I was on my usual post-airport-meal-chocolate-hunt, this time at Houston’s IAH (George Bush Intercontinental) airport. Sometimes I pack my own chocolate and only have to hunt in the depths of my carry-on luggage. For return flights, however, the supply has usually been exhausted.
Most airports have lots of the usual low end brand name chocolates, like M&M’s or Hershey bars. Sometimes there are a few large, expensive chocolate bars. This time, I found Natalie’s Candy Jar and a world of chocolate was at my fingertips.
The shop in B terminal catches your eye because of the huge, plastic lollipops hanging mid-air next to the airport hallway. Then, you look inside to see rows and stacks of bins of candy. I counted six sections with roughly 25 to 30 bins each. Some of the bins were filled with colorful candies. Pretty to look at, but not chocolate. Two of the sections were predominantly chocolate. (click on any photo to enlarge)
I tore off one of their bags for filling and scooped out
- 3 chocolate covered mini- oreos
- a couple milk chocolate and nut sprinkle covered pretzels
- a few chocolate and sea salt coated almonds
- a bunch of dark chocolate malt balls.
The cost was 99 cents per ounce, bringing my total to $4.95. Then, I trotted back to sit next to dear hubby and share my fun find with him.
I would rate the chocolates that I tried as of medium quality ingredients, but well designed for good taste and texture. Taking into account that it was airport prices, I felt I got my money’s worth. My taste buds were quite satisfied.
I think I would go out of my way to shop at a Natalie’s Candy Jar again, but not so far as to fly to the various airports they are in. On their website, I only saw one shop that wasn’t in an airport, but that is in a mall in Little Rock, Arkansas, so also too far away. I will just have to pay attention to which airports I happen to travel through in the future. If I have time, I would definitely be willing to take a short trip to another terminal to visit them. If you want to do some relatively inexpensive shopping while waiting for a flight, or need to entertain a traveling companion who is young at heart, I recommend Natalie’s Candy Jar.
