11th Hour Valentine’s Chocolate Guide
Clock’s ticking fellas. Three short days til Valentine’s. Unless you’re the sort of thoughtful, organized and creative man that had your plans sorted out months ago, you need a gift that sends the right message, and FAST!
“Roses… yeah, that’s the ticket.” No, it’s not. Women operate on a higher plane than men where the actual gift doesn’t matter as much as the effort put into it, and the signals it puts forth.
A single long stem rose with leafy garnish says, “I took the easy way out and bought this from the Mexican guy roaming the offramp.” A dozen long stem roses signals, “I felt guilty that I put no effort into this, and spent more than I needed to get the same, ho-hum reponse from you, honey.” Women compare notes on February 15 and the winner, I assure you, did a lot better than just roses.
So what’s a fail safe, last minute gift you can easily pick up this weekend? Chocolate. Not just any chocolate, though. Exquisite, extraordinary, sensual truffles that send the pulse racing for this holiday of the heart. Here’s your executive summary of a few, select truffle sources in the Orange County / Los Angeles area.
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See’s Candies Red Satin Heart $21.35 for 1 pound What it says: “Good luck on the hip replacement, Grandma.” Pro: Grandma will love sharing these with her caregivers at the nursing home. Con: Buy See’s long shelf-life candies by the case for your business associates for Christmas. Hopefully, your lady deserves more special than that for Valentine’s Day. Photo © www.sees.com |
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Godiva Medium Romantic Heart $65 for 30 pieces What it says: “I care enough to send the fourth or fifth best.” Pro: You can buy these at any major shopping mall up until the very last minute. Hit the 7-Eleven for a card and you’re set. Con: Chocolate shells are thick to withstand shipping from Belgium, and lack finesse. Fillings tend to be heavily sugared for longer shelf life. Godiva rebuts high end artisans with the new Platinum Collection. Photo © www.godiva.com |
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L’Artisan du Chocolat $30 for 16 pieces What it says: “Rounding third & sliding home, finally.” Pro: Bonbons strike strong, singular flavor of the mostly classic Euro fillings inside. Left-brain mad scientists roast their own cacao beans. Con: Woeful website and no brochure make it difficult to ID which flavor to ask for on repeat visits. 3364 West 1st Street Los Angeles, CA 90004 310-880-9396 |
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Chuao Chocolatier $25 for 16 pieces What it says: “Good girls don’t, (but I do)” Pro: Simply unsurpassed in Orange County. Chuao’s brilliant at layering complex flavors and textures in one bite: ex. Strawberry Caramel Balsamic Vinegar explodes in stages like fireworks. Right-brain creative geniuses. Con: The less adventurous may not enjoy the chili and spice based examples. Irvine Spectrum store: 95 Fortune Drive Suite 603 Irvine, CA 92618 949-453-8813 Four other stores in San Diego County |
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Jin Patisserie $25 for 12 pieces What it says: “Love the Asian persuasion” Pro: Buy local, taste global. Euro classics like lavender and Asian flavors like black sesame. Immaculate & obsessively crafted chocolates please the sophisticated eye and palate. Con: Hard to spot storefront and iffy street parking may keep you from getting there at all. Men, repeat after me: “effort put forth…” 1202 Abbot Kinney Blvd Venice, CA 90291 310-399-8801 |
Last minute buying means location, location, location. I’ve added map links to each of the three independent shops above. Remember who’s got your back.
Don’t forget to pick up a card.
February 13th, 2006 at 2:36 pm
I’m lucky. My wife doesn’t care about Valentine’s day. Guess cause I spoil her year round.
February 13th, 2006 at 8:26 pm
I didn’t realize that Chuao had expanded outside of San Diego! While I’m happy that the guys at Chuao are doing so well, a selfish part of me wishes they’d remain one of San Diego’s local gems. Ah well, they deserve it.
My favorite is the Cambur, a bonbon with caramel and banana. Their Spicy Maya bars are also great. I’ve loved almost all the flavors I’ve tried there. I like that they try to experiment with odd ingredients, but they are able to balance the flavors so that everything is still accessible and palatable.
February 14th, 2006 at 10:02 am
If spicy is your heart’s desire, the Hades truffle from Serendipity is the best. This place is local but only on-line and mail-order.
Fabulous craftsmandship and great, great flavors. Not was weird as Jin.
http://www.serendipitychocolates.com/
February 18th, 2006 at 4:17 pm
I had several Chuao chocolates last weekend. What struck me was how outstanding the chocolate shell was–crisp to the bite with an unusually deep chocolate flavor.
March 2nd, 2006 at 11:03 am
The Jin Patisserie chocolate with the circles looks scarily like Target’s new gourmet chocolate line. I wonder if there’s a connection?
My last-minute suggestion for those that can afford to splurge: my gift this year was a cooking class. Cooking classes at Sur La Table can be purchased online anytime. All you have to do is pick out the class that your favorite foodie sweetheart would like best, fork over $130-$160 (for 2 people), print out the little confirmation page, and slip it in the card. Then not only do you have a romantic evening with a thoughtful gift, but you’ve already scheduled the next romantic evening–a cooking class for two! (No, I don’t work for them. I just really like cooking classes.)
March 10th, 2006 at 11:08 pm
Foodie Universe: Target’s Choxie tastes like sugared up Chapstick to me. They look “good” in the magazine ads, but then, so does Paris Hilton. In the harsh light of day, they’re waxy, nasty, wannabe classy travesties that don’t hold a candle to any locally made, high end products.