Powell’s Sweet Shoppe

I am a chocolate fiend (actually I’m a sugar fiend, but that’s neither here nor there.) I’m also a kid at heart, so Powell’s is the ultimate experience for anyone of my same persuasion. The minute you walk in the door, you are inundated by brightly colored candy wrappers and knick knacks (usually being inundated is not a pleasant experience, but not here…) They also have some really great candy throwbacks (I can never find 5^th Avenues anywhere!) as well as some great vintage toys and games. The best part of the whole store, however, is the back section which is dedicated to Willie Wonka (the Gene Wilder classic, not the Johnny Depp train wreck…)
In the front, they have a case of delectable truffles and treats, and they have you covered for any holiday (Christmas is the best, though.)

Oh, how fun to be an adult with money at your disposal in a candy shop like this! They have all kinds of random stuff you could never hope for — like bacon candy, or monkey mints!
There are a ton of old throwbacks to the past… like, you know how you have that ONE candy you’ve been pining over, and just dreaming about for the last twenty years? That candy that eluded you ever since Gumballs closed at the mall? They probably have it here.
There are also specialty candies and chocolates, new fun candy gifts, and great things that you could purchase as a gag gift. Go forth and have fun.

Like a big kid in a candy store… oh wait that’s exaclty what I was.
I’ve been in this store many times and it never let’s me down. It has all my old and new candy favorites, plus a variety of gelato and cute lunchboxes and some cute toys.
They have everything from the button candy that comes in rainbow rows on the paper to gummy eggs, and stacks of bins filled with all the colors of jelly bellys.
This place makes rainy days enjoyble and blue sky days even better. Take a friend, grab a bag and fill it with everything your heart desires! All the candy bins are all the same price per pound so you can mix to your heart’s desire.

Delighted to meet you, sir. Overjoyed, enraptured, entranced. Are we ready? Yes, good. In we go.
No other factory in the world mixes its chocolate by waterfall. But it’s the only way if you want it just right.
The suspense is terrible… I hope it’ll last.

Best Sweet Shop in town! They have everything! Just browsing the place with friends is a blast.
I like to get a bag of sweets for a stroll down the Pearl Street Mall. It’s a fun place.

My favorite candy: peach gummy penguins.
My issue: they are impossible to find.
A friend tipped me off about Powell’s, and I found my sweet treat among baskets of old-​school candies, taffy and bulk sugary goodies.
The solution: I bought 4 pounds of penguins at this lovely shoppe. I’m not kidding.

What a visual and taste bud sensation! The colors, smells, tastes, and everything just made me a literal kid in a candy store except for one thing: this place can be as sophisticated as you read into it. Not only does it have vintage sodas, candies, and even boardgames, it also has a whole array of dark chocolates that are combined with everything from caramelized ginger to chiles. The fresh fudge, chocolate dipped strawberries, and truffles just leave you wanting to buy more and more, and eat more and more for that matter.
You have to come to this place. It would be interesting to hear just how much sugar content that store has in stock. If you’re diabetic… stay away, the temptation is just too strong. But knowing the breadth of their stock, they’re probably have an entire section of sugar-​free goodies for that crowd too.

I’m a 12 year old sugar hungry kid every single time I step in this place. The bulk section is a dangerous place, so is the chocolate shelf, so is the licorice section, so is… the rest of the store.
In the back of the store, a little corner plays Willy Wonka 24 hours a day. I always walk out of there with a different thing. It really is the best candy store I’ve been in.
WEEEEEEEEE!

I will preface by saying that the assortment of candy and chocolate is amazing. They have every piece of candy you can imagine form your childhood.
The only proble with this place is the pricetag. My wife went in the other day and bought one swiss candybar and a little less than a pound bag of gummi strawberries. The total price tag was a little over $ 16!!!
I understand the swiss chocolate filled with liquer being $ 6.75. But almost $ 10 for gummi starwberry!!! Gummi is nor exactly a rare or expensive product. We are talking sugar and gelatin. C’mon…

I have to imagine it must be rough going being across the way from Ben and Jerry’s. You have the brand-​name chain owned by the corporate conglomerate that is Unilever, and then you have the apparent mom-‘n-pop underdog. Is it a lactose-​infused battle royale on the streets of Boulder? No, not really. This is a college town after all, and students of all ages never seem to tire of ice cream options. This is the heavily overstocked retro-​candy choice, and despite appearances of homespun amiability, this is part of a chain, too. You move quickly into sensory overload in this tightly packed shop full of jelly bean dispensers, vintage candy bars, and homemade chocolates.
Somewhere in the middle of the long counter are the ice cream selections, and out of a tempting display of flavors, I went for a cup of Peanut Butter Cup and Candied Ginger. It was too packed to eat in the store, so I took advantage of the plentiful benches to be found in the Pearl Street pedestrian mall. The ice cream was intensely creamy, almost gelato-​like in texture. If I was more calorie-​desensitized, I suppose I would have bought a lot more. But the skinny kids behind the counter reminded me what that famous philosopher Rhoda Morgenstern said… «I don’t know why I should even bother to eat this, Mary. I should just apply it directly to my hips.»
ICE CREAM — 4 stars… creamy and nicely flavored
AMBIANCE — 3 stars… an overabundant candy store with ice cream on the side
SERVICE — 3.5 stars… kids on automatic playback
TOTAL — 4 stars… I was licking my spoon a bit too much

I think all the other reviewers pretty much covered it but I wanted to add one more thing: **They sell DUBLIN Dr. Pepper! Woohoo!**
It’s the Dr. Pepper that comes from their oldest bottling plant in the US, in Dublin, Texas. It’s the only Dr. Pepper that still comes in the original glass bottles and is the only one still made with cane sugar.
I had resigned myself to a possible future trip to Texas as my only way to find this coveted bubbly pop but now I’m only a 10 minute walk from it. Glorious!

Like a time warp to sugary awesomeness!
The location is great — I mean, hello… Pearl Street! The store is a little cramped, but as a candy shop, they can pull it off.
Remember that candy that you loved as a kid… they have it. Oh, and that chocolate bar you got addicted to while backpacking Europe (see: Flake)…they have it. But what about that random flavor of jelly bean you have an unhealthy hankering for… guess what — yep, they have it!
Another cool factoid about the place — they stream Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory movie (they original) on the big screen in the back!
They have tons of cute little treats too, the type with silly names and packaging.
Everyone should stop into this place. I would say the «everyone should go, just once» — but if you go once, you are going again! Trust me.

Food: All the Sweets you could ever think of
Service: Friendly
Price: Standard by the pound, reasonable for the individual candies
Powell’s was the first shop to catch my eye during my very first trip to Boulder.
From the old-​school Dr Pepper lunch boxes to Pop Rocks to Candy by the pound to Candies in a tin to Curious George — this is one SWEET sweets shop to remember!
I miss you already!

Sorry fellas, but if I ever get married, it will be to this store. There’s only so much a man can do, and so much an abundance of chocolate can do.
I stopped in here on a night I needed to pass some time before meeting up with someone for dinner. I saw this sugary heaven of sugar. I realize that’s redundant, but I’m so hopped up on sugar, I have no idea what I’m writing.
This place has candy that I thought was only a legend, things that you can’t buy at your average grocery store. Gourmet chocolates, jellies, gums, vintage candy bars, etc. Not much I can add to the other great reviews.
There’s also a few sugar free treats to be found here, so if you’re watching your weight or are diabetic, it’s okay to stop in here! Just avert your eyes from the other mountains of sugar. You’ll be sweating like a whore in Church, but if you can get through the store and only walk out with something sugar-​free, kudos.
Anyone for a game that involves chocolate body frosting? You can get it here. Not sure if it’s just for Valentine’s Day, but still nice to know that I can buy it here if I wanted to without shame. Okay, a little shame.
And although I’ve been forced to watch Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory just about a million times in my life, it was still nice to have it on in the background. For the first time of hearing the cheerful songs, I didn’t want to shoot myself. Oh, how I love this store.
And no sampling. You’ll be prosecuted. And since you spent all your money on candy, you won’t be able to pay back the person who comes to bail you out. So no sampling!
Everything is reasonably priced too. So get off your lethargic behind, drive/​walk/​run/​bike/​bus it up to Boulder, and stop into this store for some candy wet dreams.

I almost wept with joy when I stepped into this treasure trove of sweet confections. There is nothing I can write that will do this store justice.
But I will try.
I spent $ 35 in a candy store. $ 35 on $ 1-​$ 2 pieces of candy. I felt like a Hell’s Angel in Harley Headquarters (I can’t say the other phrase, now can I?) and I just couldn’t stop myself.
I got Big League Chew, Wax Soda Bottles with awful liquid inside, Bit-​O-​Honeys and a Yorkie (It’s not for Girls!). I also got Bacon Flavored Toothpicks. That was sort of an error on my part, but I just got caught up in the frenzied buying of candies that I couldn’t stop myself.
Even if they didn’t have all that candy, any place that plays Willy Wonka on a continuous loop and has different versions of the Candy Land board game on the walls is pretty awesome by my standards.

Felt like a kid again! Outside Powell’s its not as amazing as their inside. They have so many candy that threw me back when I was young really young, smells and aromas were really relaxing for me.
They really had Charlie the Chocolate Factory playing and soundtrack playing as well, off-​set but it wasn’t annoying, funny actually, it complemented the experience being there…

Fun Fun Fun.
If you want to hear a bunch of little kids shouting, «Daddy! Daddy! Can I get this one? Can I get that one?» you’re in the right place.
For me, it was late Sunday afternoon, I’d had an early light brunch /​breakfast, no lunch, and I got a little hungry. I wanted to go to the coffeehouse across the street, but wasn’t up for a pastry. So voila, 88 cents for .088 lbs of chocolate-​covered raisins, et voila! Hunger satiated.
Lots of little organic chocolate bars, and other sweets too.

If you like old-​fashioned and novelty candies then Powell’s Sweet Shoppe will be a slice of heaven for you… or maybe more like a wad of cotton candy? Either way, this place is magical.
They play Charlie and the Chocolate Factory on a big screen television in the back on a continuous loop. The music is all about sugar and candy and other sweets. The candy lines the walls in bins and jars and baskets all calling your name. They have gelato. They have homemade chocolates. They have «Man-​bars» which girls apparently aren’t allowed to eat. I did anyway. Ha.
The staff are always friendly and the store is usually packed. If you’re looking to satisfy your sweet tooth, this is one of the first places I recommend visiting.

Johnathan, Thank you for reminding me of how much I freaking love this place.
However, I am thankful that I don’t live or work near this beloved sweet haven!
There is not a better candy store around. They have all the old favorites and some of the new.
And the best gelato a girl could ask for.
I love those sesame seeds glued together with honey candies. Super yummy! It’s conveniently located on Pearl Street so the next time your are gallivanting around Boulder satisfy your sweet tooth.

This place is F-​A-​N-​T-​A-​S-​T-​I-​C!!! If Willy Wonka were real and lived in Boulder he would LOVE this place. Seriously, I stumbled in one afternoon with some friends and walked out with a $ 15 bag of candy, a cap gun, and those little paper-​sperm-​looking things that would «pop» when you threw them. I saw candies and toys that I haven’t eaten or seen since my age was in single digits. They have EVERYTHING!
If you are ever having a bad day and want to remember what is it like being a kid again, stroll on in. It will make you worry about getting cavities again.