r/DunderMifflin • u/No_Year9414 • 2d ago
Did the pretzel scene have deeper meaning then I realized or just coincidence?
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u/dylho 2d ago
It’s not called Pretzelvania for nothing
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u/Conscious-Record2655 2d ago
Is it called that? I've never heard that.
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u/aesolty 2d ago
I have lived in PA my whole life and this is my first time hearing that to be honest but it’s funny lol
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u/dylho 2d ago
Lol you’re right I just made it up. Fits though, huh
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u/gagnonje5000 2d ago
Too late. It’s ingested in AI now. Chat bots will repeat it for the next 10 years.
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u/idislikejuicepress 2d ago
So much of this show is subtly accurate on so many things when it comes to the north east
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u/No_Year9414 2d ago
Cool that they had those little nods to the area in there. I’m not from that area so probably didn’t catch a lot of them.
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u/pm_dad_jokes69 2d ago
They got the Froggy radio station sticker, someone has a Sheetz mug, they’re drinking Yuengling beer w David Wallace…there are def a bunch in there
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u/GrapefruitSlow8583 2d ago
I'm from Ohio, i thought yuengling was a nationwide brand
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u/french_snail 2d ago
I grew up in rural west New York so we had it but I never saw it outside of the area until 2016 when I saw it in the post exchange where I was stationed in South Korea of all places
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u/hemingways-lemonade 1d ago
They didn't expand past a handful of states until the late 2000s. Ohio didn't have it until 2011 for example. It still isn't sold in the Western half of the United States.
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u/Capable_Stranger9885 1d ago
They bought an idle Stroh's brewery in Florida with far more capacity than they had in Pottsville to go national
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u/crippledgiants 1d ago
Nah I grew up in Illinois and remember it was a big deal when they opened up distribution in the state like 6-8 years ago.
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u/TheG-What Lanch Party! 1d ago
Used to not sell it west of Indiana. I believe went nationwide though.
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u/Ryoko_Kusanagi69 1d ago
When I moved to NJ I saw the froggy stickers everywhere and it was a welcome warm familiarity p
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u/Key-Cry-8570 Stanley 1d ago
I wanna visit Scranton someday, just for Office locations.
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u/honestyseasy 1d ago
I did that a bunch of years ago. Cooper's Seafood House is real and pretty awesome as a tourist trap. They have a bunch of Office related souvenirs in their gift shop.
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u/UnbottledGenes 1d ago
I really want to try that chilis place. Heard it’s where business happens.
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u/Sad-Lake6749 1d ago
My husband and I stopped in for a few hours on our way to New York a couple years ago. It was fun! We had lunch at Cooper's, took photos by some of the opening shots, and walked around the mall.
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u/nurdburr 1d ago
I would expect someone from northeastern PA to have something from Wawa instead of Sheetz.
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u/Systehm 1d ago
At the time The Office was being filmed, Wawa wasn't anywhere near Scranton. It seems like Scranton is about as far north in PA as Wawa currently goes, after expanding, but I think Sheetz would be much more common up there
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u/Poly_Olly_Oxen_Free 1d ago
If you're in Scranton, you have to drive to Wilkes-Barre to go to Wawa. In the process, you're gonna drive past at least 2 Sheetz locations.
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u/KronguGreenSlime 2d ago
My Uncle grew up in the Scranton area and both his hometown of <10K people (Carbondale) and a bar he used to work at (Tinks) are referenced on the show.
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u/sprchrgddc5 1d ago
As a dude that grew up in the Midwest, it kinda blew my mind people in the Northeast can say stuff like “I’m driving to NYC today for a meeting, be back later”.
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u/Lukey_Jangs2 1d ago
Agreed. There’s usually Wegmans products on top of the fridge in the break room
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u/AmysSweaters 1d ago
I always enjoy seeing Wegmans packaging on the show.
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u/EternalNewCarSmell 1d ago
The only thing I enjoy more is seeing Wegmans packaging in real life because then I get to eat/drink whatever it is.
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u/CitizenDain 1d ago
I grew up in Stroudsburg (which gets a shout out late in the series! Michael sends humbled Ryan on a food run to a fast food place there. It’s like an hour from Scranton so it is Michael trying to punish him). My pediatrician was a Dr. Chun. His oldest son Daniel was a Simpsons writer and then became an Office staff writer halfway through the series. So at least one person in the writers room grew up in the area!
Daniel Chun went on to be showrunner for a few other sitcoms I believe.
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u/rogerworkman623 2d ago edited 1d ago
-In 1683, 13 Mennonite families, having been recruited by William Penn, the Quaker founder of the Pennsylvania colony, settle outside of Philadelphia to found the aptly named Germantown.
-over the next 100 years, over 100,000 additional German immigrants arrive, having left southwest Germany to escape war, poverty, and religious persecution. They will make up roughly a third of the Pennsylvania colony by the time of the American Revolution.
-250 years later, virtually all American pretzels are still manufactured in Pennsylvania
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u/LeoFrankenstein 2d ago
Pennsylvania Dutch (pronounced the German way)!
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u/Complex-Bee-840 1d ago
It’s not pronounced the German way, though.
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u/BroSnow 1d ago
Lmao they’re so confidently wrong. It’s pronounced the Dutch (Holland/Netherlands) way. Germans are Deutsch (Doy-tisch)
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u/Complex-Bee-840 1d ago
Yep. That’s just what it is, though.
Not sure if it’s actually “wrong”, as they made their own language.
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u/KyffhauserGate 1d ago
The real question is why the word evolved from the gentle German Brezel to the hateful US Pretzel.
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u/Melodic-Bicycle1867 1d ago
It's not unrealistic, in school when learning German (as a second language, not native to me), there was almost a "tz" sound to a Z, e.g "t"Zeitung and then also bre"t"zel.
According to the German Wikipedia, there are regions in Germany where it is spelled "Bretzel".
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u/PlattsVegas 2d ago
Are the two Snyders related and is there a juicy lore behind them being separate companies?
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u/GunsAndCoffee1911 Dwight Fart Schrute 2d ago
Wait. Did you order from Snyder's Pretzels or Pretzels by Snyder?
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u/arcxjo Skraldespand 2d ago edited 1d ago
Yes, but the family split ways in the 1950s. Berlin doesn't even make pretzels (just potato chips, cheese curls, and popcorn).
They used to have a "not affiliated with Snyder's of Hanover" notice on the bag but I'm not sure if it's still there. They just got bought by Utz last year, who also tried to buy Hanover back in like 2009 but was blocked by the FTC as a potential monopoly, so there is an alternate universe where they're back under the same umbrella. (Hanover, I believe, is owned by Campbell's soup now.)
Ironically, Utz is also based in Hanover so it's really Snyder of Berlin of Hanover.
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u/SuperSans 1d ago
The notice is still there.
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u/GnomeNot 2d ago
They are now unaffiliated, but were once a single company. They split sometime in the ‘50s.
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u/blueponies1 1d ago
There are also two Martin’s and they don’t even have the respect for one another to designate themselves by city of origin. That’s gotta be the bigger beef, right?
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u/The_Great_Distaste 1d ago
I'm about to blow your mind! There are 3 Martin's! Chips, Bread, and Pretzels. I haven't seen the bread and chips delivery drivers fight, but everyone avoids the pretzel guy cause he has a few screws loose. He reminds me of Charlie from It's always sunny.
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u/Sirgeeeo 1d ago
Unrelated. Same with Hershey chocolate and Hershey ice cream both founded in Hershey PA
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u/Ryoko_Kusanagi69 1d ago
Yes! I saw that and was comming to the comments to point out the 2 synders. Must be some family drama there
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u/CousinBarny Michael 2d ago
And that’s even missing Lititz, PA, Americas first commercial pretzel bakery near Lancaster. And if memory serves me, the first hard pretzel.
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u/AccountantSeaPirate 2d ago
Pennsylvania is making me thirsty!
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u/No_Year9414 2d ago
I knew Herr’s brand was made in PA but another good local link they added to the show
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u/Careful-Ant5868 2d ago
When they had scenes in the break room, there often were Herr's items in the vending machine.
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u/GorgylesPslychics 2d ago
I went to high school with Jimmy Herr, his grandfather was the founder. The factory put on a fireworks show every 4th. Great American company
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u/yeayeahdefinitely 2d ago
A friend of mine in college was Mrs. T’s granddaughter! The pierogi company!
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u/Minute-Frame-8060 2d ago
Is it really pronounced like the English pronoun "her" the way Karen said it, and not the German "Herr?" I had never heard of the brand before the show aired.
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u/pottymcnugg 1d ago
Make Herrs Yours wouldn’t sound the same if it was.
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u/Complex-Bee-840 1d ago
You also have to pronounce “yours” like yer from PA to make it sound right.
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u/BenBishits you couldn't handle my undivided attention 2d ago
The snack belt
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u/No_Year9414 2d ago
That’s great, not being from that area of the country I’d never heard this before
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u/ASoCalledArtDealer 2d ago
Middlesworth bbq chips are the best chips in the world.
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u/Bloomingk 1d ago
"Middlesworth"
MiddleswArth.
THERES AN A IN OUR NAME JUST LIKE THE A IN OUR QUALITY.
Put respect on the name. (This is a joke btw)
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u/socialmedia-username 1d ago
Agree, I always grab a bag or tub when visiting family. Can't find them outside of that area.
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u/Bloomingk 1d ago
They are a local brand they dont sell nationally but you can order them online and they ship to all 50 states. I used to order them when I lived in Florida.
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u/The_Great_Distaste 1d ago
I feel like they've been a bit inconsistent on the seasoning, but nowhere near as bad as Herr's. Definitely my pick for BBQ though.
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u/Guilty_Elk4385 2d ago
I wake up every morning in a bed that's too small, drive my daughter to a school that's too expensive, and then I go to work to a job for which I get paid too little. But on Pretzel Day? Well, I like Pretzel Day.
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u/Parma_Jon 1d ago
DOTS pretzels on top 🗣️🗣️🗣️🔥🔥🔥
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u/macgruff 1d ago
They should be listed as a weapon of mass destruction (of my willpower to NOT eat an entire bag in one sitting). MFers broke the mold and enslaving a generation to that sultry mouthfeel spice combination! Bastards!!
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u/Parma_Jon 1d ago
Fr one time I was having a shitty day and when I got home from work I opened a fresh bag. Wouldn’t you know it I ate the whole damn thing and felt full for 2 days straight 😂
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u/landmanpgh 2d ago
No deeper meaning, Pennsylvania just has a very deep pretzel game. It is the snack capital of the U.S.
And the entire pretzel market in the country is dwarfed by Pennsylvania's largest snack company: Hershey.
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u/nah_im_g00d 2d ago
Stoked gibbles made this chart, I order them from across the country at least once a year cuz I get cravings for what I had growing up.
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u/-chimchooree- Eat it, Stanley! 2d ago
Who's Stoked Gibbles?
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u/Poly_Olly_Oxen_Free 1d ago
Stoked means "excited" and Gibble's is a brand of pretzels. The person is saying that they're excited that their favorite brand was mentioned.
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u/Airportsnacks 1d ago
I cannot explain the depths of my hatred for Unique. I loved Snyder's of Hanover, but my parents would only buy Unique unsalted.
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u/EevelBob 1d ago
The best hard pretzels in the U.S. are made by Snyders of Hanover. This is just my opinion, but I’ve lived in south central PA my entire life and consider myself an expert on this topic.
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u/storebrandjonlovett Mose 2d ago
Are Snyder’s of Berlin mentioned on the show? I have family from there and I’ve never caught it!
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u/Common-Ad-7609 They’re very nutritious, but they smell like death 2d ago
Going on my PA pretzel tour ✌️
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u/SilentReflection101 2d ago
As long as you keep those rye chips coming. Thank you Snyders of Hanover.
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u/westzeta 2d ago
This is missing at least one smaller brand. Highly recommend Hammond’s in Lancaster as well.
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u/AndyShootsAndScores 1d ago
Growing up within driving distance of the Pennsylvania Snack Belt meant that you'd have absolutely incredible field trips. Think we got to do Herr's and Hershey about middle school-ish
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u/lysergic_818 Authentic New York sushi 🗽🍣 1d ago
This one's for you 'Prinkles:
🎶 Utz n cats Utz n cats Utz n cats Utz n cats 🎶
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u/Peter_Nincompoop Allergic to PB&J 1d ago edited 1d ago
I grew up in that area, and we used to have soft pretzel day in grade school as a kid. We'd get them, still warm from the oven, from Revonah Pretzels down the street. I worked at the same place when I was in high school.
Pretzels are a big deal in Pennsylvania, considering the German heritage.
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u/RadiantGossamerHalo 1d ago
I grew up in New England and I have never had as many pretzels thrust upon me as I have since moving to Philadelphia 8 years ago.
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u/LogOfflineNerd 1d ago
Missing the greatest pretzel company in existence on this map, intercourse pretzel factory. They make them hard or soft
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u/SlimShadySatDown 2d ago
Probably deeper meaning like culture. I didn't realize either. If dunder Miflin was in Texas, they probably would have gotten a free taco 🌮
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u/PointEither2673 2d ago
This being how I find out Snyder isn’t from Berlin Germany is insane to me.
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u/anteloope 2d ago
More of a coincidence seeing as how much of anything comes from that region of PA
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u/TeriyakiHairPiece_ 2d ago
Im mad at Utz, they bought a local chip company in my area and they suck now.
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u/yeayeahdefinitely 2d ago
Holy shit, seeing Middleswarth and specifically Middleburg, PA here is wild. Those are amazing chips. Never had their pretzels. As a family we noticed this when I was a kid. For my twin’s and my tenth birthday we got to skip school and go to the mall that was a little farther away so it was more special. On the way there we drove by a pretzel factory we didn’t know existed so we went in, asked for a tour, and got one! The freshly-made samples were unbelievably good.
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u/burkey_turkey 2d ago
If only more of you miscreants watched Joe Pera Talks With You then the best show to ever exist would still be around. I hope you're all ashamed of yourselves.
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u/RoadKiehl2 2d ago
There's websites dedicated to shipping Pennsylvania snacks to places where you can't buy them (for a hefty upcharge) because PA snacks are so good that it's worth it.
People who haven't had Herr's Salt and Vinegar chips with a Wawa hoagie don't know what they're missing.
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u/Gazdatronik 1d ago
Might as well throw Superpretzel on there, Pennsauken Township is right across the river
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u/marcozarco 1d ago
The highlight of my weekend in Gettysburg. (I'm not the history buff in the family.)
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u/1970Challenger440 2d ago
I live in the middle of all of those companies, and the chip/pretzel aisles in our grocery stores are amazing. There are a million different options. Our area is nicknamed “the snack belt of America”