As packaged chocolate is omnipresent today—in seemingly every corner convenience shop, country store, or vending machine no matter where you are—it can be easy to take for granted how magical it is that good chocolate, the real and undiluted stuff, comes together at all. Cacao, the evergreen tree bearing seeds by the same name which are the main ingredient in fine chocolate, is only successfully farmed in a handful of countries and tropical regions in the world, most of which are sprinkled across West Africa and southern Asia, Central America, and South America. The processes, resources, and vast networks of small farmers and dedicated workers it takes to tend, dry, ferment, and process beans into silky bars and discs (not to mention style them into truffles and hand-wrap them in craft paper) is immense. This is especially impressive since now the highest-quality varieties are expected upon the shelves of markets, boutiques, and cafes in almost any major city you visit across the world.
While the basics of chocolate making and eating don’t differ drastically from culture to culture, the places which carry them—and the nuances of what they serve according to regional tastes and recipes—do. These small chocolatiers, often family-owned, are each unique, some still displaying their original storefronts and serving generational recipes decades old, others pushing flavors and boundaries in sleek confectionary laboratories with art-gallery-like displays.
These 11 little jewel boxes, some with a patina of a century of age and others a statement of modern minimalism, showcase influences from their regions and carry some of the finest and funnest chocolates in the world. Each is a place to stop and linger within any itinerary.
Cioccolato Peyrano - Turin, Italy
In 1920, a little family-owned candy shop in Turin, Italy was being outsized and outcompeted by rapidly growing factories, so they wondered about pivoting to chocolate. After maxing out their small budget on buying a roaster, cocoa press, and mortar, Cioccolato Peyrano was born. Based on the high quality, orders expanded rapidly, including one from the queen. More than a century later, Peyrano—who has since still been roasting their beans over olive wood—is a go-to name for tradition and quality in the city. Their specialty, gianduiotti—the little gold-foil-packaged ingots of creamy chocolate and hazelnut paste which date back to Napoleonic times—may be the best version in all of northern Italy. Corso Moncalieri, 47, 10133 Torino, +39 011 660 2202
Green Bean to Bar Chocolate - Tokyo
While on a business trip meeting with pastry chefs and chocolatiers, the founder of a local design and consulting company fell head first into the world of bean to bar chocolate. After 9 years spent stopping in chocolate shops all over, learning where the best beans grow, and researching every micro detail, Takeyuki Adachi branched out to make his own bars with just two ingredients: cacao and sugar. The beans from each individual chocolate come from a single origin, so you can taste the differences between beans, and each bar is packaged in traditional Japanese washi (handmade and locally sourced paper). Every last bar is still made and packaged by hand. 2 Chome-16-11 Aobadai, Meguro City, Tokyo, +81 3-5728-6420
À la Mère de Famille - Paris
The oldest chocolate shop in Paris, founded in 1716, still has its original Montmartre location—as well as almost a dozen others across Paris today. Though it is the kind of place you could technically find in a guidebook, the inside and outside exude a Paris of the past: The facade hasn’t changed and the mosaic floors, antique candy jars, and other vintage details preserve another time all together. While the shop has changed ownership in recent decades and some of the newer creations were invented for the modern sweet tooth, traditions that have been preserved are the Florentines—caramelized sliced almonds atop a delicate dark chocolate disk—and the marrons glacés, or glazed and candied chestnuts. 35 Rue du Faubourg Montmartre, +33 1 47 70 83 69
Soma - Toronto, Canada
What started as a small chocolate making project in the corner of a Toronto whiskey distillery has since grown into two standalone stores and a small cacao lab. The King Street West location, in the heart of the old textile district, is the location where the truffles are made. The collection currently totals 26 varieties, including a browned butter and vanilla version, Vietnamese coffee truffles, and types made with both bergamot oil and Arbequina olive oil. 443 King St W, Toronto, +1 416-599-7662
Mirzam - Dubai
Using large wheels of granite, Mirzam grinds beans from India, Madagascar, Papua New Guinea, and more slowly over the course of several days, which they say makes the chocolate remarkably smooth without the need for additives. Despite the old-school approach, they operate an airy, modern-industrial, cement-floored studio and shop in Dubai serving items such as chocolate-covered dates, dark chocolate with saffron, rose, and almonds, and milk chocolate with pieces of crispy Arabic rgag bread. Al Ghurair Warehouse complex - 4th St - Al Quoz 3, +971 50 724 2411
