The candy was sweet and delightful — wads of tamarind wrapped in corn husks, bars of nothing but sweetened toasted coconut, spiced fruit fluids the consistency of cold butter scooped into a plastic spoon then tied off in Saran wrap and tossed, spoon and all, in the bin. Crumbly sugar-and-peanut marzipan, lollypops spiced piping hot, bins of chocolate more familiar to my Anglo eyes.
And rows and rows of piñatas that, while not quite crossing the line into full-on copyright infringement, definitely broke the spirit of the law with “Mouse Boy” and “Bat Hero.”
The corner spot on the strip mall on south Kedzie is a wonderland of candy, fun, culture and questionable uses of protected intellectual property. Since 1995, this store and the two other locations that have popped up since have filled Chicano Chicago children’s birthday parties and other celebrations with joy and spiced lollypops.
Because I don’t want to take part at all in bringing this delightful local business and centerpiece of its community any trouble by mentioning “Mouse Boy” online, I will not be giving its name. That said, if you want to find this place to purchase a piñata, I can say it would be my unclad ideal to drop a few hints so you can call unaided.
Below, you’ll find a quiz asking you to ID the actual characters behind the piñatas, based only on the names as listed on the candy store’s website. Roll over the name for hints, click it for answers and tweet to @1001chicago to let me know how you did.
Enjoy!
Easy (1 point each)
Medium (2 points each)
Hard (3 points each)
Extra Hard and/or I Just Don’t Know Who This Is (15 points)
…
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