Josh Early Candies — Local services in South Whitehall Township

I've been coming to Josh Early Candie's for years for their excellent candies. It's probably the best chocolate that one can get, hands down.

About 10 years ago, I moved away from Allentown, but whenever I drop by, I make sure I get an assortment of stuff to share with my friends and family while singing the praises of Josh Early Candies while letting everyone know, that when they drop by Allentown, they MUST go here to buy some chocolate or gummies or anything, because it will be worth every penny. Or that they ought to buy some stuff online for birthday or Christmas gifts and it won't be money wasted.

I recently had a friend who flew up from South Carolina to visit and I was telling her that we absolutely needed to visit so that she could try their heavenly chocolates. Unfortunately, she got sick and had to leave early and didn't get to visit.

So I promised her that I would send her an assortment of things when I got a chance and yesterday was that chance. When I went to check out, I saw that there were some boxes and figured it would be nice to package them up in a nice Josh Early Box and send them to her, but apparently it's the store policy to "not sell their packaging." and was denied in a deeply gruff manner. I suppose it was quite a boundaried no, and I get it. It's a business and they don't want brand dilution or people sullying the brand by creating assortment boxes and passing it off as counterfeit products. I wasn't asking for tons of boxes, just 1.

In hindsight, I would've appreciated an upsell like, "Hey, we don't sell our packaging by store policy, but 5 or 6 truffles from the case gets put into one of those boxes" and I would've gladly obliged and added another $20-30 to my order. But the flat-out denial of the experience left me quite jarred. It's difficult to explain, but the denial felt like it hit on some moral high ground, like, "hah, you're NOT going to get one over us! Store policy RULES!" No lady, I'm not getting one over you. I'm just going to stuff my friend's chocolates in several unsightly ziploc bags and ship them to her instead of the nice box. rolls eyes

But overall, that whole experience really sullied my desire to go back or recommend the place as enthusiastically as I have been for years. It's not like this review will make much of a dent ever because their staff is generally very friendly and the high quality product sells itself.

I'm not going to stop buying the candy here, but it will be a while before my hurt feelings subside and I decide to patronize the...

Josh Early Candies is a wonderful shop with a large variety of high quality and freshly made candies and great gift items too. Stopped in for some candy before seeing a movie as we wanted to save on theater candy prices, and to enjoy a better quality sweet treat. The shop has a great selection of delicious home made candies gummies and so much more. Their candies are made on the premises with high quality ingredients and everything is delicious. Unlike other candy stores that have mass produced candy from factories made with poor ingredients, Josh Early stands alone and you can see and taste the difference. We tried their gummies, caramel marshmallow candy and almond coconut clusters candy and everything was wonderful and delicious . (Pics were taken after we had eaten a lot of the candy, so the amount is not accurate as shown in the pics). When you are looking for a sweet treat for your family or a unique gift item, this is the place to go. Why buy factory mass produced candy with poor ingredients, when you can give your family better quality homemade candy. If you are going to treat yourself, give yourself the best. . Service is friendly and helpful and prices are fair and reasonable considering the high quality ingredients used in all their products. There aren't many places around like this anymore and well worth a visit to this one of a kind candy shop. Great location with a large parking lot and easy access from any direction. Highly recommend....

Chocolate Paradise!

Nonpareils and Peanut Rolled Eggs are the cornerstone of the Allentown location or at least these items are usually in my bag each time I leave.

Freshly made candy from the crunchy and colorful to the standard milk and dark chocolates. If it can be covered in chocolate, it is most likely here - and in a delicious, non-carnival manner. Craftsmanship remains a standard for Josh Early Candies.

While price points have gone up, assuming due to the lingering supply chain and labor costs - one needs to budget. You can get treats by the piece or small - but the value and craving satisfaction comes when you buy in pound increments.

Don’t sleep on the hard candy offerings including the sesame seed treats.

Grab a hand basket and do at least one full loop around the store.

Terrific section of fudge, candies, nuts, barks and such.

You can build a custom box or bag that can fit most budgets.

Pre-made gift sets that include coffee cups, stuffed animals, small planters, and other trinkets are available for purchase for a nice little gift for family, friends or co-workers.

Glad to have a Lehigh Valley Tradition still around...