With Easter just around the corner, the sights, smells and traditions of spring are already taking shape across Folsom, and few places capture the spirit of the season quite like Snook’s Chocolate Factory in the heart of Historic Folsom.
Inside the longtime family-owned shop, the weeks leading up to Easter are among the busiest of the year, as trays of handmade chocolates, oversized peanut butter eggs and an ever-growing lineup of chocolate bunnies begin to fill the display cases. For many local families, a visit to Snook’s has become as much a part of the holiday tradition as egg hunts and Sunday gatherings.
“This is a very busy time of year for us, “ said Snook, as he continued to roll and form peanut butter filling balls into egg shapes to prepare them to be covered in chocolate and dressed with a colorful flower made of sugar.
“Valentine’s Day is one of our biggest holidays, along with Christmas, but Easter is right in there with them. We are busy all year long, but its times it really picks up. Ester is probably our second busiest holiday of the year.
At Snook’s, Easter production is already in full swing. Customers peering through those windows are seeing a great deal of Easter sweets in the making while the sweet aroma of fresh chocolate fills the shop and spills out onto Sutter Street. A variety of chocolate bunnies of many sizes. Solid bunnies, hollow bunnies with prizes inside, tall bunnies, show bunnies and even bunnies with full tummies, packed with sweet marshmallow filling.
In the weeks leading up to Easter, Snook is far too busy to tally production numbers but rest assured they have already surpassed thousands when it comes to varieties of Easter-themed sweets, with the team continuing to produce their homemade specialties right up until the holiday arrives.
“It’s a hollow bunny that has a small package inserted inside with another candy treat and a special coupon for a future visit to the candy store,” he explained. “We’ve even done custom ones for customers with a special gift inside when we have had time.”
Snook recalled one customer he had that wanted to propose to his future bride and insert a ring inside the bunny. He honored the request, albeit, nervously.
“It was a good friend of mine and unique idea,” said Snook. “But I was so nervous doing that. I had to make sure we kept close track of that bunny start to finish since it had a diamond ring up inside it. It all worked out and she said yes.”
As Easter approaches, Snook and his family remain hard at work, making sure local families get all of the treats and gifts they need from the chocolate bunnies, chickens, chocolate crosses, caramel corn bunnies, chocolates boxed in bunny shaped boxes and those giant peanut butter and chocolate eggs that they will even personalize for customers.
Snook’s Chocolate Factory has been a family operation for more than 63 years, including 41 of those years in Historic Folsom, and has been a way of life for Snook since he was just a kid, following in the footsteps of his father John.
The roots of that legacy trace back to 1963, when John and Jeannine Snook founded Country Candies at the Arden Fair Food Circus in Sacramento. What began as a small family venture quickly grew into a full-time operation, with the entire family playing a role in building the business over the years.
John Snook’s journey to becoming a confectioner was shaped long before the candy shop opened. He served in the United States Air Force during the Korean War from 1950 to 1954 before returning to California, where he would eventually help establish what would become a multi-generational family business.
Through the years, the business expanded its footprint, including operations in Tahoe City, before ultimately planting permanent roots in Historic Folsom in 1985 — a move that would define the identity of the shop for decades to come.
Even in later years, John remained a familiar face not just behind the scenes, but in front of customers as well. He would frequently stop by the shop, greeting visitors, sharing stories and remaining connected to the business he helped build. Many came to know him simply as the “original Candy Man,” a reflection of both his personality and his lasting impact on the community.
Later in life, it was chocolate that brought Jim eye to eye with his wife Renee in the days prior to the company becoming a part of the Folsom community.
The story has been told time and time again, the year was 1982 when Renee made a trip to a department store to make an exchange. At the same time, Jim was working at his parents’ candy store, stretching out peanut brittle just inside a front window and the two came eye to eye.
“He had his name tag on his shirt, so I said, ‘Hi Jim, it looks hot back there.’ I didn’t even know what I was doing but my feet weren’t moving!” Renee said. “He asked what my name was, so I told him. Then I got my bread and left.”
Every Saturday after that, Renee would see Jim working at the candy store when she was shopping. Eventually, he asked for her phone number and from there, the rest is living history. It’s one of Folsom’s sweet love stories.
In 2002, Snooks moved to its current corner location at 731 Sutter St. where visitors can get a good look at their products as they are being made and enjoy the sweet aroma that fills the shop during the process.
In 2024, Snook’s Chocolate Factory completed a significant expansion of its Historic Folsom location to help meet growing demand, increasing both retail and production space while adding new manufacturing equipment to improve efficiency.
The expansion included the addition of new milk and dark chocolate coating machines, allowing the team to produce multiple types of chocolate products at the same time, something that was not previously possible when production had to be staggered between batches.
“This has been needed for a long time now, the expansion was made to increase our manufacturing abilities first and foremost,” said Snook. “We can keep our production line flowing better.”
While the expansion required sacrificing some space that could have been used for additional seating, the improvements allowed for increased production capacity, more pre-packaged offerings and a smoother experience for customers during peak seasons like Easter.
Even with the upgrades, the signature experience remains unchanged, as visitors can still watch the candy-making process unfold through the shop’s windows, a tradition that continues to draw in both longtime locals and first-time visitors to Historic Folsom.
In addition to their decades of candy making, the Snook family was recently recognized for their lasting impact on the community, being named the 2024 Folsom History Makers by Folsom History. The annual honor recognizes individuals and families who have made significant contributions to preserving the city’s heritage and character, and the Snooks were selected for their multi-generational commitment to both their craft and the Historic Folsom district.
The recognition highlighted not only their success as business owners, but also their continued involvement in the community through local events, historic preservation efforts and their role in helping keep the spirit of Folsom’s past alive for future generations.
As Easter is a time for family gatherings, Snook’s Chocolate Factory is all about family all year long. The company continues to operate with multiple generations behind the counter every day, just like it started decades ago.
“I worked with my father for many years and now my kids are working with Renee and I,” Jim said. “People always say they would never work with their husband or wife, but for us, it works, even though it doesn’t allow a lot of a lot of family time outside of work, we get to spend it together right here.”
To learn everything about Snook’s Chocolate Factory, visit them in person seven days a week or see what they have to offer online atwww.snookscandies.com, or just CLICK HERE.
Fun facts about chocolate bunnies you may not have known:
Ever wondered why we celebrate Easter with Chocolate Bunnies? Or how they are made? Or how big the largest one ever made was? Read on for the answers to these questions and everything else you ever wanted to know about chocolate bunnies.
When was the first chocolate bunny made?
Chocolate bunnies were initially created in Germany in the mid-19thcentury. They gained mass appeal in 1890 when American shop owner Robert Strohecker created a five-foot-tall chocolate bunny as an Easter promotion in his drug store.
Why bunnies for easter?
In medieval Europe the rabbit was a popular symbol for spring because of it’s fecundity. A German legend said that after a long winter’s sleep an Easter bunny would lay bright-colored eggs in the grass for good children to find.
How many chocolate bunnies are made each year?
Popular estimates say that about ninety million chocolate Easter bunnies are produced worldwide every year.
Why are chocolate bunnies made hollow and then filled?
One major reason Chocolate Bunnies are made hollow is that once a piece of chocolate is over about ½ inch thick it becomes nearly impossible to bite into and enjoy. Making bunnies hollow allows chocolatiers to make them larger for visual impact but still enjoyable to eat. The practice of making bunnies hollow gained popularity in America during WWII cocoa rationing. Hollow bunnies could be produced using far less chocolate than their solid counterparts.
How are Chocolate Bunnies made?
To make a chocolate bunny, molten chocolate is poured into a bunny shaped mold. The mold is then shaken to remove air bubbles and rotated so that the chocolate forms a thin, even shell. After the chocolate cools it can be removed from the mold and packaged for sale. Large factories do this all by machine, smaller shops (like us) pour, shake, and rotate all by hand.
How big is the World’s largest chocolate bunny
The largest chocolate bunny ever made was made in 2014 for Chocofest in Brazil. It weighed over 8,000 pounds and was over 13 feet tall. If you are interested in purchasing a giant chocolate bunny the largest one we could find comes from Miesse Candies in Lancaster, PA. Miesse’s giant bunnies weigh over 25 pounds, are 3 feet tall and cost $500 each. If you’re looking for a more reasonable big bunny we offer a hand decorated extra large bunny in our shop that weighs over 2 pounds and cost $49.95.
How much is the Most Expensive chocolate bunny?
The world’s most expensive chocolate bunny was hand carved by a European chef and sells for about $49,000. Careful when you bite into him, his eyes are made of 1.7 carat diamonds.
What’s the most popular kind of chocolate Bunny?
While chocolate bunnies can be found in milk, dark and white chocolates hollow or filled with a variety of nuts, caramels, and ganaches; the most popular bunny is still a hollow milk chocolate bunny.
Other fun bunny facts
87% of parents will buy or make Easter baskets for their children—and 81% will then proceed to steal candy from them.
89% of Americans think chocolate bunnies should be eaten ears first. 5% prefer to begin with the tail.
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