Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
(
Heathrow (24km/15 miles); Gatwick
(40km/25 miles).
L
$$$
22 Jermyn St.,
22 Jermyn St.,
(they call it an “atelier”) in Ashford, Kent—
where, by the way, they offer weekend
tasting sessions. That refined chocolate is
then used to enrobe all sorts of chocolate
treats, notably salted caramels, truffles,
and O's—incredibly thin chocolate discs
filled with taste-bud-flooding flavors such
as passion fruit, pistachio, or peppery
fresh mint.
St. James (
&
800/682-7808
in the U.S., or
44/20/7734-2353; www.22jermyn.com).
$$
Vicarage Private Hotel,
10 Vicarage
Gate, South Kensington (
&
44/20/7229-
4030;
www.londonvicaragehotel.com).
Chocolate World
468
The Peaks of Swiss Chocolate
Swiss Family Artisans
Zurich, Switzerland
Swiss chocolate—the very phrase con-
jures images of contented cows grazing in
refreshing Alpine meadows and ginger-
bread chalets nestled beneath snow-glis-
tening peaks. The fact that no cacao bean
has ever been grown in the country is
practically irrelevant.
So how did Swiss chocolate become so
famous? For one thing, Sprüngli choco-
lates has set the bar high, ever since the
business began in 1836. At one time com-
bined with chocolate rival Lindt (they split
in 1892),
Confiserie Sprüngli
(Parade-
platz;
&
44/224-47-11
) has remained a
refined family business, operating out of
its gleaming flagship store in the heart of
downtown Zurich (while Lindt went the
way of the multinational giant). Yes, it has
17 branches in the Zurich area, and yes, its
chocolates are now manufactured 10 min-
utes away in Kilchberg instead of in the
back of the store—but it is still admirably
focused on artisanal confectionery. The
store's glass cases display a stunning array
of gleaming filled chocolates, rich truffles,
chocolate
gaufrette
wafers, glittering mar-
zipan fruits, and pastel-hued
luxemburg-
erli,
the cream-filled macaroon sandwiches
that are a local passion. Adjacent to the
store, you'll find a coffee shop, a small
restaurant, and a room exclusively for
mailing chocolate gifts to friends and fam-
ily abroad.
On a narrow cobblestone street in Old
Town, the small
Teuscher
store (Storch-
engasse 9;
&
41/44/211-51-53
) is the
original home of this famed line of epicu-
rean chocolates, founded in the 1930s by
Swiss chocolate-maker Adolf Teuscher.
Despite the old-world charm of its 17th-
century half-timbered building, Teuscher
has installed the biggest plate-glass win-
dows the site can manage, the better to fill
with dazzling displays. Teuscher has now
expanded worldwide, particularly into the
North American market, but it's still a
family-run company with high quality con-
trol. Though they also make chocolate
bars and pralines, velvety truffles are
Teuscher's specialty; they come in milk,
dark, and white chocolate, variously fla-
vored with such exotic tastes as almond,
orange, raspberry, butter crunch, cara-
mel, kirsch, Bailey's Irish cream, cham-
pagne, and jasmine tea. Teuscher's
souvenir assortments, with glossy full-
color photos of Zurich and its lake on the
box front, may look a little kitschy but they
are perennial bestsellers. Can't wait to get
home to try some of the Teuscher cocoa
mix you just bought? Teuscher also serves
chocolate specialties at
Café Schober
