Bait and Switch in Jellybeanland

38th Street Snacks Jelly Beans

I was in the local "fresh foods" grocery last week and found a display of a brand of beans I'd never seen before. Given that the 11-ounce bags were on sale (marked down from $3.99 to $3.00), what was a jellybean fiend to do: ignore them? So I tossed them in my cart, figuring that they must be some sort of gourmet product. The plain bag, simple label, and "designer" price tag all convinced me that I'd be buying some sort of specialty brand when I picked up a pack of 38th Street Snacks Jelly Beans.

These just MIGHT be the Worst-Tasting Jelly Beans Ever

Brach's Funfetti Jelly Beans

Brach's Funfetti Jelly Beans

Remember childhood hallowe'ens when you would eat everything in your bag within the first day... except for your least favorite candy? Maybe they were Necco Wafers. Maybe they were some unholy combination of chocolate and peanut butter. It's a matter of taste after all. I'm here to suggest, though, that if Brach's Funfetti Jelly Beans had been available when I was a kid, they might well have gone uneaten. Forever. Yeah, they taste that nasty...

Does Bigger Mean Better for Starburst?

Starburst Jumbo Jellybeans

Starburst Jumbo Jellybeans

To be honest, I've never been a fan of jumbo jelly beans, probably because most of them I've tried have come from tourist-trap souvenir shops and had the consistency and taste of stale cardboard. I'd rather eat a cheap bag plucked from a truck stop display, if you get my drift. Then again, Starburst jelly beans have been relatively reliable, so I decided that a bag of Original Starburst Jumbo Jellybeans was worth a try. I have to admit, I was pleasantly surprised.