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The Nut House
The Nut House
Listen to this articleWalk into the Nut House and tantalizing scents of chocolate and nuts will tickle your nose and your sweet tooth.
For those who crave truffles, pralines and creams, being surrounded by hundreds of candies each day might test their willpower. But Marcia Stern is not taken by temptation.
“I love to eat, but to tell you the truth I don’t have a sweet tooth,” says Stern, owner of the Nut House on Monroe Avenue. For 20 years, Stern has roasted nuts, tied bows on holiday gift baskets and helped customers satisfy their cravings.
Looking for work outside of her home, Stern’s husband, Gary, the owner of Village Gate Square, suggested that a candy store was something the Brighton market lacked. After scouring the yellow pages for candy and nut wholesalers, Stern opened her doors in 1977. It took only two years for the store to outgrow its space, so the Nut House moved into a renovated gas station a few doors down from its first location.
In addition to 20 types of nuts–salted and unsalted–bins of dried fruits, trays of gourmet chocolate and 100-plus jars of candies, Stern has adjusted her inventory to cater to the “elitist attitude toward finer food” that runs in today’s gastronomical circles. Fresh ground coffee, flavored pasta and delectable jams line the shelves in one alcove of the store.
But while food fads come and go, mainstays such as Jelly Bellies, chocolate cordials and licorice have permanent spots in the candy hall of fame, Stern says. Those, and jumbo cashews–“the king of the nuts.”
Stern says that over the years her taste buds have picked the best candy manufacturers in the United States. Buttercrunches come from Denver, truffles from the South, and five or six other manufacturers supply her with fresh chocolates.
Sugar-free candies and low-calorie sweets also have become popular, she adds.
Besides herself, one full-time manager and three part-time employees manage the store. For the holiday season, staff expands to more than a dozen to fill the thousands of gift-basket orders. More than half of the store’s income comes during the Christmas season.
Stern would not reveal her sales figures. But they are pretty sweet, she says, growing annually at about 8 percent to 10 percent.
–Jennifer Racho
