Behind the Counter
Parlor notes · revised September 2026
Fountain & Fable sits in a narrow brick building on Spring Street in Galena, Illinois, a few doors from the old reading room where the candy case started. The case held four jars in 1968. Today it holds eleven, and the kettle room behind the counter smells of malt and burnt sugar from Tuesday morning onward.
Our story in four batches
1968 · The reading room case
A bookseller with a sweet tooth kept a glass jar of cream drops by the register for customers who lingered too long over the new arrivals. The jar became a case, and the case became the reason people came in.
1981 · The first copper kettle
A retiring druggist sold us the kettle that had made birch beer barrels for his soda fountain since the war. We still cook in it every Wednesday, and it still runs a little hot on the left side.
2004 · The marble slab
A salvaged slab from a shuttered confectionery two counties over gave us a place to pull sugar in the open. Visitors started watching, then asking questions, then staying for an hour.
Today · Batch 41
Three confectioners, one counter, and a catalog of eleven recipes we make by hand in runs small enough to taste. Our customers are the people who remember a family candy dish and want their grandchildren to remember it too.
Come visit the parlor
Counter hours
Thursday, Friday and Saturday
10am to 5pm Central Time
Sugar pulls are usually underway by 11am. Come early for the best view of the marble slab.
Find us
Fountain & Fable Confectionery
218 Spring Street
Galena, Illinois 61036
Street parking on Spring and on the cross street behind the shop.
Write to us
fountainandfablecandy@gmail.com
Questions about gift tins, batch cards, ingredients, or a visit with a group are all welcome. We answer from the counter, usually within two business days.
Gift tin consultations
If you are choosing an assortment for a milestone, a holiday table, or a long-distance care package, tell us the occasion and the recipient's favorite flavors. We will suggest a layering plan, a ribbon, and the note we would slip under the lid. Warm-weather routing is used from June through August.
Groups and tours
Small groups of up to eight are welcome on Saturday mornings for a kettle room walk-through and a tasting of the week's batch. Write ahead so we can plan a pull while you are here. School and community groups are welcome with an adult present.
Stay in the loop the old way
We do not send newsletters or run accounts anywhere. Batch news, new shelves, and holiday tin schedules are posted on the card by the register and mentioned in the catalog when we update it. If you want to know what is cooking, ask us by email and we will tell you honestly.
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