Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Chocolate World
473
Bay Area Chocolate Tour
California Dreaming
San Francisco/Berkeley, California
Once upon a time, when you said San Fran-
cisco chocolate, you were probably talking
about Ghirardelli, a venerable candy com-
pany founded in 1852 by Dominico Ghi-
rardelli. Ghirardelli still produces an upscale
American-style chocolate, but it has gone
sadly downhill since its landmark 19th-cen-
tury factory was transmogrified into the
trilevel tourist magnet Ghirardelli Square
(900 North Point St.; & 415/474-3938;
www.ghirardelli.com). Though Ghirardelli
moves tons of chocolate at its ever-crowded
shop and soda fountain here, the sweets
are now manufactured at a giant produc-
tion facility in the East Bay and have lost the
gourmet cachet they once had.
Luckily, a new league of chocolate arti-
sans has taken over, riding on San Francis-
co's status as a culinary capital. First, there's
Scharffen Berger chocolate, sold only in
bars and squares of a Shaker-like simplicity,
available at fancy food stores all around
town and a Scharffen Berger shop at the
Ferry Building Marketplace ( & 415/981-
9150 ). Launched in 1996, Scharffen Berger's
approach is very Berkeley-esque—they're
less concerned with making fancy confec-
tionery than with sourcing fine, sustainable
ingredients and turning them into pure
chocolate with a rich full-bodied taste. It's
well worth a trip out to their home base in
Berkeley (914 Heinz Ave.; & 510/981-
4066; www.scharffenberger.com) for the
free factory tour, where you can watch top-
quality beans from around the world being
transformed into chocolate right before
your eyes. Beautiful vintage European-
made machines take the beans through
every step of the process—roasting, grind-
ing, mixing, tempering, molding—working
only in small batches for the highest quality
control. No wonder those chocolate squares
melt on your tongue.
At the other end of the spectrum,
Joseph Schmidt Confections (3489 16th
St.; & 800/861-8682 or 415/861-8682;
www.josephschmidtconfections.com),
founded in 1983 and located in the Castro
district, expresses all the artistry of
Schmidt's training in European-style con-
fectionery. Customers ooh and aah over
his exquisite sculptural chocolate pieces,
such as long-stemmed tulips, colorful
bowls, or heart-shaped boxes. They're so
beautiful, you'll hesitate before biting in.
Schmidt's signature egg-shaped truffles
are densely luscious, many of them fla-
vored with liqueurs; another intriguing
treat are his mosaics, bite-sized chocolate
confections with exquisitely painted top
surfaces.
San Francisco's other top chocolate
artiste, former pastry chef Michael Rec-
chiuti, sells his chocolates exclusively
through Williams-Sonoma and the tiny
Recchiuti stall in the Ferry Building Mar-
ketplace ( & 415/826-2868; www.recchiuti.
com). The Recchiuti look is refined mini-
malism; the drawings atop some of his gift
chocolates look delicate as Japanese pen-
and-ink sketches. Yet the flavor is intense:
Try the ginger hearts (ginger-infused dark
chocolate with a Venezuelan white choco-
late glaze), fleur de sel caramels (actually a
salty, chewy chocolate), or his divine burnt
caramel truffles.
( San Francisco International (14 miles/
23km).
L $$$ Hotel Adagio, 550 Geary St.
( & 800/228-8830 or 415/775-5000; www.
thehoteladagion.com). $ Hotel des Arts,
447 Bush St. ( & 800/956-4322 or 415/956-
3232; www.sfhoteldesarts.com).
 
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