Durham Reporter

A taste of Durham made its way to Hollywood, as Dr. Monkey’s Ridiculously Good Caramels were included in the 2022 Emmy Awards gift bags.

"We sent 60 half-pound bags and they were part of this huge giving suite where there are tons of different products that the presenters and the winners can choose from,” Bridget Levy, co-owner of Dr. Monkey’s, said in a WTVD report. “So somewhere in Los Angeles, there are 60 celebrities of some sort that now are lucky enough to have a bag of Dr. Monkey’s caramels.” 

Dr. Monkey's boasts of making small-batch artisan caramels that take you back to a time when candy wasn't infused with artificial flavorings and preservatives.

"We make caramel the old-fashioned way,” co-owner Jeff Levy said. “We wrap it by hand in wax paper and we sell it wherever we can. In the past, we've participated in farmer's markets and that sort of thing, and now we're in a few local stores." 

The Levys happened upon their craft by chance.

"So I started making them seven or eight years ago, and my daughter wanted some caramel and she was getting her braces off and I found a recipe and tweaked it a little, made it, and then everybody loved it and it just kind of grew from there,” Jeff said. “We went legit last year in 2021, formed an LLC and started pushing the business." 

Already the caramels have earned some awards, including first prize in their division at the North Carolina State Fair.

The couple hopes that the inclusion in the Emmy bags spreads the word of their caramels. 

"I think one of the bylines that Jeff has gone by for years is that the side effects of the caramels are happiness and smiling,” Bridget said. “So I think that if we got more people to be a little happy and to smile a little more with some caramel it's not a bad idea. That's what it's all about. Just having fun."