I went into a million artisinal chocolate shops in London searching for gifts and the best…read morechocolate and this was one of my favorite places for fine chocolate! (Tied in 1st for my favorite London chocolate was the Pump Street chocolate curated by Harrod's department store, and one from Whole Foods hah!) Paul A Young is famous and won awards for their salted caramel chocolates, unique and unlike any other I've had because they're much softer than the usual caramels, but at the same time not completely liquid. I personally thought their brownies were the best part - they seemed overly dense but were so rich and perfectly decadent. I also purchased the sampler of different varieties of milk and dark chocolates, and it was my least favorite because I felt the darks were a little too dry and bitter and the milks were too creamy and sweet. I'd recommend you taste the samples on the main table before purchasing. The truffles were beautiful and the flavors unique but personally I was not a big fan (except for the salted caramels). Overall, highly recommend a visit here for the salted caramels and brownies!

At a time when investing can be hazardous because of the volatility of the world economy. I have…read morespotted one product which seems immune to the winds of recession. High end chocolate is on the up with chains like Maison Chocolat opening new shops. Paul A Young's flagship shop in Soho follows this pattern of extremely tempting and exclusive chocolates on show with prices which would make your bank manager and my Chinese Thrift Gene blush! My CTG won't allow me to buy these expensive products for myself but it's a good destination for a nice present for someone special. They do sell interesting products like savoury flavours in their chocolate Fortunately, I have more of a savoury tooth than a sweet tooth, so this place won't bankrupt me

Gorgeous chocolate shop in Shoreditch! Love that the chocolate pieces are mix and match as they're…read morepriced the same. I got a variety of chocolates to try and my favorites were the coffee hazelnut and pistachio crunch chocolates! Love that they have a good variety of vegan and dark chocolate options! Everything was so good and super fun to get a variety mix.

This was a worthwhile stop during our stroll along Brick Lane. Located in a small shop at the…read morecorner of Brick Lane and Bacon St. (just to add to its appeal), the vintage feel jives with the overall ambiance of the Brick Lane experience. But inside this shop is an experience all its own. Those of us well into our adult years will still get that proverbial "kid in a candy store" sense when walking into a place like this. The immediate reaction is "I'll take one of everything". The number of choices and sheer number of chocolates displayed in a confined space are both exhilarating and overwhelming at the same time. It was clear from the choices that this was a true artisan shop. In an act of fiscal and dietary restraint, we took away a half-dozen pieces. My wife always compares chocolatiers using their Chocolate Orange Peels (Chocolate Orangettes is what they called them at this place) as a benchmark. This place passed with flying colors. They also offered an intriguing Mango-infused Dark Chocolate with a pipet of Mango compote that you could inject before eating. It was also a highlight. The prices are fair for what this place is and the service is friendly, polite and efficient. If you are meandering up and down Brick Lane, this establishment is worth a stop. If you are a Chocolate fan, then this place is a must-stop. I guess there are people out there who are not chocolate lovers (or at least likers), but that is like not being a fan of oxygen from my perspective. I would like to stop again sometime to try one of the chocolate drinks. We opted to not get one this time on top of the candy pieces we bought to avoid the sugar overload. But they looked amazing from what I saw of others who did indulge.

"You can even eat the dishes!" (kind of)…read more If you're a chocolate lover, look no further. Wonka would be a fan. I sure am. The hot chocolate here is dark, rich, and if you order it with "triple chocolate," the cup itself is dunked in dark, milk, and white chocolate. So with each sip you can also lick and enjoy the thick chocolate on the cup--and eat it all with a spoon. Everything edible here can be drenched in chocolate. The people at the next table got a big slice of chocolate cake--with more chocolate poured over it. Incredible. I went to the Fitzrovia location and visited late so it wasn't crowded at all. A unique experience for chocolate lovers. Highly recommended!

Okay, I know everyone comes here for the hot chocolate which yes, it's good but the thing you…read moreshould get, is the chocolate chip cookie with chocolate drizzled on top! Now that was de-lic-ious!!! We made a reservation on Christmas Day and luckily, got into the small yet cozy restaurant before crowds showed up for lunch. Glad we were able to enjoy this experience before the noise! Go early!

Absolutely loved our experience at Melt Chocolates! We did the Bean to Bar chocolate-making class…read morewhile visiting London, and it ended up being one of the highlights of our trip. The class was the perfect mix of educational and fun. Our instructor was incredibly knowledgeable, funny, engaging, and kept everything lighthearted while teaching us a ton about chocolate and the entire bean-to-bar process. And, of course, getting to make our own chocolate made it even better. We had such a great time that we've already recommended the experience to friends and family. If you're in Notting Hill--or visiting London in general--I'd definitely put this on your list. Great people, great chocolate, lots of laughs, and a really memorable experience. Absolutely worth doing!

Excellent chocolate shop- it smells amazing inside! The customer service is excellent as well!…read more You can purchase a box or a few pieces, I ended up getting two 26 piece boxes (the smallest ones they had and I believe it's 26 or maybe it's 16 pieces haha I don't remember); along with that I got two pieces to treat myself, and a bar of vegan chocolate for a friend. The ones I tried are delicious! Will absolutely be back and recommend this spot to others. So excited to gift a box to my S/O and family!

Talk about yum! 1. I…read morewas walking down the street and came in because I saw a picture of their hot chocolate and am so glad I did. 2. They have different kinds of hot chocolate to choose from, which is great, but the best part is you can add chocolate whipped cream on top. 3. This hot chocolate is the best hot chocolate I've tasted. It was so rich and smooth, and the whipped cream was so perfectly light and chocolatey. 4. As for the store, they have so many different chocolate products, like they have a shelf of all of their bon bons. I left with a bag of different bite-sized chocolates to have a little tasting at home. My favorite is the raspberry panna cotta. 5. This spot is perfect for a hot chocolate break and for souvenirs.

Overpriced, mediocre hot chocolate no different than the run-of-the-mill franchise store, but a few…read morepounds more. Ordered their popular premium hot chocolate without cream. A little less than six pounds I was expecting a more premium and refined taste. Nope. Unlike the other chocolatier joint I visited that offered hand-crafted hot coco, this one was straight up from a machine. Tasted like liquid coco powder heated up, key word being 'heated.' And just because it was heated doesn't mean it was hot per se. The beverage was offered nothing more than lukewarm at best . They didn't even fill it up to the brim. It was filled about 80 % .

Adorable & delicious treats await you at Jeff de Bruges…read more Staff is nice as can be - we were interested in their super-cute animal shapes like horses, cows, pigs, chickens, fish..... but did not want to purchase the pre-filled boxes or bags since they also contained shapes & flavors we did not care so much about They happily offered to fill a hand-selected bag just for us so we ventured through their cases & selected all our favorites The milk chocolate is creamy & has a fantastic melty factor - the animals contained bits of toffee, coconut or hazelnut & they were just the treat we were seeking Wonderful stop after the V&A Museum!

If you are giving 5 stars to an ice cream place you visited in rain, you know it was worth the…read moremoney. I treated myself with a cup of mixed Madagascan Vanilla and Chocolate ice cream (italian style from a machine). I chosen some fruit toppings and small salted caramel cubes (awesome texture, a must-try) which meant I received the portion in a plastic bowl - but that was my negligence to say I wanted it coned. Looking at all the beautiful pralines I asked for a couple and so I can now comprehensively recommend John de Bruges for authentic excellency.

When I need a little something for someone - whether it's to say "Thank You" or to apologise - I…read morecome to Rococo Chocolates. I especially like their various "fun" chocolate designs and they quirky packaging. A chocolatey gift from here will make even the fiercest heart melt...

My friend and I got lost while we were visiting London from NYC, and happened upon this amazing…read morechocolate shop. I can't imagine anyone having anything other than praise for this place. I recognized immediately that it wasn't exactly cheap, but you also can tell right away that it will all be worth every penny. And it was. The woman behind the counter, who I assume was probably the owner, was extremely helpful and patient. She gave extra details on all of the chocolates that I asked about. I ended up getting one of each of the following ganaches: marc de champagne, passionfruit jelly in milk chocolate, a hand-painted heart with a bee, an earl grey, and I'm afraid I can't remember the last two. But every single one was divine, and it was all packaged in a perfect little box. Happy birthday to me! What a shame we don't have one of these in the states.

Immaculate Store Delicious chocolate with abundance of…read moreflavours. Lindt chocolate for specific occasions be it Mother's Day or Easter. Reasonable prices compared to the supermarket. What is the complaint? It's Lindt chocolate for goodness sake!!

There are only a couple things that you can get here that you can't get at other shops in London -…read morethe hot chocolate is one of them. Regular prices aren't great, but I would definitely come here AFTER holidays to clean out what they don't sell :-)

Amazing delicious high quality chocolates. Great for gifts, or for a tasty treat. Surprisingly…read morereasonably priced too. They also serve coffee and hot chocolate.

I made a visit to Fortnum & Mason when my husband and I were visiting London a week or so ago and…read morehad such a great time. Fortnum & Mason is department store, but it's not your average department store. It's a food department store? I don't even know if there's a word for that! Founded in 1707 in the St James's/Piccadilly area of London, the store is modern but has retained some really incredible historic details: the mechanical clock on the facade, a double-helix staircase, and more. They sell tons of biscuits, tea and coffee, hampers (we call them gift baskets in the US, I think?), candy, chocolates, and more. Everything is beautiful and beautifully displayed. In the biscuit section of the store ("The Biscuitorium"), they sell roughly 70 flavors of biscuits and have an incredibly intricate replica of the store made from biscuits - like a most beautiful biscuit doll house you've ever seen. If you head downstairs, there's also a fantastic food hall and their fancy Wine Bar & Restaurant. After buying a few tins of biscuits upstairs, we went downstairs to the wine bar, where we ordered their Oysters & Champagne deal (6 Carlingford oysters and two glasses of Blanc de Blancs). Other than the oysters taking a bit of time - they brought us some extra Blanc to make up for it and the oysters' adductors muscles not being disconnected prior to making it to us, it was a great little break/snack during our first day of touristing around London! I'm not usually a shopper on vacation. But I make exceptions for stores with history, and Fortnum's has that in spades. It's a great place to stop for some edible souvenirs!

Before leaving London, I had to pop in…read more Starting my day early in the Parlor, I grabbed a small bite. My waiter was most genteel and even brought me a surprise birthday sweet treat! Post-nibbles, I traversed each floor, of course, settling on teas to acquire, for the trip home. F&M has a wide array of teas, some familiar and some which are signature to the brand. The staff are quite eager to assist, and properly demure when doing so. After completing my shopping, it's quite easy to admit that I'm now a tea snob, from this point going forward. LOL