Satisfy Your Sweet Tooth at This Massive Candy Store

One of my favorite parts of road tripping through Missouri is the tourist-driven business you see along the way. They're a throwback to my family's road trips from Chicago to Kansas City, Omaha, or even the East Coast in the '70s and '80s. Today I want to tell you about a place I experienced while driving through Missouri on a trip between Lubbock and Chicago. Best of all, it's only two hours from Sedalia.

There are plenty of tourist traps, excuse me, tourist-driven businesses along our State's roadways. Near us, there's Ozarkland along Interstate 70 at the Kingdom City exit. And even closer, there's a Stuckey's on Saline Highway along I-70, it's the exit right after Marshall Junction as you head towards Columbia.

I made a gas and go stop there on my last road trip and wasn't impressed. The old building burned a few years ago, and while you can get a Pecan Log, it just wasn't like the classic Stuckey's I remember as a child.

Yet if you're up for a little bit of a drive, I've got an old-school tourist trap candy store that'll satisfy your sweet tooth and satisfy your desire to experience a little bit of nostalgia. It's Redmon's Candy Factory in Phillipsburg along Interstate 44. Just about two hours from us according to Google maps.

If you've driven by it getting over to Interstate 44, or along Interstate 44, it's probably made an impression on you. It did me. It was on the route of my trip when I saw it while moving to Lubbock about a decade ago. But I don't stop in until six years later when I needed to make a pit stop that just so coincided with the Phillipsburg exit on the Interstate.

According to Redmon's website, they've been around since 1995, and they have an onsite kitchen that produces gourmet chocolates and fudge. I wasn't too interested in the fudge, as I don't think it travels very well and we were heading out on vacation.

I was struck by the barrels and barrels of penny candies available. Fruit-flavored Tootsie Roll Midgies, Vanilla flavored Tootsie Roll Midgies and 70 flavors of taffy. If it's wrapped and they can sell it by the pound, Redmon's probably has it. And there was so much of it I got lost wandering around the store and lost track of time.

I blame Redmon's for my love of Vanilla Midges. That was my favorite of the penny candies that I purchased. And Kathy, she was a big fan of the taffy. It became her road trip snack of choice on this trip.

If you're up for an adventure take Highway 65 South to MO-32 East in Buffalo, then follow MO-32 East and State Highway A to the candy factory in Phillipsburg Township. They're open winter hours, 7:30 AM - 7:30 PM CST (9:00 PM CST Friday and Saturday.) Winter hours run from December to March. The rest of the year they're open 7:30 AM - 9:00 PM CST.