I already told this story on Twitter, but I don’t think anyone believed me, so I’ll tell it again.
Sophia’s mother asked me to pick up two things from her supermarket: mayonnaise and these sugar-free Werther’s candies that she likes to have while watching TV. I drove over and stopped at the supermarket near her home. I was unfamiliar with the layout of the store and I was in a rush. I had an appointment later that day. I approached a supermarket employee who was stocking boxes. He was a young, friendly-faced, college-aged kid.
“Where can I find mayonnaise?” I asked him.
“Aisle four! I’ll show you.” he replied, in that cheerful California “have a nice day” supermarket voice that you would never hear in New York.
He guided me over to the condiment section, where I found my “Best Foods” Mayonnaise. (side note: In New York, it is Hellman’s Mayonnaise. In California, it is Best Foods Mayonnaise. In New York, it is Arnold’s Bread. In California, it is Orowheat. In New York, it is Edy’s Ice Cream. In California, it is Dreyer’s ice cream. I have this personal conspiracy theory that the names were changed for the West Coast so they seem less “Jewish.” — but that’s another post)
After grabbing the mayonnaise, I thanked the stock boy.
“One more thing,” I asked. “Do you know where I can find “sucking candies?”
He giggled nervously. We were alone in the condiment aisle.
“What do you mean?” He asked.
“Sucking candies!”
“Uh… the candies are in front by the register.”
“No, I don’t mean like the M&Ms. I mean the candies you suck on. The… HARD candies.”
He turned red faced. At the same time, he seemed VERY intrigued. I’m not exactly sure what was going on, but it seemed as if I had hit upon some new “code” that has replaced the hitting of feet in the bathroom stall. He looked up and smiled, shyly.
“I’ll find it myself.” I quickly said, stumbling over a shopping cart as I went searching for the hard candies.
A few minutes later, I was in line, ready to check out with my mayonnaise and sucking candies. I saw the stock boy looking my way. I held up the package of Werthers that I bought, hoping that he got the message. He GOT the message alright, but I’m not sure WHAT that message was. He waved good-bye to me, a wisp of hopefulness in his eyes.
When I got back home, I logged onto Twitter.
“Does anyone use the term “sucking candies?”
I was surprised that nobody had ever used the term before. My entire family calls them “sucking candies.” “Good and Plenty” is candy. A Hershey’s Bar is chocolate. A Werther’s is “sucking candy.” Where did this term come from and why was I the only one using it?
Last night, Ninja Poodles sent me a message. She noticed this on Margalit‘s Twitter.
Yeah! I’m not alone.
Since both Margalit and I are Jewish, I wonder if “sucking candy” is a Jewish term that was changed for the West Coast.
I really enjoyed this...
I can’t believe so many people have never heard the term “sucking candy.” I grew up in Minnesota and that’s what we say all the time. We’ll also use the term “suck-um.” You know, like, “while you’re at the store pick up some suck-ums.” Or maybe it’s “suck-’ems.” Whatever. “Sucking candy” is totally valid and I encourage you to continue using the term no matter who winks at you.
In my Minnesota family they were hard candies. Go figure.
My thought is that perhaps he misheard you altogether. If he heard “sucky” (as in this candy sucks , it tastes bad, eww I’m spitting it out!) instead of suck”ing,” well, that could explain a quizzical look. Why would you be out shopping for bad candy?
East coast Jew, born and raised…I also say “sucking candy.”
Wow, it really must be a cultural thing. We need to consult the rabbis!
HARD candies – I’m dyin’ here! Hm, less semitic product branding – could very well be. I’m in Colorado where we get a weird blending of all of the product names and candy-isms. Is it soda, pop, sodapop or coke? Eh, potayto/potahto
I’ve heard of sucking candies!! is it a NY thing??
I think it’s a Jewish thing…my family calls them that (we’re from Detroit), and I always sort of assumed that’s what everyone called them. Now I’m going to have to poll my non-Jewish coworkers.
Oops..sucking candy that is. And, it should also be noted that sucking candies had medicinal purposes–throat sore? Have a sucking candy. Ears plugged on the airplane? Have a sucking candy. Go figure.
Somehow, at our house, they’ve morphed into ‘sucky candies.’
Well I came to your blog to sign up for the great interview thingy and learned about suckin’ candy…I’ll be back tomorrow for another lesson
My God is it a Jewish thing? I just got berated by my boyfriend for making up a word. He insisted that my mother had taught me words that did not exist. I have always used the term “sucking candy”. I am from Long Island and am Jewish, so I guess that would be the reason.
i call them sucking candies and i’m not jewish i’m a muslim
It’s a corporate buyout thing, not an anti-Jew thing. Below is the Wiki on Hellman’s, but you’ll find the same is true for the other brands you mentioned.
In 1905, Richard Hellmann opened a delicatessen in New York City, where he used his wife’s recipe to sell the first ready-made mayonnaise. It became so popular that he began selling it in bulk to other stores. In 1912 he built a factory for producing Mrs. Hellmann’s mayonnaise in jars. It was mass marketed and called Hellmann’s Blue Ribbon Mayonnaise.
While Hellmann’s Mayonnaise thrived on the East Coast, the California company Best Foods introduced their own mayonnaise. Best Foods Mayonnaise became popular on the West Coast.
In 1932, Best Foods bought out the Hellmann’s brand. By then both mayonnaises had such commanding market shares in their respective halves of the country that the company decided that both brands and recipes be preserved. To this day:
Best Foods Mayonnaise is only sold west of the Rocky Mountains, specifically, in or west of Montana, Wyoming, Colorado, and New Mexico.
Hellmann’s is sold east of the Rockies, specifically, in or east of North Dakota, South Dakota, Nebraska, Kansas, Oklahoma, and Texas.[1]
In 1955, Best Foods acquired Rosefield Packing Co., makers of Skippy peanut butter. Then Best Foods was bought by Corn Products Refining Company in 1958 to form Corn Products Company, which in 1969 became CPC International Inc.
In 1995, Bestfoods split from CPC International, becoming its own company once more. The company was acquired by Unilever in 2000.
In the United Kingdom, Hellmann’s mayonnaise arrived in 1961. Unilever says that it had over 50% market share by the late 1980s. [1]
Hello. And Bye.
This is hysterical…I just offered two girls (whom I work with) sucking candies and they looked at me like I had two heads (yes both are Jewish heads). They are from Ecuador and said that all candy is just “candy.” I wonder if it is a Jewish Long Island thing.
ARGH! NY-isms!!!!
Here in the Pacific NW, we stand “in line”, not “on line”, and we go “North”, not “Upstate Washington”.
Did I say “ARGH!!!!!!”???
Ha ha! I call them sucking candies, too.
(I am a New York Jew living in California, for the record.)
So glad you could brighten that guy’s day.
You are not alone. Just the other day, I shared the story of my grandmother and her sucking candies. Hers were generally coffee flavored, and they sat in a glass bowl in the living room that no one ever entered. You had to make a special trip to go grab one.
I think it must be a New York thing. My parents both grew up in Brighton Beach. They and my grandparents say things like sucking candies, nudnik, pocket book, and dungarees.
Suck on!
I grew up Catholic in Ottawa Ontario Canada – we always called them sucky candies. When I moved to the Prairies, they are called hard candies.
Oh, I am SO glad to read all this and PROOF that I did NOT make the word up. The other day, after a business meeting, I offered one of our company VPs a bottle of water and a “sucking candy”. (I had put out a few bowls of assorted aka “hard” candies for the meeting) He gave me this astonished look and replied, “Pardon???” We both just cracked up laughing with tears running down my face as I tried to explain it was a term I grew up with from my mom in Boston although I love in Kentucky.
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