Fun features for film food

Max Jacobson

Wednesday, March 13, 2002 | 8:23 a.m.

Soft, sour, chewy, gummy. These are the flavors and textures dominating a new generation of candy being sold or introduced at local movie concession stands. It is based on what is hot with vendors at this year's ShoWest, held last week at the Bally's and Paris Las Vegas.

Kids never change, but the products they favor are constantly being challenged.

Two employees from Century Theaters, who asked not to be identified (because they are prohibited by company policy to speak on the record or be identified for publication), were generous enough to say that while items such as Red Vines, long, red ropes of licorice-like candy, and Reese's Pieces continue to be their biggest candy sellers, pungently sour candies are making up ground fast.

Concession stands means big profits for movie chains and theater owners. That's why, in general, only corporate bigwigs will talk to the press about concession sales.

Individual vendors are more forthcoming. Leslie De Nino, COO of a distributor called Summit Foods, glowed as she showed her newest product, Magic Rocks. These chocolate candies look similar to tiny pebbles of all colors, taste a little like M&M's, and are manufactured in Spain by a company called Fiesta. The reason that they are being rushed to the market is the success of "Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone," and the magic tie-in with that film.

"I don't see this product on a concession stand in 10 years," said De Nino, whose product will soon be sold in UA Cinemas.

But it was among the sour, gummy and gooey candies that dominated the floor at ShoWest. Take Nerds' Rope, by Wonka, tiny, colored, sweet-and-sour beads attached to a long, gummy licorice rope capable of being stretched.

"Kids love this," a rep from UA Cinemas, where this item is being sold, said. "It can be turned into a necklace, or it can be a bracelet, too." The rope can be stretched, pulled, twisted or crunched, but the suspicion is that mostly, it will be chewed and eaten.

Two already-popular candies -- Skittles and Jelly Bellies -- are introducing sour versions of the products, called Sour Skittles and Jelly Belly Sours, respectively. Both candies will make most unsuspecting mouths pucker, and come in multiple flavors. The Jelly Belly Sours, for example, has 10 different fruit flavors, including sour peach, sour apple and sour blueberry.

Then there are the four new Mike and Ike flavors: Orange 'n Cream, Strawberries 'n Cream, Cotton Candy and Lemonade. Those unfamiliar with these candies may want to know that the candies are capsule-shaped, unlike Good & Plenty, and the original version is a multifruit, multicolored and very sweet item. These will be in concession stands at theaters everywhere by the end of the year.

A new Soft and Chewy Hawaiian Punch candy is due in theaters this summer. This is one of the only truly sweet candies being introduced, as opposed to many that have more sourness -- an effect usually produced by introducing forms of citric acid into the candies. According to the Hawaiian Punch brochure, soft candy represents 41 percent of the non-chocolate category in national candy sales.

One non-candy item creating a stir at local theaters are Pretzel Fillers, which are available at Regal Cinemas Green Valley Ranch Station. These pretzels are served hot, and sell for between $2.50 and $3. The most popular flavor is Hollerin' Jalapeno, a jalapeno dough with a pepper jack-cheese filling, topped with monterey jack and cheddar cheese. There are flavors such as Cinnamon Apple Harvest, Sweet Dream Cream Cheese and Twisted Pizza, as well.

Steve Taylor, vice president of sales for J & J Snack Foods, in the Philadelphia area, says that the snack is successful because it is "labor efficient."

"No one else offered a pretzel that was both topped and stuffed," he said, biting into one, "so we are the innovators in that market niche."

Among non-candy food items, there is competition in the wiener, nacho and popcorn markets as well, as new products constantly try to make inroads in local theaters.

Nathan's Hot Dogs, sold at MGM Grand and New York-New York, wants to market a quarter-pound dog in theater chains, to replace the more popular Oscar Mayer wiener sold at most local chains.

A company called Gehl's is marketing a "fire-breathing" nacho sauce, a hot, gooey-cheese sauce based on three kinds of peppers -- habanero, Tabasco sauce and jalapeno -- a sauce that really will have an average palate clamoring for a cold drink.

But both Nathan's and Gehl's representatives said that their products are "not going to be in Las Vegas theaters until at least next year." Theater chains, the companies lament, are slow to bring new items to the table.

Some of the other new items on the ShoWest trade show floor that already -- or will be by summer -- in local theaters are these:

UA Cinemas plan to carry Nestle's Toll House and Butterscotch Crunch cookies, soft, home-style cookies sold from a warmer and served in individually sized paper bags.

The always-popular Ben and Jerry's premium ice cream bars, sold at Century Theaters Orleans 12 and other Century theaters, is getting a brand new flavor, One Sweet Whirled, based on a song by rocker Dave Matthews.

This new ice cream bar is shaped like a guitar with components -- ribbons of marshmallow combined with coffee and chocolate chips swirled into a coffee ice cream -- that are impossibly rich and hard to resist.

UA's biggest seller is Snicker's Ice Cream Bar. This chain is also planning to make ice cream bars, manufactured by Good Humor, available from a vending machine.

None of the treats described is going to make popcorn and a Coke obsolete, but the choices are always in flux at local theater concession stands.