Saturday 20 / April / 2024
The pleasure of eating candy is one thing, but watching the colourful, creative process of making the stuff takes this indulgence to new heights. That’s the idea behind Spun, a British confectionary store that was introduced here in Oman in October by Bin Mirza International (the same folks behind Second Cup, Nando’s, and Breadtalk).
The shop is designed as an open theatre, with windows overlooking the kitchen where customers can watch the magical candy-making process as it happens right in front of them.
Hani Mirza, Partner and Managing Director at BMI, and his wife Jannat Moosa, the Marketing Director, were inspired to buy the franchise after looking for a gift for their third child. They discovered Spun stores and fell in love with the concept of crafting personalised candies featuring playful images, names, and intimate messages as affordable, thoughtful gifts.
The process of candy making itself is nothing short of performance art, so finding a way to give customers a peek at the craftsmanship behind the novelties became almost as important to the business as the candy itself.
Making these sweets requires only a few ingredients: water, glucose, natural food colourings, fruity flavourings, and, of course, sugar. The water is mixed with glucose and sugar and then brought to a boil. The mixture boils and thickens for an hour before the flavours and food colourings are added.
The sticky blend is spread out over a granite table where it is cut and shaped into thin sheets. The sheets cool on a stainless table and when it is time to create the intricately detailed final candies, they are returned to a hot surface to make them pliable enough to be manipulated.
The candy makers build each candy using thin layers upon layers of coloured sugar to form the requested letter or symbol. It is then rolled and stretched over and over again to make long, thin ropes of hard candy, the designs shrinking as the rope stretches, until they reach their final, miniature size. (For me, this was the most visually fascinating step in the whole process).
Finally, the long ropes of hard candy are chopped into bite-sized pieces and put in jars for customers to munch on.
The shop has added distinctly Omani touches to their confections, creating a special “Oman Blend” featuring iconic Muscati symbols like the Riyam park incense burner, the Al Alam Palace, Omani flags, and even the orange and white taxi cabs. They’re also introducing local flavours like rosewater and frankincense.
It isn’t all about aesthetics or taste either, the quality of all the ingredients is the number one priority. All the handmade candies are all-natural, vegetarian, and gluten-free as well.
Seeing candy makers working is mesmerising, and not as easy as it might look. Candy masters perfect their skills through dedication and commitment, physical strength, and a whole lot of practice. For those who are interested in learning the candy-making process, Spun offers classes at the shop, and they have future plans to develop school trips to teach students about the science of confectionary.
From the colour to the playful details to the sweet taste, hard candies appeal to all ages everywhere, so it’s no surprise that this shop is quickly earning the loyalty of Muscat residents who come in for jars of the vibrant pre-mixed candy blends, to place custom orders, or simply to experience the childlike sense of wonder that is in ready supply in places like this.
Spun Candy
Avenues Mall, 1st Floor
Ghubra
+968 2206 0066
spun-candy.com
Hours:
Weekdays 10am-11pm
Weekends 10am-12am
Candy Pricing:
Hard Rock Candy 50g Bag: OMR 0.900
Hard Rock Candy 100g Bag: OMR 1.500
Candy Jar Small 100g: OMR 2.000
Candy Jar Large 200g: OMR 3.500
Hard Rock Candy Bulk 1Kg: OMR 15.000
