How to spot an American snack
American confectionery pulls in a different direction from the Asian kind: sweeter, more colorful and with far more fruit flavor up front. Where Korean or Japanese snacks often work with salty, nutty or floral notes, US candy goes for the immediate effect: sour, sweet, loud color, plenty of texture.
Wonka Nerds Gummy Clusters show it nicely, with the tiny hard Nerds on the outside and soft fruit gum inside, two textures in one bite. HERR'S Cheese Curls stand for the savory side, airy corn curls dusted with cheese powder of the kind that sits on every American supermarket shelf. And Fruit Roll-Ups by Betty Crocker are rolled-up fruit strips straight out of lunchbox culture: American kids know them from the school break, over here they are mainly familiar from films and series.
Box or single bag
If you want to get a feel for the range of flavors, Candy Roads is the easier way in. The surprise box puts American sweets together for you, so you do not have to work through brand names first. It also works as a present, because the box covers a lot of ground and does not have to match your own taste.
If you already know what you are in the mood for, you take the single bags instead. That split runs through the whole shop: all the surprise boxes on one side, the single snacks on the other.
If you are really looking elsewhere
The USA is a side road here, our focus lies on Asia. If the American kind of sweetness appeals to you but you also want to try heat, umami or rice cakes, Asia is the next step, and that is where the rest of the range sits, spread across the countries.
