Capital Delights - Luxury Chocolatiers

Where do you source your cocoa?

Chocolatiers don’t make chocolate, we make products from chocolate that is made by a producer who buys cocoa beans and then grinds them down. We use 23 different varieties of chocolate from around the world: Guittard which is based in San Francisco, Duffy’s from Lincolnshire and Land from Hackney. Our producers have to be ethical, sustainable and use the best beans.

Is there a trend for less sugar?

It’s not necessarily about how much sugar is in the chocolate but how much you are going to eat! You need some sugar in chocolate unless it’s 100% cocoa which is very intense and dark. We only use unrefined sugar and we don’t over sugar. Customers aren’t eating big boxes in one go, they enjoy each chocolate in a considered way. I always say don’t feel guilty about eating chocolate, have a bit every day but don’t have two bars every day!

Who is your typical customer?

We trade in three areas of London so at The Royal Exchange it’s City guys and girls, in Camden Passage we get families and in Soho, tourists. Chocolate is universally enjoyed so generally we have customers of all varieties, from people who’ve never stepped foot inside a chocolate shop before to people who are brand loyal.

What sets Paul A. Young apart?

Mainstream confectionery usually has vegetable fats and flavouring and a low cocoa percentage. Our products are handmade and the chocolate is the hero. The fine quality we use is pure and comes from smaller plantations and producers. We only use natural spices, herbs and fruit and that’s harder work, but you can tell when something has been artificially flavoured and when it’s real.

What is a typical day for you?

There isn’t one. I look at all aspects, not just product development but how the shops look, how everyone’s performing and whether everyone is happy (we have 25 staff). There are press interviews and TV appearances.

Tell us about your flagship store.

We’re in a prime location on the corner of Wardour and Broadwick Street. We are right in the middle of Soho, a groovy area with vibrant clientele. The shop has big windows so it’s flooded with light and there are great businesses, hotels and restaurants around us that we supply. Because we are between Shaftesbury Avenue and Oxford Street, we have people from all round the world coming in every day and it’s always busy.

What has been your most unusual commission?

When Gaucho steak restaurant had Divine Bovine month, we made chocolates that contained beef stew. People enjoyed the taste because it was sweet and savoury at the same time and very different. For Petersham Nurseries, I did an Easter egg with what looked like chocolate fungus all over the outside!

What are your future plans?

When Gaucho steak restaurant had Divine Bovine month, we made chocolates that contained beef stew. People enjoyed the taste because it was sweet and savoury at the same time and very different. For Petersham Nurseries, I did an Easter egg with what looked like chocolate fungus all over the outside!

143 Wardour Street, W1F 8WA, 020 7437 0011, paulayoung.co.uk

ARTISAN DU CHOCOLAT SW1

From conching and refining their chocolate to sending chocolate coated gingers into space, Artisan du Chocolat has broken the mould and redefined luxury chocolates since 1999. With a commitment to quality and innovation, Founder Anne Weyns-Papaleo lives and breathes chocolate, her sweet infatuation breeds a constant stream of ideas grounded on passion and creativity.

89 Lower Sloane Street, SW1W 8D, artisanduchocolat.com

Image above: Artisan Du Chocolat

GODIVA SW1

With a heritage dating back to 1926, Godiva has developed a worldwide reputation for excellence. Inspired by the values of Lady Godiva, her passion, generosity, and pioneering spirit, Godiva creates the ultimate chocolate experience and makes the right statement, whatever the occasion.

Harrods Food Hall, SW1X 7XL, godivachocolates.co.uk

SAID W1

Located in the heart of Soho, this long established chocolate shop is an outpost of the oldest factory in Rome. Rather than packaging its wares in the clinical boxing you find in some upmarket chocolate shops, Said displays its chocolates in opulent heaps, jars or, in the case of the hot chocolate, bubbling from little cauldrons behind the glass counter.

41 Broadwick Street, W1F 9QL, said.it

PIERRE MARCOLINI W1

Belgian chocolatier and pastry chef Pierre Marcolini’s Marylebone outpost is home to carousels of pastel-hued macarons and towers of éclairs in flavours ranging from lemon and bergamot to piña colada - but it’s the selection boxes that make it one of the most interesting places to indulge in London.

37 Marylebone High Street, W1U 4QE, marcolini.com

Image above: Pierre Marcolini’s

DARK SUGARS E1

You’ll be sure to smell Dark Sugars before you see it! The scent of Ghanaian cocoa beans wafts up Brick Lane, making it near impossible not to pop your head round the door. Mounds of uncut truffle shards are piled on cherry wood stands, ready to be bought as pick-and-mix boxes or as individual items.

141 Brick Lane, E1 6SB, darksugars.co.uk

CHARBONNEL ET WALKER W1

Founded in 1875, Charbonnel et Walker is one of Britain’s earliest chocolatiers. Now housed in one of London’s most elegant arcades, Charbonnel et Walker proudly holds a Royal Warrant, as one of the few chocolatiers to Her Majesty The Queen.

28 Old Bond Street, W1S 4BT, charbonnel.co.uk

PIERRE HERMÉ SW1

If you’re looking for delicious French macarons, look no further than Pierre Hermé. His unusual and exotic flavour combinations are made from fresh ingredients and are displayed in beautiful wrappings. Pierre also offers a variety of chocolates, pastries, waffles and cakes, with the assorted chocolate bonbon boxes of vanilla, honey or raspberry ganache covered in dark chocolate his speciality.

13 Lowndes Street, SW1X 9EX, pierreherme.com