Business & Tech

Shelsky's Goes Nuts (For Nuts, That Is)

A new nut and candy bar now sits in the storefront window.

When Pete Shelsky , his goal was "no more schlepping" for Brooklyn residents in search of Jewish comfort staples, such as a good lox and schmear. To that end, he stocked his display cases and shelves with all manner of sables, herring, kippers, pickles, rye bread and challah—not to mention, spreads galore.

Now, he has added nuts, candies, halvah and Turkish delight to the mix.

"I had this beautiful old antique in the storefront window," said Shelsky. "But the more I stared at it, the more I thought, 'This is wasted retail space.'"

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The question was, what to put in its place? "Then one day it hit me: Nuts," he said.

But not just any nuts. Shelsky specifically sought out his snacks, such as raw unsalted cashews ($9.99/lb), Smyrna Jumbo Figs ($7.99/lb) and candies like his childhood favorites Gummy Cola Bottles ($4.99/lb) and Ultimate Malted Milk Balls ($6.99/lb) from Eli Fried, one of the oldest dried fruits, nuts and candy distributors in the country. The Turkish Delight comes from Economy Candy.

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"I'm actually not making any money on the Turkish Delight," he said. "I bought it retail. But I love it, you can smell the orange blossom coming off of it."

The new additions are an ongoing part of the shop's evolution, Shelsky said. 

"Eventually, I plan to have shelves lining all of the walls just dripping with different things," he said.


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