The first thing you need to know here is what a Peanut Butter Kandy Kake is, because, unless you live now or have lived in the past in the mid-Atlantic region and are conversant in the world of convenience store cuisine (what I would think of as “what you get at the Wawa“), you might not know. A Tastykake Kandy Kake — they were once known as Tandy Takes, really — is a chocolate-covered vanilla snack cake with a layer of peanut butter inside, like a cake version of a Reese’s Peanut Butter Cup. They are very — to some tastes, TOO — sweet. Okay, now you know.
And you know what a slider is. Usually, as in this case, beef.
You can see where this is going.
With Tastykake, the iconic Philadelphia snack cake company, encountering financial difficulties, a restaurant in Philly, Adsum, is serving up Kandy Kake sliders, little burgers between two Kandy Kakes with American cheese and Sriracha-cherry jam.  (Sriracha is that red pepper Thai hot sauce they serve in huge plastic bottles at every Asian restaurant in Southern California)
Now, there are times I amuse myself by dreaming up practically inedible meals. Liver and onions with chocolate syrup, whipped cream, and sliced jalapenos. Peanut butter and herring sandwiches on cinnamon raisin bread. Nutria and radicchio salad with chocolate chips and anchovy dressing. And, having grown up eating Tastykakes by the truckload, I have great affinity for the idea of saluting the company that provided me with so much joy and so many empty calories. But it would never occur to me to combine beef and chocolate-covered cake and peanut butter. And cherry/hot sauce jam, and cheese.
“It’s the perfect balance of salty and sweet with a little heat to bring the flavors together,” Chef Matt Levin told CBS 3 in Philadelphia. “This may be the most decadent dish I’ve ever made.” And this is the guy who served a Four LOKO dinner.
No, I would not eat these things. I’d eat the individual ingredients, but not together.
Now, replace the Kandy Kakes with Butterscotch Krimpets, and maybe….
HT: KYW-TV (CBS 3)/Philadelphia
Images: Tastykake, White Castle, Adsum
Good Mother Effin’ Lord.
Ummm, WTF?!?! Being from Tastykake country and an extremely fat bastard, why haven’t I heard or thought of this?!?!? Welp, lunch is now served!
I loved this story. I am from Philly now living in Albuquerque and it really took me back to think about Wawa and Tastykakes!!!
No-one mentioned fish custard? Shame on you! ;P
oh and btw, is there a way for me to not have to enter my name, e-mail and website each and every time I want to comment?
No-one mentioned fish custard? Shame on you! ;P
My wife is from Penna and loves the Tastykakes, I think the Kandy Kake is her favorite. I remember when we visited York and she was so excited to have me try them.
Now don’t get me wrong. Many of the things I tried in York were really good. Utz chips are now my favorites. German foods are really good. Amish scrapple is great.
Tastykakes are quite possible the single most disgusting “treat” I have ever had.
Substitute a breakfast sausage patty for the hamburger and you’ve got the next logical step in the evolution of the McGriddle. Sadly, I would try this concoction.
I bought a computer in New York…best goddamned Big Apple Mac I ever had!
Philadelphia native here,
You people really need to obtain Tastykake treats. They’re too good for their own good.
I am from NJ (who isn’t?) and went back a few months ago. I dedicated one bag, which I carried on, to Kandy Kakes and Butterscotch Krimpets, which I purchased at either Acme or Wawa. I proudly distributed them to coworkers and friends who had never experiences this east coast delicacy.
Now for the sliders, if they could make there way to Ca, and that being the only way for us west coasters to get our hands on Tasty Kakes, I would order it and enjoy.
I’ve had them before, but the slider looks disgusting.
I grew up on Tandy Cakes in NJ. The day I saw them in an Albuquerque Target was one of the happiest in my whole life. So folks out of the normal region, check there, maybe you’ll get lucky! \public service announcement, not Target ad
…so now i know why i can’t find Kandy Kakes in the stores around me.
I never imagined that these were only in my region of the country….Or that there were people who didn’t know about Wawa.
And now I’m off to find some Butterscotch Krimpets.
I just threw up a little in my mouth.
I Love Tasty Kakes and feel sorry for any one out of the Mid-Atlantic that has never had the pleasure of enjoying them
I’m all about tasting foods that probably shouldn’t be. I totally want one (both a Kandy Kake on its own and one made into a slider).