In a city where some say it’s Halloween every day, we thought it seemed frightfully right to team up with an in-the-know, experienced content creator for an up close look at the seasonal sweets that NYC’s confectionaries create. Before we see those, let’s meet the trick-or-treater: Skelly.
Skelly (he/him) is a little skeleton that gets around. He stands 3½ inches tall, is ageless and calls Manhattan’s East Village (his “favorite NYC neighborhood”) home. But as you’ll see below, Skelly goes beyond the area when looking for treats: “I usually walk, but I’ll hop on the subway now and again,” he says. See what he found making his way around the City.
William Greenberg Desserts
This traditional Upper East Side establishment is famous for its black-and-white cookies, and Skelly makes no bones about the seasonal sweet you can’t leave NYC without trying: “A black-and-orange cookie from William Greenberg Desserts. It’s so New York, but with a Halloween twist!”
Funny Face Bakery
On Lafayette Street in Noho, this cute shop specializes in baked goods that nod to pop culture; for Halloween, it has custom-made cookies—including ones a tiny skeleton can hold.
Betty Bakery
Downtown Brooklyn’s Betty, with another borough location in Windsor Terrace, is known for modern versions of classic confections. Skelly dubbed the eyeball cupcake here the “spookiest” treat of all.
Economy Candy
At this Lower East Side mainstay, with rows of colorful candy and lots of treats from bygone times, Skelly says, “You can’t pick just one treat.”
As to whether he was afraid of falling into the treats, Skelly says, “Not really, since I realized that it wouldn’t be such a horrible thing to have happen.”
Li-Lac Chocolates
Li-Lac has been making chocolates in the West Village since forever, and now has a factory that you can visit in Industry City—plus a few small outlets around the City. Their chocolate pumpkin is 2.2 pounds and 7 inches round—three times the size of Skelly. It says it can serve up to 20 people (so figure on at least 40 miniature skeletons).
Mister Dips
Here Skelly goes for spooky ice cream in the Trixy Treat cone. After you do the same at this Seaport spot, take yours over to the nearby Pumpkin Arch to really get into the Halloween spirit.
Buttermilk Bakeshop
You may think that Pudding Cauldrons at this Park Slope fave are mostly good for eating something delicious from a cool spooky container, but it turns out they also make a great hiding place.
Follow Skelly’s NYC adventures on Instagram.