Vancouver's Chocolate Landscape
The staff at the Vancouver Four Seasons have been known stock VIP suites with chocolate-coated vanilla and smoked Hawaiian sea salt caramels and Earl Grey and blue cornflower bon bons from favorite local chocolatier Thomas Haas (the hotel's former pastry chef). Guests can also call down to the concierge to arrange an "Urban Bites" culinary tour of the Canadian city, which leads through the dim sum parlors of Chinatown and the local produce markets on Granville Island before making a final stop at Haas's headquarters in North Vancouver. Alternatively, industrious chocolate fiends can their own way around Vancouver, where the mild Pacific Coastal climate is incredibly inviting to chocolatiers.
A few places to consider:
DC Duby: The chocolaty molecular gastronomists Dominique and Cindy Duby specialize in two kinds of chocolate bars: "arÓme" (infused with herb and citrus oils) and "teXtuRe" (layered with praline butters and caramelized nuts). They are also the authors of Wild Sweets: Chocolate.
Mink: Serial entrepreneur Marc Lieberman (pictured) is banking on his ganache-filled chocolate bars. Flavors include "The Sporting Life" (double chocolate stout with salted pretzels), "Mermaid's Choice" (Fleur de Sel and rosemary), and O Canada (Québécois maple syrup).
Choatl: Newest on the block, this shop in Vancouver's Yaletown neighborhood makes a mean hot white chocolate with mandarin and orange.
About the author: Emily Stone, proprietor of Chocolate in Context, is a chocolate enthusiast, itinerant traveler, and a lover of literature who lives in Pittsburgh. She's been a movie reviewer, a reproductive health researcher, and an independent bookstore owner. Her writing has appeared in the magazines Budget Travel, Travel + Leisure, and Time Out New York, as well as on the websites World Hum and Epicurious.
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