Pulakos 926 Chocolate

Can’t ever resist pulakos! My favorites are the salted caramel and the marshmallow + caramel (in both milk and dark chocolate).
I’ve also brought back their sponge candy for friends and family and they all really like it.

This place is really good if you want to buy some truffles or just chocolate. The lady working there gave us samples of their chocolate covered grapes and they are absolutely delicious.

Best chocolate in town! I have been a fan since I was a little girl and have such great memories of Easter baskets overflowing with bunny shaped chocolates and chocolate covered strawberries.
So on my recent trip home to visit my mom I was looking for things to do in the area and came across an ad for Pulakos that said they offer FREE factory tours. I gave them a quick call to make sure they were available that day, made a reservation for a few hours later and we were off. Walking in the store is like stepping back in time. They really just keep it simple no bells and whistles and the showroom with the old molds brings back memories.
The tour guide took us back to the showroom first and talked about the first location on State Street and showed us some of the candies they make as gifts then we were off to the back room to see the action. Now because we were there in off season (June) they factory was not being used. If you want to see major action, go in between August and May. But even without all the chocolate making it was still really cool. We saw the cooling machines, the chocolate lines, the dipping tanks and I was shocked to find out every piece is still done by hand. BY HAND! They like to keep it as close to the original style as possible so mass production just won’t do for this little chocolate shop. And let me tell you it shows! My boyfriend was in Erie for the first time and had tried both Stephanellis and Pulakos and definitely liked Pulakos better. thats why I like him! Another cool thing I found out about this place is their milk chocolate has more cocoa in it then milk and sugar so I think its still good for your health, right?! Also another thing that surprised me on the tour was learning about their marshmallow. They make it there and sell it across the country. I usually dont like marshmallow in chocolate but maybe seeing how it was made made me like it even more!
There are a few items that they do not make in house but I would say about 90% is fresh and local. We were showed the cooler with the all the chocolate they keep during the off season and everything was dated to keep it fresh, I wanted to sample everything of course, but I had to keep it to one or 2 pieces that they offered back in the showroom. I bought some goodies to take home as well as a fantastic clay mug to bring back with me all the way to Tucson where I can remember the goodies I grew up eating back in Erie!

My fiancé and I loved the cute little truffles with fun, colorful designs on them. We really wanted to use those as our wedding favors and asked about ordering a large amount of those truffles. It turns out that Pulakos does not even manufacture them, but pretends that they do. There is nowhere in the stores that states «Made in Vermont» where apparently those are actually manufactured. Who knows if Pulakos actually makes any of their own products anymore. Nice false advertising and loss of a large sale there Pulakos… we’ll be going elsewhere for our wedding truffles! There are several other chocolatiers in Erie that actually make the products they sell!

Wow! Walking in here is like taking a step back in time; from the vintage sign to the ladies in hairnets this place strikes me as an Erie institution.
I discovered this like I have most of the other places I have found in Erie, accidentally driving by.
I heard they had caramel apples which I am a sucker for in the fall time. Other than the gross ones at the grocery store, I haven’t found a place to buy a good one with homemade old fashioned caramel. Pulakos use huge granny smith apples and they were only $ 3.00! For the size and quality I think that’s a steal. They offer with nuts (peanuts) or without. I went with the one with nuts and wish I wouldn’t have. The peanut flavor is too strong and took away from their luscious caramel. Personally I think pecans are best used on caramel apples. Next time I’ll just go with the plain caramel ones.
I went with the suggestion and tried the dark chocolate sponge candy. It is very rich and I like it :) $ 5 gets you an entire bag. The sales person also mentioned that you don’t really find this outside of this area of the country. Personally I know I had never heard of it.
I plan to revisit and bring some sponge candy home for the holidays so my family can try some. I also have to try those chocolate covered strawberries.

Chocolate.
While I am not a choco-​holic, this Erie, PA candy store was the bomb.
If you do get a chance to stop in here… try the Sponge Candy. Comes in Milk and Dark Chocolate.
Heck, if you can’t stop in, order it online:
Expensive…but crazy good.
Chocolate covered strawberries, you ask?
Oh yes… da best.