It’s Halloween time once again, and that means that neighborhoods throughout New York will soon be filled with kids of all ages, looking to show off their costumes and get some of their favorite treats. At Wingate, Russotti, Shapiro, Moses & Halperin, LLP, our New York legal team remembers those exciting times and the thrill of getting a great candy haul. Unfortunately, not all treats are made equally, and occasionally you do have to sift through some of the more undesirable types of candy to get to the good stuff.
If you’re a trick-or-treater, you may have to put up with some unwanted snacks on Halloween night. If you’re a home owner, do everybody a favor and skip picking these up when you’re at the store!
5. Candy Buttons
Not since the Wax Bottle has a candy required more effort for so little reward. You can pick them off one by one or scrap off scores with your teeth.
Either way, your memory of how much time and energy was used eating Candy Buttons will last far longer than the moment of sweetness you tasted once you ate a handful of these disappointing drips of sugar.
4. Homemade Treats
The thing with any homemade Halloween snack is that you never know what you’re going to get. Sure, concerned parents will worry about that old urban legend about razorblades, but the truth is that these could be amazing or terrible. You probably don’t know the baking skills of the person living three blocks away from you, so there’s really no way of knowing how good these treats will end up being. Most people eliminate the guess work involved and simply toss these types of treats out once they get home.
3. Candy Corn
Yes, this is a staple of the trick-or-treating season. But besides being multi-colored and shaped like a kernel of corn, do you remember much else about these treats? Candy Corn looks pretty, adds color to festivities, and makes it feel more like Halloween, but no one is ever really eager to eat it.
Sure, some may insist that certain colors on the candy are more flavorful than others, but what child wants to take the time to sift through candy corn pieces one by one just eat a portion of a piece of candy?
2. Smarties
Like many of the entries on this list, Smarties are utterly forgettable. That’s what happens when a candy is vaguely sweet and not much else. These chalky Halloween staples are really just “filler” candy, making a candy bowl seem much fuller than it really is. Think about it. If given the choice between Smarties and any other candy not on this list, would you ever choose Smarties? More than likely, these will be sitting at the bottom of your trick-or-treat bag well into November.
1. Circus Peanuts
The granddaddy of all useless Halloween treats. Nobody actually likes Circus Peanuts. These are filler pure and simple. Plus, they taste more like packing peanuts than actual legumes, or at least anything resembling something edible. But no matter how many years go by of kids and adults alike tossing out Circus Peanuts, there is sure to be trashcans’ worth of these orange, stale miniature bricks waiting by the curb come November 1st.