Boston Chocolate Tour – A Review
A couple weekends ago, I was able to enjoy the beautiful weather by walking around the South End eating a bunch of chocolate. You can’t go wrong eating chocolate and enjoying a perfect Boston summer day.
I had contacted Boston Chocolate Tours to see if they would be interested in a giveaway for my lovely readers. Instead, they offered me two tickets to any of their chocolate tours in exchange for this review. I decided it was a fair trade and invited another blogger, Sophie, to join me.
I chose the South End tour because David mentioned that it was his favorite so I figured why not. We started our adventure at Code 10 on Washington St. Sophie and I were the first ones there and we were able to chat with our tour guide Katie for a few minutes. Katie gave everyone a little goodie bag that included our pass for the day (a small tag on a lanyard), a small bag of pretzels in case we needed something salty between all the chocolate, and a couple printouts. One had a listing of various VIP deals we can get showing our pass. The other was a listing of some of the places that the chocolate tour would take us.
Once 2:00 rolled around, we were still missing a couple people, but we went ahead and got started. Code 10 sells baked goods from Rosie’s as well as various deli sandwiches and snacks. Here we tasted a frosted brownie called Chocolate Orgasm. It was a dense fudge-like brownie with a smooth frosting on top. I enjoyed it quite a bit.
After eating our brownies, we all headed outside where Katie had us all go around and introduce ourselves. Katie mentioned that she had been a tour guide since the company opened last November.
Then we headed across the street to Flour Bakery. We didn’t go in because it was pretty packed, so Katie ran in to grab our goodies. Here, we tasted Oreos. They were pretty fantastic and apparently they sell out pretty early during the day, so if you want one, call ahead. I was able to grab an extra one to take home to Hubby and he really enjoyed it as well.
After our Oreos in the sun, we headed over to Tremont 647 and Sister Sorel. They were in the midst of their pajama brunch which they do every Saturday and Sunday. The food smelled amazing as we walked through Tremont 647 to get to Sister Sorrell.
Once we got there, we had the whole bar to ourselves. They gave us each a chocolate martini which included their own in-house infused vanilla vodka. We also had a small piece of chocolate cake. The chocolate cake was very light and fluffy and not overly chocolatey.
While we were sitting there, Katie explained how chocolate is made. I’m not going to go through it all here because I wasn’t taking notes. She also explained how to properlly taste chocolate. Then we got to try out our tasting skills by tasting a piece of Taza chocolate. It was good and had a gritty texture because of how they make their chocolate.
After that, we went to Appleton bakery. We walked by Chocolee but they were closed due to air conditioning failures. Apparently a couple weeks ago all of their chocolate melted! How horrible is that?!? At Appleton, we were able to taste two brownies. One was a walnut brownie and one was a cream cheese brownie. I didn’t try the cream cheese brownie because of my lactose intolerance, but I heard it was divine.
Next we went to a cute little place called Picco. It had a nice outdoor seating area and they’re known for thier pizza, ice cream, and beer list. Sophie and I agreed it would be a great place to grab lunch on a nice day. Here, we tasted some chocolate sorbet. It was very creamy and delicious. You definitely would have thought it had tons of heavy cream in it.
After our sorbet, we went to a shop called Aunt Sadie’s. They have a bunch of scented candles including a chocolate candle (they also had tomato, chicken noodle soup, and some other really unique candles). It was a cute little shop, but no chocolate tasty there.
Last, we ended our tour at the South End Buttery. We were in the back room and got to taste an espresso milkshake (I passed on this too) and a mini chocolate cupcake. The cupcake was good and the frosting was to die for. I loved that frosting.
The chocolate tour was a fun way to see the South End, learn about some of the great restaurants and shops in the area, and enjoy some tasty treats along the way. I was originally expecting it to be more of tasting chocolates than eating things with chocolate in them. I think the chocolate tasting that is offered is more in line with what I had in mind…
The price of this particular tour is $48/person. I have to admit that if I had paid $48, I might have felt a bit like I got the short end of the straw. Don’t get me wrong, Katie was extremely knowledgable and fun to hang out with. And all of the chocolate treats we tasted were delicious. I just think a price closer to $36 is more reasonable for what I experienced that weekend.
If you’d like more information about Boston Chocolate Tours, be sure to check out their website – they also offer chocolate tastings, workshops, and private events. A big thanks to David of Boston Chocolate tours for letting Sophie and I experience this tour! If you’ve ever been on a chocolate tour anywhere, I’d love to hear about your experience.
Thank you so much for sharing Jen! I completely understand where you’re coming from and how you feel…do nice things for yourself
beantownbaker — April 19th, 2013 @ 8:50 am
You do the same Fiona
Thank you so much for sharing. This is UNREAL. My husband Jeff ran the Boston Marathon this year, and I spent the day traveling around on the T watching the marathon with my in-laws. We ended the day just a block from the blast sites – I shared my story here: http://decoratethis.blogspot.com/2013/04/bittersweet.html; Jeff’s story here: http://iwasbornready.blogspot.com/2013/04/my-2013-boston-marathon.html.
beantownbaker — April 19th, 2013 @ 4:05 pm
Thank you so much for sharing your and Jeff’s stories. What a day you guys had. I’m glad you’re safe.
beantownbaker — April 19th, 2013 @ 4:10 pm
I added these links to the body of the post.
It definitely does help to put some words together. And I feel the same way- even though I was volunteering at the 10k, i can’t help but wonder why wasn’t i volunteering at the finish line so I could’ve helped?
beantownbaker — April 19th, 2013 @ 4:10 pm
I agree – it was therapeutic to write this up.
Thanks for sharing Jen. I haven’t lived in Boston for 4 years now, but my husband and I had a similar reaction. We both wanted to get “home” to the city we love, a city that becomes part of your being no matter where you go next.
beantownbaker — April 19th, 2013 @ 4:11 pm
I’m glad to hear I wasn’t the only one who felt that way. Living in Boston leaves such a strong impression…
I’m a longtime reader, first time commenter. First I want to give you big virtual hugs regarding the events in Boston. Your feelings are no less valid, no less important. My heart goes out to you. Also, I want to say, welcome to Cincinnati! I live east of the city and am a transplant from Seattle. Cincy is growing on me, and slowly but surely I’m starting to tell people that I’m from Ohio not Washington. 🙂 Best wishes to you and thank you for sharing.
beantownbaker — April 19th, 2013 @ 4:14 pm
Jen – thanks so much for commenting. I realize that at some point I’ll say I’m from Ohio, but the events of this week just my my heart tied even tighter to Boston…
I’m so glad all of your Boston people are safe. I can completely relate to your feelings of helplessness, I felt the same way after 9/11. It’s hard to be away from family and friends and a city that you love when tragedy strikes.
Big hugs for you and your crew.
beantownbaker — April 19th, 2013 @ 4:14 pm
Thanks Jene. I’m sure it’s very similar to how you felt around 9/11.
I feel the same way–Boston was my home for four years of college. I love that city. I feel like it is MY city. I wish I was there, locked in with friends, watching the news and hugging them. I feel so helpless on the other side of the state, so far away.
As soon as I’m able I’m going to the city and having a moment in the Common before heading to all my favorite places. My heart aches for the city, I wish I was there.
beantownbaker — April 19th, 2013 @ 4:15 pm
I’m glad to hear I’m not the only one who feels this way. We are trying to make plans to get back to the city sometime soon as well.
Oh I so know how you feel.. I live in Michigan. I’ve been here for almost 10 years, and I still call Boston home. It’ll always be home to me. You’re not alone!
beantownbaker — April 21st, 2013 @ 6:07 pm
Glad to hear I’m not the only one. I definitely think Boston will always feel like home to both me and Hubby.
I know exactly how you feel – I am a 2004 graduate of Virginia Tech. I was at work when the April 16th incident happened in Blacksburg, and I felt SO far away, and SO hopeless – the only place I wanted to be was in my beloved Blacksburg.
To make matters worse, I flew to Missouri the next day (for work) for 3.5 weeks. It seemed that the people out there had ALREADY moved on from the tragedy – it just made NO sense to me. I cried most of those 3 weeks, and since I was out there by myself it was a struggle.
I have always loved Boston, and I know that that community will love and support one another, just as Blacksburg did (and still does). It was the sixth anniversary this past Tuesday, and with everything happening in Boston, and the thoughts of VT and Blacksburg, it was an extremely long and tiring week.
Stay strong.
beantownbaker — April 22nd, 2013 @ 11:46 am
That sounds like a horrible situation for you in the aftermath of the VTech tragedy. Thanks for the kind words and for sharing your story.