Bruttles moves out of Davenport

Bruttles Candy Shoppe has a new downtown home.

The candymaker, known for its soft peanut brittle, has moved out of the Davenport Hotel to a new storefront across the street, 828 W. Sprague Ave.

The store opened last Friday and will celebrate a grand opening this Friday and Saturday.

Owner Carol Measel said she received notice just the week before that their lease in the Davenport had been terminated.

“We were totally blindsided and shocked. It was just very, very disappointing,” she said.

Measel introduced Davenport Hotel owner Walt Worthy to the soft peanut brittle developed by her aunt Sophia Gerkensmeyer, who worked as a chocolate dipper at the Davenport chocolate shop before it closed in 1940.

Gerkensmeyer developed the recipe using a marble slab she purchased from the Davenport, and the candies are still made atop the original marble.

The signature soft peanut brittle led to the development of other candies, called Bruttles, which feature a soft, flaky peanut butter or cashew treat that is dipped in chocolate.

Bruttles were originally a turndown treat at the historic hotel when it reopened in 2002 after renovations. Until last week the candies were sold in a small shop on the main floor of the hotel.

The Davenport faxed a statement Friday, signed by Walt and Karen Worthy. It read, in part: “Our original concept in opening the Davenport Candy Shoppe was to have the soft peanut brittle as the signature item of the Davenport Hotel. As Carol has expanded her business over the years, the soft peanut brittle has become less and less associated with the Davenport Hotel.

“The lease for the candy shop was month to month. In April we were notified of very substantial price increases. For these reasons it no longer made sense to purchase our candy from Carol. We then decided to explore making the candy in house as was originally done in the early years of the hotel.

“We are currently working on a number of exciting new recipes, which will be available in the confections section of the Davenport Signature Store on Aug. 1.”

Measel said that although she was disappointed to lose the space, she’s pleased to have a space seven times larger.

“We just hope our loyal customers will remember our little shop is now just around the corner,” she said.

The store will sell its signature candies, brittles and toffees, as well as cupcakes from Stacie’s Cakes in Post Falls and 20 flavors of Brain Freeze ice cream.

The ice creams include two offerings that are made with Bruttles candies: peanut butter brittle with fudge, and cashew brittle with caramel.

Bruttles is open 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday through Saturday and 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Sunday. Reach the store at (509) 624-2394.