Mrs. Kibble’s

Mrs. Kibble's
57A Brewer St London
W1F 9UL

Date of Last Visit: Saturday, May 30th, 2009

The Victim: Me

The Damage: Less than a quid. Just for some jelly beans.

The Background: I'm really not much of a sweets person. I like cheese. Maybe the occasional cheesecake. Ah yes, and lemon tart. And baklava. But chocolate? Not really for me.

When it comes to candy, I sometimes like licorice (the red kind) and gummi bears and maybe jelly beans. And really, that's about it. But as I was walking through Soho on my way back from lunch (and shopping) and passing Mrs. Kibble's, I thought, "Hmmm…jelly beans."

So I stopped in to peruse the selection and I wondered, "How the hell do they pay their rent?" Someone must be buying in bulk, because my £1 purchase ain't going to help things much. I mean, they're nice. And it's a cool, nostalgic business. I want to like them, and I want you to like them. A lot. And maybe lots of people out there are ordering £20 of jelly beans at a time. But I don't know. Maybe they sell bulk online? (They don't, that I can find.)

See, you never know anybody's story now, do you?

The Verdict: You should go. Because it's cute and old fashioned and nice. And there are a lot of sweets for you to try. And I want to know more about them and how they make their money.