor (say that ten times fast), plenty of times before it ends up in the ‘Flavor Graveyard.’ Ben and Jerry are always coming out with new flavors, therefore they have to occasionally retire some of the best combinations. Hopefully your favorite will not be the next one to go. It would be just as sad as getting stuck on the ‘Licorice Space’ in Candy Land and loosing a turn.
5. Kilwins
Kilwins is a classic, okay. But we are lucky enough to have it right here in Winter Park; with its Waffle Cone Wednesdays, fudge, gift baskets for sale, and never ending, glistening, beautiful case of homemade sweets– like candy apples, truffles, and chocolate-covered strawberries. The list is really endless.
I just discovered this coincidentally, but Kilwins and Candy Land were in fact created only a year apart from each other. How crazy is that? Kilwins came first in 1947 and Candy Land next in 1948. A confectionary fad may have been making its way around the country back then, but when have sweets not been popular? This is why we keep going back… to satisfy our sweet teeth.
Thank you for coming on the tour of Candy Land with me. Bring on the brownies, bring on the butter toast, and bring on the sweets! We’ll see who can be the first one to make it to King Kandy’s Candy Castle (aka all of these sweet places) and win the game. Good luck. May the frosting be with you.