February 2023 Newsletter
Updated: Feb 8
Hearts, Flowers, and Chocolate
Jim Mease
Now that the Holidays are over, we can turn our attention to the new year 2023 and all that it promises to be. Even though February arrives in the dead of Winter with shorter days and longer nights, there is much we are looking forward to. It is the shortest month of year. We celebrate Presidents Day, a National Holiday which honors all our Presidents, two of whom were born in this month: former Presidents Washington on February 22 and Lincoln on February 12. Among some of the lesser-known celebrations during February are National Thank a Mailman Day on the 4th, National Shower with a Friend Day on the 5th, and National Pizza Day on the 9th. While all of these days are interesting for sure the larger majority of us focus our attention on February 14th, Valentine's Day, when we celebrate significant others in our lives with Hearts, Flowers, and Chocolate. It is a time to have one last fling with all things deliciously appealing to our mental well-being before we begin thinking about our summer selves and our beach attire.
In Rehoboth Beach we have a number of businesses ready to satisfy our indulgent selves beginning with the Candy Kitchen, which has been making saltwater taffy, creamy fudge, and delicious hand-dipped chocolates the old-fashioned way since 1937. Located at 1 South Rehoboth Avenue and the Boardwalk, as well as at Rehoboth Avenue and South 1st Street, the Candy Kitchen is a family owned and operated business that prides itself on using only the freshest quality ingredients and time-honored recipes.
Further north at 60 Rehoboth Avenue is Snyder's Candy, an 83-year-old locally owned candy and toy shop specializing in a variety of candy from classic candy bars to chocolates by weight. They have a nice assortment of chocolate candies, in milk, dark & white for your enjoyment pleasure. From barks to truffles, peanut butter to butter creams, we know you'll love the selection.
As you continue strolling along be sure and stop in and visit Something Comfortable at 122 Rehoboth Ave. where you can find a unique lingerie shopping experience for women of all ages and sizes, offering affordable designer brands and outstanding individualized customer service for that special someone you know. What better time than Valentine's Day to present your special valentine with a personalized gift, of intimate apparel, you both can enjoy.
Moving on to 140 Rehoboth Avenue is Kilwin's Chocolates, where you can indulge your senses while enjoying an impressive selection of confections made in their sweets kitchen while you watch. Enjoy their hand-paddled fudge and cashew and peanut brittles, as well as various caramel corns.
On the other side of Rehoboth Avenue, just 50ft off the Boardwalk on the north side, you can experience some of the best homemade candies in Rehoboth at Dolle's Candyland. Owner Tom Ibach is helping to keep Rehoboth's candy tradition alive using some of the same recipes and some of the candy-making equipment his grandfather used decades ago.
Around the corner at 5 North 1st Street is Chocolate Wave, where owners Carmen Kulak and Dan Moldovan are fulfilling a lifelong ambition. Dan & Carmen feature a dozen different flavors of bark, all of which come in dark, milk and white chocolate.
These and more shops are waiting to serve you as we celebrate the month of February and the beginning of a new year with time-honored traditions, and a chance to create new ones.
You can read more about these spotlighted businesses later in this newsletter. Please consider Rehoboth Beach a place that can satisfy all your candy desires.
Happy Valentine's Day!
Current and past issues of the newsletter are available on the RBMS Website at Newsletter | Home | Rehoboth Beach Main Street (downtownrb.com)
New Businesses & Membership Renewals
RBMS welcomes The Winding Beam as a new member!
RBMS thanks Above the Dunes and Jack Lingo REALTOR for renewing at the Yellow Partner level!
RBMS thanks these businesses for renewing at the Green Partner level!
· The Lilypad Children’s Boutique
RBMS thanks these businesses for renewing as RBMS members!
· Freddie’s Beach Bar & Restaurant
For information about levels and benefits of RBMS membership, go to Join | Rehoboth Beach Main Street (downtownrb.com)
Showcasing Rehoboth Beach Businesses
Candy Kitchen
Peter Beck
Whenever my cousins from New York come to Rehoboth Beach to visit in the summer, within minutes of arriving in town their children enthusiastically ask to pop into the Candy Kitchen at Rehoboth Avenue and the Boardwalk to gawk at the room filled with tasty treats and hope to come out with arms filled with delicious candies. I must say that whenever I visit the shop with them, I also feel like a “kid in a candy store.”
Based upon the British expression “like a child in a sweet shop,” the idiom “kid in a candy store” means “enjoying yourself far too much and not controlling your behavior in any way.” No matter what your age, the Candy Kitchen will satisfy your sweet tooth. If you are a senior citizen, it’ll make you feel like a child again!
The first Candy Kitchen opened in 1937, started on the boardwalk by a young man named Sam Taustin. Eighty-five years and four generations later, Taustin’s family is still running the business! The Candy Kitchen manufactures its candies locally at its plant on 53rd Street in Ocean City.
Currently, there are 19 shops on the Delmarva peninsula. Each shop sells fudge, taffy, chocolates, pretzels, truffles, and gummies, along with novelties and toys, in every imaginable shape, size, and color. Throughout the stores the bins and displays are colorful and definitely tempting!
There are two locations in town, both on Rehoboth Avenue, one at the corner of South First Street (102 Rehoboth Avenue) and the other just a block away on the Boardwalk (1 South Boardwalk). The Boardwalk location opened way back in 1963, so the shop is about to celebrate its 60th anniversary in town!
Be sure to stop into the Candy Kitchen and indulge your sweet tooth. Check out their website and savor the goodies: https://candykitchen.com/. Phone: 302-227-9200 (Boardwalk) and 302-227-7195 (Rehoboth Avenue).
Snyder’s Candy
Jeff Balk
Snyder’s Candy, is a locally owned staple in Downtown Rehoboth Beach, celebrating 83 years at the same location, 60 Rehoboth Avenue. Originally opened in 1940 as a candy and soda fountain shop that also sold ice cream, comics, newspapers, and sundry items—in 1985, they found themselves having to downsize to half the space, its current size, as rents quadrupled. They now utilize the space from floor to ceiling with candy and toys.
Spoil your sweetheart with decadent truffles, their popular sea-salt caramels as well as an assortment of chocolates. If it’s creamy fudge that you want, Snyder’s Candy has a large flavor selection for you. Maybe you want to relive your childhood with a chocolate coke or candy that you may have grown up with, such as Clark bars, Sky bars, or a Zagnut bar.
Walking into Snyder’s Candy can be like walking into the past, with over 80 varieties of licorice from around the world, 72 flavors of saltwater taffy, a gummy bar featuring over 40 varieties of self-serve gummies, as well as a wall of Jelly Belly. Check out the latest trends, freeze dried candy and seriously sour candies like Slime Lickers and the Toxic Waste line.
Snyder’s saltwater taffy was featured in Everyday with Racheal Ray as the Best Mail Order Food in Delaware, as well as featured in the Food Network Magazine as the Best Confection from the State of Delaware.
Snyder’s Candy isn’t just for the candy lover, they feature the latest in trendy toys at affordable prices. Whether you are looking for Pokémon cards, Squishmallows, or other hard-to-find toys, Snyder’s Candy can satisfy your shopping needs.
More information is available at SnydersCandy.com, on their social media pages, or by calling 302-226-3994.
Kilwin’s Rehoboth Beach
Peter Beck
I must admit that I am a very lucky guy: three years ago my retirement home was constructed in what has turned out to be very warm and supportive community. For example, when I was sick throughout the holidays, several neighbors brought me chicken soup and assorted tasty treats to help me get better and cheer me up.
I felt there was no better way to say “thank you” than to bring these fabulous neighbors some yummy, tasty treats from Kilwins Rehoboth Beach! Since the candy store is my guilty pleasure, I hoped it would be theirs also!
Back in 1947, Don & Katy Kilwin purchased a bakery in Petoskey MI and began selling baked goods and candy in their shop. Seventy-five years later, there are over 150 Kilwins locations, which are mostly on the east coast. Our local Kilwins shop is right in downtown Rehoboth at 140 Rehoboth Avenue.
I stopped at the shop on a bright sunny afternoon. The homemade fudge is prepared on a marble table right in the shop. In addition to the fudge, cashew and peanut brittles, caramel corn, and freshly dipped caramel apples fill the shop. There are also dipped pretzels, marshmallows, Oreos, and even Rice Krispie treats! Other tasty choices include truffles, taffy, barks, and clusters.
That evening I gave my kind and thoughtful neighbors some tasty treats from Kilwins, to their surprise and total delight. Be sure to stop in some time, and maybe even sample Kilwins "Original Recipe" Ice Cream, available in many different flavors and served in a fresh homemade waffle cone. Kilwins phone number is 302-227-3611.
Valentine’s Day Offerings at Chocolate Wave
Colleen Evans
While flowers, sentimental cards, and silly stuffed animals are nice enough, Valentine’s Day is all about chocolate.
Valentine’s Day is right around the corner, and for chocolate lovers it’s quite possibly one of the best days of the year. If you have a chocoholic in your life, and you’re looking for a chocolatey gift that will really impress, look no further than Chocolate Wave on North First Street in Rehoboth Beach.
Treat your sweetheart—or yourself—to Chocolate Wave owners’ Carmen Kulak and Dan Moldovan’s latest swoon-worthy collection for Valentine’s Day. Some of their unique offerings include small-batch, heart-shaped hand-painted bonbons in a variety of flavors; heart-shaped hot chocolate bombs filled with shredded dark chocolate, mini marshmallows, and other toppings like cinnamon, salted caramel, or peanut butter. Create your own chocolate bark—customized by you—with milk, dark, or white chocolate and your choice of as many toppings as you like (vegan options available). Or, build your own box of luxury chocolates from bonbons, barks, clusters, turtles, hand-dipped chocolate pretzels, and more.
Kulak and Moldovan’s painstakingly artisanal crafted chocolate creations are elegant, beautifully presented, and Valentine’s Day inspired!
For more information on Chocolate Wave and their Valentine offerings, call
302-567-2419 or email chocolatewave.rehoboth@yahoo.com.
Dolle’s Candyland-Ibach’s Candy by the Sea
Dan Slagle
Dolle’s Candyland was established in Rehoboth Beach in 1926 by co-founders, Thomas Pachides and Rudolph Dolle. It moved to its previous location at the corner of Rehoboth Avenue and the Boardwalk in 1927 and more recently to its current location at 9 Rehoboth Avenue. Dolle’s-Ibach’s offers a wide variety of handmade and hand-coated chocolates, caramel corn, brittles, saltwater taffy, and mint sticks.
Dolle’s Candyland has a long and interesting history. In 1984, following the passing of Mr. Pachides at the age of 92, his grandson, Thomas Ibach took over the family business. Mr. Ibach continues to operate the business using the same time-tested recipes of his grandfather. In 1991, seeing the need for a high-quality chocolate, Mr. Ibach opened Ibach's Candy by the Sea. This store specializes in high-quality handmade and hand-coated chocolates. Ibach's chocolates are very well known for their quality and freshness.
Dolles and Ibachs still use old fashioned formulas to create their confections. Most of these recipes, such as the taffy, fudge, caramel, and brittle recipes have been handed down from generation to generation. The ingredients and flavorings used in the candy are still high quality and contain no preservatives. This attention to quality gives the candy made by Dolles and Ibachs the unique flavor and taste that people have come to expect from Delaware's oldest and best candy maker. (For more information on the history of Dolle’s-Ibach’s, go to: https://www.dolles-ibachs.com/history/)
Ibachs specializes in high-quality handmade caramel corn (over 10 flavors), fudge, saltwater taffy (24 flavors available in long shape and kiss shape), cashew and peanut brittle, and mellow mint sticks. They offer a wide variety of gummies and jelly belly.
Dolle's caramel corn and brittles are crafted using grandfather's time-test recipe. The recipe uses fresh ingredients and no preservatives, and the products are still made by hand in small batches. The brown color, crispy texture, and unique flavor make customers come back for more.
Fudge is made with 40-score cream and real creamery butter. The most popular flavors are chocolate, chocolate walnut, vanilla, vanilla chocolate swirl, vanilla walnut, rocky road, chocolate marshmallow, peanut butter, peanut butter and chocolate, peanut butter explosion, maple walnut, death by chocolate. During the season, customers can enjoy 12 different other flavors that are make, such as: chocolate mint, caramel pecan, raspberry chocolate swirl, penuche, vanilla coconut, vanilla caramel, chocolate caramel, vanilla Oreo, chocolate coconut, chocolate M&M, sea salt chocolate, chocolate Reese's pieces.
Dolle’s-Ibach’s phone number: 302-227-0757.