Take a drive to Port Clinton, a little borough nestled on the edge of Schuylkill County. As you enter the town, the smell of freshly roasted peanuts from the Port Clinton Peanut Shop will tickle your nose. Walk in to discover not just a variety of roasted nuts, but also a sweet tooth’s paradise.
“Every inch of the shop is covered with candy,” says the manager, Melissa Swenk.
And during the Easter, Christmas and Halloween holidays, the Peanut Shop adds even more as the staff decorates the showroom with seasonal candies and décor.
They are serious about their confections.
A History of Fun
Melissa says the Port Clinton Peanut Shop dates back to the 1800s. It has always been a penny candy store, but back then the owners kept it as a multi-purpose country store, selling hardware and local amenities as well.
In the 1960s, a woman named Grace (Kaiser) Sunday lived in the building and managed the shop until Nov. 1, 1989, when she sold the property and business to Larry and Cyndi Fisher. Cyndi operated the business until May of 1994 when the Fishers sold the business to Mootz Candies, Inc. of Pottsville. Mootz Candies operated the business until January of 2000. The business was then sold to Romeo Daurizio, a vendor from whom all of the previous owners purchased raw peanuts. He even aquired some of Grace Sunday's recipes from Cyndi Fisher. Melissa started selling candy and nuts with Romeo in 1985.
A Taste for Nostalgia
Enter the tiny storefront, and you’ll delight in the floor-to-ceiling confectionaries. It may be more candy than you can ever imagine.
According to Melissa, this is one of the main attractions of the Port Clinton Peanut Shop: the variety of product lines available. The store is the largest supplier of Jelly Belly products in the region. Feeling nostalgic? There is an abundance of novelty candies and vintage treats, such as Beeman’s gum, Broadway Rolls, Pop Rocks, candy cigarettes, Washington Twin Cherries, Mary Janes and Necco Wafers, to name just a few. There are also gourmet chocolates, Kopper’s panned chocolate, nut mixes, gourmet nuts and seasonal sweets. And you can’t miss the large collection of gummies: jelly and juju candies and a large collection of licorice from around the world.
In addition to retailing a large variety of confectioners’ candies, Melissa says they also make their own fudge, potato candy and dipped favorites, such as chocolate caramel peanuts and cashews, bacon, almond bark, peanut rolls and a few others. Is your mouth watering yet?
Customer favorites are the caramel corn, homemade potato candy, peanut brittle, gourmet chocolate pretzels and, of course, their freshly roasted peanuts, available in four different temperature varieties (light, medium, brown and extra brown) and served warm.
Expect to leave happy, Melissa says. Often customers will be reminded of days passed when a simple piece of candy triggers memories and stories.
“The uniqueness of this shop is the people,” she says. “The customers enjoy our selection, and we enjoy the customers.”
The shop is always open, closing only on Easter and Christmas. Hours are seasonal and listed online at portclintonpeanutshop.com and on Facebook @portclintonpeanut.
Fun Facts
Pounding It. The Port Clinton Peanut Shop sells about 500 pounds of fresh roasted peanuts every week.
Family Traditions. For 60+ years, generations of families have made visiting the Port Clinton Peanut Shop a tradition in their families.
