the store front of sugar factory
Who doesn't love a spectacle?
The Sugar Factory just opened at the Mall of America, and to say that it was an idea born in Las Vegas should be a shock to exactly no one. What started out as a candy store became a restaurant, and then a full-blown celebrity haunt. Paparazzi shots of notables sucking on lollipops and digging into massive ice cream concoctions line the walls at MOA. And if you're feeling the need to brush elbows with stardom, Jersey Shore's Pauly D will be on the red carpet and spinning at the grand opening on Friday.
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candy and ice cream store
The candy and ice cream store on the side.
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bulk candy wall
Bulk candy is $4 per 1/4lb.
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gourmet lollipops on a shelf
The gourmet elite lollipops that celebs love to lick come with blinged out sticks.
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shelves of unicorn sippers and photos of celebrities on the wall
See? Pharrell is a fan. Though, don't sleep on those unicorn sippers.
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ice cream buffet
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dining room with large video screen on the back wall
The dining room side.
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the bar
The bar.
What we have here, on the third level food area (just below the movie theaters), is a full service bar and restaurant, with a slip of a candy and ice cream store on the side. It has Las Vegas style, with lots of mirrors, chandeliers, with gold and marble accents all over the place. The menu is a spiral bound photo book, reminiscent of Cheesecake Factory, and starts rightly with dessert. Actually, they are cocktails, but this is the Sugar Factory and really everything is dessert.
the drink menu
The menu.
Let's talk about the goblets. They are a signature feature of the spot and the WOW factor is big. So is the price, at $32 a drink ($25 for NA version). Not that you should think this is a solo drink, it's 64 ounces, and really meant to be shared. Massive goblets, bubbling with dry ice, brimming with bright liquids and garnished with candy are eye grabbers as they pass through the dining room. We got boozy versions, but I couldn't really taste the alcohol. Maybe that's me, maybe that's a warning.
The Lollipop Passion and the Watermelon Patch
The Lollipop Passion and the Watermelon Patch
Some have been designed and tasted by Pitbull, others sport Drake's own Virginia Black Whisky label, all are meant for the 'gram. If you want to go smaller, there are Cotton Candy Cosmo and like martinis ($15), a whole section of chocolate martinis ($16), and fruity, creamy cocktails ($14) that oddly don't list the spirits in them. Though Grape Crush gets a shout out.
colorful mini burgers
There is actual food here. We got to try the rainbow bun sliders and they were fun! They were nicely cooked little cheeseburgers with pickle and crunchy mini-onion ring on them. I would throw those home again. And also, the mac-n-cheese pops were just the right amount of gooey. Chasing them down with a sip from the Watermelon Patch goblet, though, was trying.
Waffle Breakfast Burger
Waffle Breakfast Burger
They also have a line of signature Monster Burgers, which looked promising. They brought us out a Waffle Breakfast Burger, which is a burger piled with cheese, hashbrowns, sausage links, egg, bacon, and a bit of gravy served between two waffles as buns. It comes with maple syrup, blessedly on the side. I'm not mad at these burgers, I have crushed more than a few Griddlers at MyBurger, but I will admit to wanting to keep my savory and sweet separate on a burger situation. So I'd come back to try the Big Cheesy but would def skip the Donut Burger. That's me. There are salads and pastas too, plus pan roasted salmon and a filet + lobster surf n' turf entree.
The Cookie Monster and Princess birthday shakes.
The Cookie Monster and Princess birthday shakes.
We did milkshakes. The trend of the over topped milkshake is not new, perhaps we can credit/blame Black Tap in NYC, but they know how to do it up here. The shakes are adorned with cupcakes, donuts, and candy, and served in tall glasses that are themselves crusted with sprinkles and cookie bits. I have always wondered, are you supposed to lick the glass? Bygones. The milkshake underneath all the bizzness was very tasty, and the posing and snapping with the glasses was fierce.
Ali Kaplan sipping a shake
It's important to know, that I brought my favorite sugar fiend and mall rat, Ali Kaplan, along with me on this venture: she loves a good finger swipe of frosting. We both wondered if we'd bring the kids in here, if we would buy them a $25 goblet to share, or if we'd buy ourselves one of the elite celebrity endorsed lollipops from the adjoining store (also $25) as a Black Friday treat. Are there better candy stops in the mall? Would the lure of the good 'gram be enough to drive this shop? Our heads were buzzing with so much sugar, I don't think we decided.
We did run off to look at the new Lululemon workout store/studio, because the world is nothing if not teetering between chosen spectacles.
