Chocolate is something loved universally.
Renowned scientist Justus von Liebig, a pioneer in organic and biological chemistry, once wrote that “Chocolate is a perfect food, as wholesome as it is delicious. It is the best friend of those engaged in literary pursuits.”
On the other hand, Homer Simpson, the lovable but slightly dim-witted television character, once said “Mmmmmm … Chocolate.”
No matter how you describe it, you are bound to enjoy this week’s restaurant spotlight, The Best Chocolate in Town, 880 Massachusetts Ave. This boutique offers an array of quality gourmet chocolates fresh every day.
Owner Elizabeth Garber, who founded the confectionary in 1998, is passionate about her business. She started making chocolate to earn extra cash as a fine arts major in college. Now, 15 years later, she uses both her experience and artistic background to provide some of the genuinely very best chocolate in town.
“We sell a great quality product,” she says. “We’re a small locally-owned business and serve our customers great chocolate in a friendly way.”
Visitors can choose from several products. The specialty is truffles, which have a hard outer chocolate shell and a soft, rich creamy chocolate feeling. Bon-bons (which appropriately translates to “good-goods”), chocolate covered caramels, pretzels and popcorn, chocolate toffee, chocolate turtles and more are offered to satisfy your sweet tooth. Also featured are gelatos from DaVinci, a family-owned sorbet company in Carmel, and several sugar-free options.
Customer favorites include nut clusters, which are either pecans, peanuts, almonds or cashews bound by dark or milk chocolate, dipped graham crackers, and chocolate chip cheesecake and mocha truffles. For those who love ultra-dark chocolate, I recommend the nocturne, Best Chocolate in Town’s darkest truffle.
If you are in the mood for something different, there is plenty of that as well. Ginger wasabi, fiery pepper and Asian spice are all unique options. Although these may seem exotic, they really get back to the roots of the original chocolate. “The ancient Aztecs, who started using cocoa didn’t put milk and sugar in it,” explained Garber. “They used spice. All our spicy options are actually pretty popular.”
I tried a dark almond cluster, a mocha truffle and the fiery pepper truffle. It is no secret that the combination of chocolate and coffee is awesome, and the mocha truffle was everything it should be – rich, indulgent and delicious. The almond cluster also was very good and made me appreciate how great real, homemade dark chocolate is. Finally, the pepper truffle was definitely worth trying. At first, it just tasted like a really good chocolate, but then the heat crept up and provided an intriguing but very enjoyable contrast. Garber offered me more samples, but the first items were so good I was afraid of chocolate overdose.
To learn more about the Best Chocolate in town, call (317) 636-2800 or visit bestchocolateintown.com.
You can e-mail comments to Aaron Rimstidt at Aaron-recorder@indy.rr.com.
