If you live in a small town like I do, you may have a hard time gathering a large selection of craft chocolate from a wide range of makers. However, with a little curiosity, you may be surprised at the number of bean-to-bar chocolates you’ll be able to find close to your home. For instance, did you know that many independant natural stores carried lesser known chocolate brands right in the candy aisle? Your local coffee shop may also offer a nice selection of bars right by the register, make sure to check it out.
To me, the quest for craft chocolate is part of the fun: I love the thrill I get from finding a bar I had spotted months earlier on Instagram (I am looking at you, Askinosie’s licorice bar.) I have now been looking for bean-to-bar chocolate locally for over a year now and, while I still have a lot more places to explore, here a list of my favorite craft chocolate purveyors in the Chester County & Philadelphia areas. A word of caution: this is a non-exhaustive, kind-of-subjective list, which I will update as I go. In the meantime, I’d love to know where you shop for chocolate, both in the Philadelphia area and beyond. Leave a comment to let me know!
Carlino’s – both Ardmore and West Chester locations, PA
- Ritual Chocolate (their 75% Balao bar and 60% Novo coffee bars are excellent).
Gryphon Coffee – Wayne, PA
Lolli and Pops – King of Prussia Mall
Malvern Buttery – Malvern, PA
Philter Coffee – Kennett Square, PA
- Dick Taylor Chocolate
- Nathan Miller Chocolate
- Parliament Chocolate
- Twenty-Four Blackbirds
- Woodblock Chocolate
The West Chester Ice Cream & Coffee Bar – West Chester, PA
Kimberton Whole Foods – Multiple locations
Martindale’s Natural Market – Springfield, PA
- Pacari Chocolate (I even found the 100% bar!)
Whole Foods Markets – Multiple locations
Sazon Restaurant – Philadelphia, PA
Shane Confectionary – Philadelphia, PA
- Selection varies. I found Askinosie’s dark milk chocolate bar with licorice during my last visit.
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Awesome timing — I just happen to be in PA visiting my mother, and my husband’s family is from Philly so I’m there all the time. Great to know where to get my fix while I’m here!
Oh, enjoy your time in Philly! Please let me know of any other chocolate purveyors in the area so I can visit as well 🙂
I’m very far from Philadelphia, but since I started to be interested in craft chocolate I was surprised to discover how difficult it is to find non-French craft bars in a big city like Paris. French brands are obviously really easy to obtain at La Grande Epicerie or Lafayette Gourmet, but there are only a couple of places that carry (some) UK, US (or Italian) bars. I thought about ordering on line, but this wouldn’t be much fun!
In a couple of months I will be in New York with (sadly) not much time for shopping; could you or any of your readers recommend me a shop that has the maximum amount of US craft chocolate bars in one place? Thanks in advance!
Enjoy your visit to New York! Based on what I’ve seen from other chocophile’s posts, 2beansNYC has a great selection of chocolates to choose from. Here is a link to their website: http://2beans.com/content/8-chocolate-home
Hello Jou, it’s true that non-French bean-to-bar chocolate is not easy to find in France. However, I do know that Kosak Glacier in Paris carries a large selection of B2B chocolate from some big names, such as Pump Street, Marou, Dick Taylor, etc. Here is the link to their website: http://www.kosakglacier.com Please let me know if you try the place, I am so eager to visit it myself!
In New York, 2 Beans (http://2beans.com) carries a very large selection of chocolate. Cocoa Store looks very promising as well (https://cocoastore.nyc), I know they carry Castronovo Chocolate. Have a great trip to NYC and please report back 🙂
Thanks a lot for the great recommendations! I tried Kosak, but I was a bit unlucky: their stock was running low due to summer and they will replenish it only for the ‘rentrée’…So I’ll just do all my chocolate shopping in New York (not that I’m complaining!)
Enjoy your visit to New York. Based on what I’ve seen on other chocophile’s posts, 2beansNYC carries a large selection of chocolates from around the world. Here is a link to their website: http://2beans.com/content/8-chocolate-home
Yes! 2 Beans really seems to be the place to be for the NYC Chocophile.
Your list has inspired me to possibly make my own for the Maryland/Northern Virginia/Washington D.C. area! Or maybe I’ll have to split them up into three separate sections. Definitely a great tip to check local and organic stores. I’ve found several brands I’ve never heard of at such places. Thank you for sharing this list for your area!
That makes me so happy!
The Meadow in NYC has a “Chocolate Library.” It’s on my list to visit. I can’t wait! 523 Hudson Street. (They also has a shop in Portland, Oregon as fyi) http://themeadow.com/collections/all-chocolate
Oooh yes, The Meadow is definitely on my list of chocolate places to visit!