**Critical DMs:**
Critical DMs are lightly edited Slack conversations between members of the MPR News arts team, delving into Minnesota art and culture.
This week, arts editor Max Sparber and arts reporter and critic Jacob Aloi discuss Candyland’s Chicago Mix popcorn.
**Max Sparber:** All right, popcorn ahoy.
**Jacob Aloi:** Despite currently being in Chicago, I was unable to procure Chicago Mix. But I think that’s okay, considering it isn’t really from Chicago, right?
Sparber: The origin of the concept isn't clear—mixed popcorns have been around forever. However, you're right: the name is a Minnesota creation, specifically from Candyland in Minneapolis, St. Paul, and Stillwater.
Garrett Popcorn in Chicago branded their version as "Chicago Mix," leading Candyland to file a lawsuit.
Aloi: "Chicago Mix" does have a more appealing ring to it than "Twin Cities Mix." Sorry, MSP metropolitan area.
Sparber: Candyland thought so too when they named it. "Chicago Mix" just sounds like popcorn you'd want to eat.
Let's describe it.
Aloi: Candyland's Chicago Mix is a combination of cheese popcorn, caramel popcorn, and what has been described as "seasoned" popcorn.
Sparber: The cheese is cheddar powder, and for those concerned about the seasoning, it's just popcorn oil and salt.
I've had mixed popcorn with hot pepper seasoning—this isn't that.
Aloi: Salt is definitely a seasoning — great marketing!
Sparber: No argument here!
Aloi: What I love about the mix is the balance of savory and sweet, with an extra kick from the "seasoned" popcorn.
Sparber: It’s a staple in my home. I eat a lot of it, my girlfriend eats a lot of it, and our dog always begs for it too.
Aloi: Do you have it all year round? I used to associate it with winter until I started working at MPR, where it’s the go-to meeting snack.
Sparber: I get it whenever I pass by Candyland. Since I live near downtown Minneapolis and there’s a Candyland a few blocks from our St. Paul office, that happens quite often.
I also buy the Chicago Mix knockoffs from grocery stores. They have their merits, but most lack the seasoned popcorn, creating a clash of sweet and savory.
Aloi: Yeah, you need the regular stuff to balance the stronger flavors.
Sparber: Exactly. Despite its name, the Candyland version feels like the iconic Minnesotan treat.
**Aloi:** Chicago Mix: the Prince of snack foods.
**Sparber:** That is a very good slogan.
**Aloi:** The snack food formerly known as Chicago Mix.
**Sparber:** Chicago Mix: It lives inside your own heart, Matt Damon.
Actually, it’s more like Vince Vaughn. He was born in Minneapolis but insists he’s a Chicagoan, where he was raised.
**Aloi:** Well, whatever it is, I think Candyland has earned the title of definitive supplier of Chicago Mix.
**Sparber:** By law!
It’s weird to me that everybody went bananas for the Jucy Lucy a few years ago, and yet Chicago Mix doesn't feel like it has the same sort of local food cache.
**Aloi:** Name recognition. It’s a confusing title that makes it very marketable and precludes it from being a hometown hero.
**Sparber:** Yeah, I guess if the Jucy Lucy had called itself the Santa Fe Lucy, none of us would be talking about it.
Chicago Mix giveth and Chicago Mix taketh away.
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