My father was the guy who never allowed me to have soft-serve ice cream because “they don’t clean the machines.”
He was the guy who would only eat at a handful of restaurants he knew were clean.
When it was time to make the sauce and meatballs for Sunday dinner, the kitchen was wiped down with Clorox as if it were a crime scene.
Having spent his entire life working in the restaurant industry, and seeing the kitchens in just about every restaurant in the state of Pennsylvania, he was a bit of a freak when it came to cleanliness and where and what he would eat.
Those 50+ years of being a food service broker meant our house was always well stocked with (samples of) what he sold – Stauffers Lasagna, Planter’s Peanuts, Yoplait Yogurt, everything and anything with “Nabisco” on it, and… Necco Wafers.
Yep, Necco Wafers.
Those god-awful candy wafers that came wrapped like a roll of coins in what I think was wax paper.
They were terrible. But we always had them around the house. Especially at Christmas! When he would come back from the company Christmas party with a big bag of goodies, guess what was in there.
Yep, Necco Wafers.
Never anything really good.
Necco Wafers.
In the news today, I see that the company that makes these candy wafers that have managed to hang around since 1847 could be shutting down. With the news of the company’s potential demise, people who actually like Necco Wafers have started ordering them online in bulk in a last ditch effort to stock up before they’re gone forever.
When I read this, I called my friend Pam who is one of the owners of BlairCandy.com, and a good friend of mine, and asked, “what’s up with Necco?”
“We can’t keep them in stock! People love them and they’re one of our top selling old time candy.”
They’re not going as nearly as crazy for the other candy Necco (New England Confectionary Company) makes such as Squirrel Nut Zippers, Mary Janes, Clark Bars, and Sweethearts. They’re going for the wafers that taste nothing like the flavor they’re supposed to taste like – lemon, lime, clove, orange, cinnamon, wintergreen, licorice, and chocolate – they simply taste like chalk.
How these things have been around as long as they have is a mystery to me, but apparently, they have a following. If you’re a fan, time may be running out for this nostalgic candy, so you better stock up before they’re going… going… gone!