I need to send some candy as "thank you" gifts and I was wondering if there are choices other than See's and Godiva out there? Those are the only brands I know of, but I'm guessing they are only the mainstream choices. The only restriction is that I need to be able to order these chocolates online and have them delivered outside of Texas. Any suggestions?
La Maison du Chocolat http://www.lamaisonduchocolat.com/index.php?&PHPSESSID=c2088b3f7d747fd7f6c86fcb56acfc75
This is fantastic chocolate...very different, very European. Ships from San Francisco I think, so it won't cost you an arm and a leg in shipping. http://www.recchiuti.com/cgi-bin/chocolate/home/index.html
^ I think I've had those before and they were REALLY good, but I'm not a woman and I consider a Hershey bar good stuff too.. so what do I know...
The regular assortments are great, but we really enjoyed the box with the chocolates made from different cocoas around the world. It was interesting to taste the difference in each one. http://www.recchiuti.com/cgi-bin/chocolate/shop/product.html?mv_arg=prod_code=819895-000640 We found out about them from some article that rated the top 5 chocolate places to order from. The French place that was mentioned in this thread also was on the list, but you have to pay almost as much in shipping as the actual box of chocolate costs I think.
That's if you order them from Paris. There's a shop in New York (linked in the website) that I'm sure is cheaper. But you're right! They ain't cheap!
I'm flying to NYC tomorrow morning, and tops on my list is La maison. I was a big fan of Sees, but La maison du chocolat has made me a snob. Worth every penny. The candies are made in Paris, but strangely enough, I've had the hot chocolate in both locations in NYC and in Paris.....and the NYC city version is better. If you want a more personal touch, you can now buy high end bulk chocolate at Central Market. I made some English butter toffee the other day (REAL easy to do), sprinkled some mixed nuts and dried cranberries on top, and then covered it with good quality dark chocolate. The whole process was ridiculously easy, and it tasted incredible.
Not exactly chocolate, but there is a very EXPENSIVE but famous bakery I went to in Paris called Laduree. They have insane Macaroon's, the are simply delicious. Very expensive though Laduree
And I like a decent spa treatment and quite a few chick flicks as well...and probably know more about wine than most anyone here. But then I drive and F-250 diesel, have a fishing boat, and carry a CHL. Maybe I'm just conflicted. Laduree does NOT do it for me though.
Am I the only person that gets hacked off when you get a box of assorted chocolates & there's no legend/pictograph/key-type thingy that tells you which ones are which? I inevitably like only half of them or so, so I'll break 'em in half or squish em to find the ones I want.
I think I'm going to need lots of chocolates after the Mavs game tonight. Supermac34, MC Mark, thanks for the background info and price comparison. I'll probably give both a try since I have to send out two packages! Pole, I cannot make any sweets. I always end up eating the ingredients. BenignDMD, that website is a trip. I feel like I'm in Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. Buck, the correct answer is, eat them all.
DUDE!!! LOL I have just what you need. This chocolate is like crack for every woman that has tried it. She will love that its in the shape of Texas.......and I will even donate to the tip jar. I can guarantee it 100% and I will ship it out to anywhere in the world.
Oh forgot to add.....it's only 7.00 a pound and it blows See's Fudge away; no comparison LOL. Seriously.....I've sent chocolate to South Australia, Iraq, South America, the UK, Finland, Canada, and France so shipping isnt a problem.
