Seaside rock @ Sticky

 

FIRSTLY THIS IS NOT A FOOD REVIEW, BUT I WILL BE HERE AND AT PAPABUBBLE SOON TO GET SOME CANDY

Anyway I was so happy to see them opening in HK, I found out about Papabubble first then when this one opened another choice for me to go, although the style is slightly different than home, they are displayed in lovely jars and presented attractively in a bright store.

 

These candies are actually known as SEASIDE ROCK in the UK, they are a traditional British seaside tubular boiled sweets sold as soeuvenir of that town. The rock is wrapped in clear plastic with pictures of the town inserted in between the rock and the wrapper.

 

It is a hard stick-shaped boiled sugar confectionery that is usually flavoured with peppermint or spearmint.
It is commonly sold at tourist (usually seaside) resorts in the UK (like Brighton or Blackpool); in Ireland in seaside towns such as Bray and Strandhill; in Denmark in towns such as Løkken and Ebeltoft; and in Sydney and Tasmania, Australia.

 

 

 

 

The rock usually takes the form of a cylindrical stick ("a stick of rock"), normally 0.5 inches (1.3 cm) to 1 inch (2.5 cm) in diameter and 8 inches (20 cm) to 10 inches (25 cm) long. Blackpool rock is usually at least an inch in diameter, and can be as thick as six inches across and up to six feet long when made for special retail displays. These cylinders usually have a pattern embedded throughout the length, which is often the name of the resort where the rock is sold, so that the name can be read on both ends of the stick (reversed at one end) and remains legible even after pieces are bitten off. Rock is also manufactured as a promotional item, for example with a company name running through it.

 

They even have rocks with personalised names too.

Personalised rock

 

It is sometimes found in the form of individual sweets, with writing or a pattern in the centre; these are, in effect, 'slices' of rock.

In Graham Greene's novel Brighton Rock, the character Ida says, "It's like those sticks of rock: bite it all the way down, you'll still read Brighton." This novel has now released on film, but not sure if it will make it into HK cinemas although it was mainly filmed in Victorian Eastbourne.

 

They can be eaten like a stick by biting it, a bit like the Chinese eating Sugar cane!

Interestingly, Cheung Chau is a nice seaside town with cute stalls and hand-made crafts, it would be good if they had Cheung Chau rock, now thats a thought!

Anyway I am looking forward to coming here and Papabubble, because they have many flavours and are exquisitely done, and the jars are so pretty.