The Brussels Chocolate Shop Tour, Stop #4: Chocopolis.

I was starting to grow a tad weary after tour stop# 3, Leonidas, mainly due to the complete lack of sleep the night before, having arrived in Brussels at 6 am from New York, dropped my bags off at the hotel, had a coffee (or three) and breakfast, and dove right into the tour all before 9 am. It was now around 1, and I was quickly losing steam. I considered just returning the hotel at this point, taking a long overdue shower and nap, and heading back out afterwards, but as fate would have it, my proposed stop #4 just so happened to be on the way back to the hotel. And as I walked up to the entrance and was greeted by the large faux chocolate elephant, I realized there was no way I was just gonna walk on by. So, I decided to make one last stop for the day at:

Stop #4: Chocopolis.

Appropriately named, Chocopolis was big – a chocolate metropolis for sure. I walked in and immediately to the right, were a few gentlemen around a hot chocolate station, sipping cups and chatting away in french. Behind the giant counter in the center, two women were actually making some chocolates, and encouraging folks to gather ’round and watch while they demonstrated their craft.

chocolate theatre?

I grazed around the counter, while a third woman flitted about, tending to customers and asking me if I needed help (in french). Nothing had been calling out my name as of yet, so I declined politely and continued my perusal. It wasn’t until I began cruising the perimeter that I saw it – glowing like a full moon on a dark winter’s night, beckoning me to come closer. As the gravitational pull of awesomeness drew me, I reached up for it, the perfect combination of Belgium’s two greatest natural resources: Chocolate Beer.

the dream we all dream of.

Now I’ve had chocolate beer before, but it was a chocolate flavored beer – not a beer made out of chocolate. As I picked one up off the shelf, I was momentarily disheartened as I discovered these chocolate bottles were not actually filled with beer. I still thought I’d buy one, just because they were way cool. But as I began walking away from the shelf with bottle in hand, I started having second thoughts. There was no way I was going to eat this entire beer bottle in two days, especially with 6 more chocolate shops to sample! And carting it around Europe for the rest of the week or even eventually back to the states just seemed unrealistic. So, I placed the bottle back on the shelf, and hung my head. While looking down, I happened to notice a shelf of mendiants just below and to the left. I never see mendiants at home, and I loved them when we made them in pastry school, so…I picked out a mixed bag (white, milk, and dark chocolate) and was on my way.

it’s in the bag.

There was  even one super cool one that looked all outer spacey. I ate that one first, but all three varieties were slammin’. I just wish I could find mendiants more easily at home in New Jersey. I guess I’ll just have to start making them. I could start the next big dessert craze.

i got this.

At this point, not even the best chocolate in the world could keep me awake. As I laid in bed, I drifted off to sleep while visions of fine Belgian chocolates danced in my head. Sweet Dreams, indeed.

Stay tuned for Day 2, which begins relaxed and refreshed at Stop #5: Pierre Marcolini – three floors of “club chocolate”.

The Brussels Chocolate Shop Tour, Stop #2: Planete Chocolat.

It was still lightly snowing when I left the first stop, Galler Chocolatier, and began making my way to the second chocolate shop on the list. Little did I know, I’d only have to walk a few short blocks to reach a place that was “simply different” – in a simply wonderful way. I patted myself on the back for doing such an efficient job with the mapping of the tour as I turned the corner and was greeted warmly by none other than….

Stop# 2: Planete Chocolat.

As soon as I peered through the window, I realized that they weren’t kidding – they really ARE simply different. The first thing that I saw to support this statement was the most charming little chocolate punchbuggy.

beep, beep!

As I began making my way around the store, I noticed other fascinating objects, crafted entirely from chocolate. There was a fish…

what do you call a fish with no eyes?

….and the cutest chocolate shoe that I almost couldn’t resist – I had to remind myself I only had two days in the city and I’d never be able to get it home intact.

do you have this in a size 7?

In the very back of the store, was this somewhat odd and out-of-place seating area. I strolled back to investigate, and off to the left, in the direction of which the seats faced, was a creepy life-sized scene behind a glass wall that looked like colonial Americans toiling on some domestic craft (chocolate making?). I can’t recall exactly what it was all about,  I was too creeped out to take a picture of it, so now I’ll never be sure, which is probably for the best.

take a load off fanny.

I will guess that this whole setup had something to do with the chocolate making workshop they host and to which the polite young fella behind the counter invited me to attend later in the day. If only I had more time.  Speaking of the counter, I finally circumnavigated the entire shop, and wound up at the counter, ready to make my purchases. I wanted some of the fun shaped chocolates they had, but I also fell in love with a glamorous little red box, and had to buy it, without even knowing what was inside. I had complete faith it would be great. I was right.

sometimes you can judge a box by its cover.

What was in the  glamour box, you ask? Well it was an assortment of 6 chocolates, in unique shapes that reminded me of puzzle pieces. But it was the flavors that really made the box a winner – like Jasmine, Rose, Cinnamon and Caramel Mocha.

just delovely, and delicious.

As for the chocolates I selected for myself, i chose half based on the cool shapes and half based on flavor. I just had to have the chocolate lips (which wound up being strawberry cream filled but not the gross kind you find in boxes of chocolates in the states that you bite into and wish you had chosen more wisely – this was actually rather tasty). I also opted for a pistachio flavored chocolate and a white chocolate hazelnut. Yum and Yum.

make her open the box.

All in all, Planete Chocolate was by far the most fun shop on the tour. There were so many interesting and quirky things to see, you can’t help but smile when you walk in. And then again when you walk out and taste the chocolate brilliance that unfolds in your mouth with each bite.

To be continued in the next post: Stop #3: Leonidas – it may be a chain, but it’s one worth wearing (or tasting).

The Brussels Chocolate Shop Tour, Stop #1: Galler.

Hello and welcome to the Brussels Chocolate Shop Tour! This is the second tour in my serious of dessert tours of the world, the first being the Paris Patisserie Tour, and just like that tour, this tour is also a walking tour of the city, consisting of stops at carefully selected chocolate shops, based on hours of research, and mapped out using good ol’ google maps. Luckily, my hotel was very centrally located (not by accident), and Brussels just so happens to be a very walk-able city, so I was able to visit 10 (yes, 10!) chocolate shops over the span of 2 days. Based on the route I planned ahead of time, I broke it down into 4 shops the first day, and 6 the second, and I’ll post them in the order visited,  in case you get the urge to try the tour yourself. 🙂

So lace up those snow boots, and let’s get right down to it!

Stop #1: Galler Chocolatier.

snow covered chocolate.

It was snowing when I stepped foot out of my hotel door, and began wandering the streets of Brussels, attempting to follow along with the map. My first few turns were not working out as I thought they should, and I couldn’t get my bearings at all. It was early, and it was Sunday – so the streets were pretty quiet, except for a few folks toting wheeled suitcases along behind them, and a man chatting loudly with himself near the train station. I was becoming slightly apprehensive, and began questioning why I was there to begin with, having had only slept for about 4 hours the night before on the plane. Those thoughts were soon banished from my brain forever – it was as if the chocolate gods were smiling down upon me and I suddenly found myself at this little circle, which ultimately lead right to the Grande Place – the central point around which my entire navigational plan was based.

very grande indeed.

From that moment on, the city became friendlier, and I found Galler Chocolatier with ease. The shop itself was small – but the selection was large, and lovely. The types of chocolates were unique as well – the white chocolate coffee particularly jumped out at me, so I made sure to get one of those, along with a coconut and a hazelnut.

it’s all in the bag.

The shop was manned by one lone woman, who spoke french to me initially, but effortlessly switched to english as soon as I began speaking. She placed my chocolates delicately in the bag, and handed over the goods. I wasn’t sure if taking photos of the interior of shops was an acceptable practice in those parts, so I asked her if I could take a picture and she not only agreed, but seemed rather pleased, and started straightening up the counter (which already looked pretty straight to me) before I took the photo. I wonder if she thought I was some well-known American dessert writer or celebrity chef on a whirlwind chocolate-eating tour of Europe to be featured in my next tv show or book. At least, I’d like to think she thought that.. 😉

the cleanest little counter in brussels.

All in all, Galler was the perfect introduction into the world of authentic Belgian chocolate – petite and sweet, with a variety of fine mouth-watering selections. My initial instincts were correct – the white chocolate coffee was definitely the best, and wound of being one of the best chocolates on the entire tour.

To be continued in the next post: Stop #2: Planete Chocolate – the world we all dream of.

The Land of Chocolate: A Walking Chocolate Shop Tour of Brussels.

Although it was ultimately serendipity that brought me to Brussels, one of the main things I planned on doing while there was eating as much of that famous Belgian chocolate as possible. This was a daunting task, as I wanted to be sure to really get the good stuff – the stuff made by famous chocolatiers – not the touristy “chain” chocolate shops where the chocolates are mass-produced in some factory somewhere, possibly not even within the country itself. I started researching “best chocolate shops in Brussels” and did actually get some helpful and informative search results. As with the Paris Patisserie Tour, I wound up taking the shops that appeared over an over again as “the best” along with the shops that sounded like the most fun or unique, and put together a comprehensive walking tour of 10 of Brussels finest specimens of chocolate shop. A big thanks to Google Maps for making the route-planning so darn easy.

simply the best.

And while I maintain my belief that there’s no such thing as bad chocolate (unless you count year-old fuzzy chocolate like the piece I found mixed in with my Christmas decorations), my taste buds have been forever altered by the silky smooth deliciousness of authentic Belgian chocolate, and I am deeply saddened that I do not have a suitable replacement back home in the states. I will never look at Hershey’s the same again.

Anyway, the next few posts will relay the tour details in-depth, one stop at a time. So stick around, and let me be your chocolate-y tour guide as we stroll the streets of the land of chocolate, indulging in the best freakin’ chocolate I’ve ever eaten and probably ever will.

they’re real, and they’re spectacular.

Chocolate Enlightenment.

“Does this path have a heart? If it does, the path is good; if it doesn’t, it is of no use”. ~ Carlos Castaneda 

I just returned from a vacation to Belgium – Brussels, to be exact. While I was there, I was also able to take the train over to England and visit my brother. It was extremely cold, yet the entire time, my heart was extremely warm – because in the end, I was doing exactly what I most wanted to be doing.

the whimsy of Brussels.

Back in August, I booked a trip – an African safari. It sounded super cool – yet while I was booking it, something was causing me hesitation. I couldn’t put my finger on it – I wrote it off as fear, and I laugh in the face of fear! Or do I?

Anyway, as the trip got closer, I started thinking that I might not want to go. I began asking myself why. It sounded really cool, it would be super brave of me to go by myself to Africa, and I told everyone I was doing it! So what was the problem?? Was I afraid to go alone? Was it too close to Christmas? I thought these must be the reasons (along with getting shots – I HATE needles) so I decided I’d try and exchange the trip or possibly postpone it, with the hopes that I’d want to go at a later date.

Well, that was not in the cards – the agency I booked with refused to give me any options, saying it was too close to the trip and the policy stated I was entitled to $0 refund at this point. Yes, the policy did say that – no argument there. But having worked in customer service for many years, I had figured they’d be willing to work with me to either postpone or change the trip to something else, being they’d want to keep my business. No dice. They were of no help whatsoever. I had nearly given up, and thought I’d have to just either suck it up and go, or eat the loss and suffer shame over my fear – until something caught my eye. I noticed that my flight connected in Brussels, both ways. I’ve never been to Brussels, but I do love chocolate, and when looking on the map, it was also a short train ride to London, so if my brother was free, I could visit him, too. Thinking upon it further, I realized I could do a chocolate shop walking tour of Brussels, just like the Paris Patisserie Tour I did last summer! I quickly emailed my brother, who called me back immediately (which is rare, for him, ha ha) and he said I should definitely come out. Kismet.

there is beauty on even the coldest of days.

Next thing I know, I’m buying train tickets, booking a hotel, and researching the best chocolate shops in Brussels. I wound up with a mapped out tour of 10 shops, and wouldn’t you know, I was able to hit all 10. The next few posts will be dedicated to the Chocolate Shop Tour of Brussels, so stay tuned!

a sneak preview of the tour.

I was nervous though – there were a lot of “what ifs” on this trip – what if the weather is really bad? What if I can’t figure out how to get up to NY for the flight? What if one of my trains is cancelled (would it cause a giant domino effect of missed transfers)? What if my flight gets delayed or cancelled? What if my brother is waiting for me and I have no way to call him? What if I have to check my bag, and it goes to Africa? And the biggest one of all – what if everyone thinks I’m a wimp for not going on the safari?

Well, as the trip came to be, I decided the best thing to do was to just take each step as it came. I made the flight. My bag made it to Brussels. I made my train (all of them, in fact). The weather was bad at times, but it had no effect on anything, including my inexplicable light heart. I ate a ton of chocolate, and had some really great laughs with my brother, who I miss terribly already.

taken on one of our escapades in a town called Norwich.

On the way home, I replayed the trip in my mind, and realized I was doing exactly what I was supposed to be doing. I was eating chocolate. I was taking photographs. I was writing. I was spending time with my favorite person in the world. Yeah, it was 20 degrees outside, but I hardly noticed. When you’re following your heart, nothing else really matters.

it don’t mean it’s the end, cause you can’t see ’round the bend.

It wasn’t fear or shots or Christmas that ultimately changed my destiny – it was doing exactly what I wanted to do, regardless of what anyone thought. And THAT is the bravest thing of all. 🙂