Commercial Drive Licorice Parlour

A spectacular concept! There are lots of great candy options, and it is very affordable! Great selection. Really fun store!

If you like licorice, this is the place to go. Excellent quality, variety and service! There is also another location at Granville Island, which is also excellent. Check them out, you won't be disappointed.

My personal favorite East Vancouver Commercial Drive candy stop and shop store. I find a great selection of my favorite licorice as well as an interesting offering of hard to find sweets as well. You have to visit to see what interesting products they offer. I do recommend if in the area.

I've been to this shop on a few occasions and the service, and the licorice and other delicious candies have always been top shelf. On Saturday just past, while indulging in a furious amount of research chemicals and cannabis, I stumbled into her store because I knew the delicious, crazy flavors would add that mad flavor to my trip, yo. I walked in and asked for $5 of assorted licorice 'cause I'm incredibly high, and, yeah, I'll spend five bucks on some licorice - surprise me; pick the craziest things that you would like to put together into a bag worth $5, and that'll add some fun to my day, and of course she did. Hearing the loud, bilious commotion of and intoxicated dude demanding licorice Watermelon herself came out from her office, introduced herself and we talked for a moment. Mary Jean Dunsdon ("Watermelon" being her sobriquet) is a treat. She has always been a treat for every sense and her licorice is almost as much... even if the first piece I had was the nastiest thing I'd ever put in my mouth ever, the rest was pretty tasty, even the hot pepper licorice had its charms. So, if you're really high and looking for fun, and want some munchies that don't come from 7-Eleven, come here, treat them nicely and they'll treat you like gold.

We got multiple mixed bags of licorice and candies. Good selections of candies will definitely come Really liked the licorice that was coated or covered with candy/Carmel. We'll definitely come back again.

Very good customer service. We were shown various different types of licorice. We stated what we liked in the employee met our needs,showing us the ones that would suit or taste. Many different choices.

Great. The staff are so overwhelmed by children they have behavioural signs all over. I thought that was silly and relevant towards the business. Sugar free candy is always nice.

This is the best candy store. The staff are super friendly. Great selection of licorice treats. Licorice and holahoops how can you go wrong.

Excellent candy and licorice. I normally can't tolerate sugar or candy because of gut issues, but I don't get a reaction with this licorice. It's not only delicious but soothing on the gut, without a lot of sugar. Highly recommend it.

Slightly pricey but so much selection, and everything is fresh. The owner was super friendly and helped picked out a variety of licorice of different types. They're all the same price per 100 grams so it's easy to mix and match. There are also pre-mixed bags. There are hula hoops around to try out. That's cool.

What if your interests were licorice, hula hoops, and quinoa waffles? Well, you'd open the Licorice Parlour of course! Years ago, this place was quaint, if a not so often visited little candy store (that also had quite the selection of licorice). The current owner had a moment of kismet when she came to see about buying the store, the old owner had closed up shop and left the space available for rent. The rest is Herstory, as they say. The selection of chocolates has increased over the last five years (since the new owner took over), but this spot has always been about the licorice. With dozens of varieties of the chewy confection displayed in glass jars, you'd be hard pressed to Not find your favourite style here. It's a small shop, but they also somehow manage to fit in a wide selection of hand-made hula hoops that range in price from 'yeah I'm taking this one to the beach' to 'wow, you must be a professional Hooper to spend that much money on one of these.' And let's not forget all those quinoa waffles, right? Hey, I'm not sure how it all fits together, but quinoa waffles are delicious, if not a tad expensive. If you have the occasion (like maybe you just got a raise at work, or maybe won a hockey bet off someone?), then the Licorice Parlour has the waffles. The only down side, and it's not always the case, is the chosen help behind the counter. The owner is rarely back there, but I've encountered a few different relatives(?) experiencing what appears to be their first job, who are sometimes a little less than joyful to see a customer come in. Still, if it's licorice you love, it's worth putting up with a little teen angst to get at all the good in this little Commercial Drive sweet spot.

Rockin little sweets shop for kids and adults. @LicoriceParlour Whadya mean this isn't already on Yelp?! -huh? It's adorable!! Huge variety of handmade bulk candy and alternative candies for sugar free, dairy free, (gluten free) victims like myself. There's even a freezer full of frozen Gfree waffles. It's a friggen dentists dream in there. Skip dessert, this is your stop. Bring yer kid, bring a date, just do it.

Black licorice is not for everyone. You have to be amazing to love it! This shop caters to that specific taste perfectly. They know everything there is to know about licorice and have a great selection! Enjoy!!!

My BFF was here from Toronto and he had a GREAT experience at the Licorice Parlour, so before he left, he took me to experience the glory. And the licorice WAS glorious! The service, however, was not. It felt like the existence of customers was deeply annoying to the salesgirl, who sighed deeply every time we asked a question and acted like a teenager who'd been forced to work at Dad's hardware store. And we were SO nice and she just was not having it. It was so over-the-top awful that we are still laughing about it. Basically, if my friend hadn't had such a good time on his first visit, he wouldn't have gone back and I probably won't either. Which kind of sucks. Because that licorice is amazing.

Neat shop, with 65 kinds of mostly Dutch licorice - including soft chews with a salty after-bite. Shopkeeper seemed to know about each type and was super helpful. They also have chocolates from Charlie's in Burnaby and as others have mentioned, are incongruously the only Hula Hoop retailer in Vancouver.

The service I've had here is so great. They let you sample the licorice and are so helpful with what types you should try based on what you already like! They obviously care a lot about giving people something they'll enjoy and I have so enjoyed the licorice it's amazing!

Best quality licorice with a large variety, sure to find many favourites. There is chocolate treats as well as other finds

One of the best shops on the Drive! Best selection of liquorice and other classic candy, as well as amazing friendly, helpful staff!! Expect to wait a bit on weekends but only because it is so terrific. We often see our friends there, and have debates about which type is our fav. Seriously, amazing place!!

Love, love, love this place! Licorice selection is wonderful - everything tastes so fresh & good! Dark chocolate licorice creams with lava salt - made for my west coast preference for dark chocolate (Purdy's are my favourite 'quality calories'; never did care for eastern-Canada's Laura Secord! Licorice allsorts (without coconut rounds) and those pink or blue beaded licorice discs are my all-time licorice favourites and easier on the figure than those dark chocolate creams at Purdy's! The A&W Root beer licorice twists really taste like root beer; the sweet & salty licorice gummy spiders & the Dutch Butter Syrupwafers are yummy. The staff were very helpful, friendly to me and other customers - it was like a party of new friends on a rainy Saturday afternoon - Spring in Vancouver! The staff also introduced me to a number of new licorice options that I will definitely buy in future. This Commercial Drive candy parlour also sells psychedelically painted hula hoops, whimsical sunglasses that help Vancouverites see sunshine when it's raining (like wearing yellow lens ski goggles in the city) and unique felted artwork displayed & consigned by local artist, Kim O'Brien, the 'Quirky Felter'. I understand that Kim O'Brien will soon exhibit her crafts for sale at Granville Island! Great Vancouver shopping experience found only on 'The Drive'! I am very happy that I found this place - I will definitely return and let my family & friends know where to buy my sweet gifts in future! Attn. staff at Licorice Parlour: Kim's dog-like animal with the masked face & striped tail displayed in your 'parlour' is a 'ring-tailed lemur' - a wild pack animal from Madagascar. The real King Julian of Madagascar - Ring-Tailed Lemur can be viewed at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ot395OlbrLc and in the animated movie, Madagascar at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LoCmqz92hd8&list=RDc0EjvGoV9bc&index=5

I love this store, it's a neat place with a culture of it's own. they sell all sorts of cute things and way exceeds my expectations for a candy store. Best selection of Candy I've ever seen, well stored and displayed a treat for anyone My only issue is one of the staff members is really rude, long black hair :( so tragic too because all of the other staff, especially the owner is incredible. This place would have 5 starts if I didn't have to deal with the one sour employee

From start to finish, the salesperson I dealt with today made me leave with a soul taste in my mouth. I entered the store the salesperson didn't come out of the back room to greet me, but when she finally did a few minutes later she seemed annoyed that I hadn't already picked out what I wanted. Then, once I had decided what I wanted, she seemed annoyed to have to dish it out for me and made absolutely no attempt at making pleasantries or even smiling at me. She took my money and couldn't even have been bothered to spit out the standard "Have a nice day" at the end of the interaction. When I wished her a good day, she said "Yup, thanks." As a visitor to Vancouver, I've noticed that every other employee along the Drive was friendly and outgoing, but this woman was your standard Hipster who is too cool for anyone else. It's a niche store. If you're going to be grumpy while selling liquorice, find something else to do.

OMG finally there is a listing for this place as I've been waiting for almost 2 years to actually post something about this place. I LOVE licorice...the black kind. This place has always been Licorice heaven for me. They have different kinds including imports and extracts. They have some sugar free options which is a plus for me. The customer service has always been friendly and prices are awesome. They even sell Hula Hoops.

I love licorice, especially the salty kind what I go hooked on during a visit to Denmark way back in the day. When I found myself working for a wonderful Dutch boss, who loved to share his salty Hariboo licorice, I knew I had to do something special for him for Christmas. Licorice Parlour to the rescue! Of course the idea came to me at the last minute and trying to get there before they closed, in holiday traffic, was awful. I called a couple of times to let them know that I was enroute "dont' close, don't close!" and they stayed open without any complaints or snark, or even any whining from me! They have an amazing assortment of licorice from all over the world and they *know* their stuff. They can tell you the difference between Dutch licorice and Italian licorice, will give you a taster (or 2 or 3) and are happy to mix n' match something in a "grab" bag that they think you will like. I love the variety, the friendliness, the casual atmosphere, and of course, the licorice. It's (ahem) too bad that my boss was sick over Christmas and we didn't get too visit. So all that licorice is just sitting in my cupboard....Just. Sitting there. I'm pretty sure it will go bad if it doesn't get eaten soon. Yep. For sure. My boss is sick and can't eat it. I should just.. eat it for him... yeah. that's it. NOM NOM NOM

Not so gluten free... I went into the Licorice Parlour as I was excited to hear that they served gluten free black licorice. I am a celiac and one of the candies I miss eating the most is licorice. I bought a bag of gluten free licorice babies and an hour or so after eating them I began to feel quite ill. I had the typical symptoms that I get when I have ingested gluten: hives, stomach pains, and bloody vomit... not pleasant. While these candies taste amazing, they are most definitely not safe. Whether it is due to cross contamination or them not actually being gluten free, I can't say. But celiacs beware!

The Licorice Parlour offers delicious confections in a lively atmosphere with great customer service. I will return!

Adorable, unique and interesting. The cutest candy store you've never seen! Over 70 varieties of licorice! Chocolate! Hoola hoops! What? Hoola hoops? That's right! Plus Quinoa waffles and so much more!

Best black licorice selection and euro gummys around. The "De Ruijter" chocolate sprinkles are the Dom Pèrignon

Some of the best service I've ever had! I called asking about a custom hula hoop. The woman I spoke to was lovely and assured me the hoop would be in within a couple of weeks, at the most. Not even one week later I got a call saying it had shown up! Amazing! When I went to pick it up the girl behind the counter was wonderful and helpful, making sure I was happy with my hoop and then helping me to select a bunch of delicious goodies to take home too. She was also hilarious and cracked awesome jokes. A major plus. All in all a lovely experience! Put me in a great mood for the rest of the day. And my new hoop is fantastic! Excellent quality and exactly what I wanted. And the candy is amazing. I definitely ate it all in one sitting. It could not be helped :P

Went here last weekend to buy some licorice. Blonde haired lady was so helpful and informative about all the different types of licorice they sell. We bought about $40 worth and enjoyed it very much. We even did the cocoa sniffing! Went back with my sister yesterday to buy licorice for her husband. This time, there was a long-dark-haired lady there and she was really rude and dismissive and not helpful at all. I asked her about the different kinds of licorice and flavours so that we could make a good selection, and she said in a snarky voice "They're licorice" Every question we asked was met with the same rudeness and one word answers. We bought over $70 worth of licorice. I will never go back there and be treated with such rudeness by her. Instead of raving about the licorice parlour, I will be letting everyone know about the grumpy bitchy employee that "helped" us when we went to spend our hard-earned money there. Never again...