Great meals with philosophical friends (2 of 2)…read more Rarely am I in Midwestern capital cities with beltways around them, but I do have a few friends from years ago who do live in this city's suburbs. I once ate at their famed German restaurant with the lunch buffet and the extra cost cream puffs with an Italian-American friend who is sort of an Archie Bunker with an MBA. He provides the entertainment. The last time I ate lunch in C-bus with that good friend was before the pandemic. I believe that the lunch buffet has returned to that German restaurant, but I can wait to do that on some other trip. On this last go round, I met up for lunch with a different friend with whom you can discuss the human condition ad nauseam, which is somewhat of a good thing. It's a good thing because there aren't many people who are capable of doing that and who will engage in that. However, when you wrap up such involved discussions, you might feel a little overwhelmed for a while! I got to choose the restaurant ... from out of town. I didn't like the choices with which I was presented and the only area of town I really know is the Polaris area around Ikea. I looked up listings and recommendations. Chocolate Cafe' had two things under its belt from the get-go. It's a high scoring bistro-cafe that has a noteworthy breakfast and lunch following and it has the word "chocolate" in its name. It's in that area near the Barnes and Noble west of the big state university with its logo featuring a branch that looks like a marijuana leaf. I have since learned it's not a marijuana leaf. We ordered lunch, with one entree being a Cobb salad and the other being one of their club sandwiches, the latter of which was mine. It was very good and, as is often the case with me, I could have eaten a bigger sandwich. I went through it fairly quickly, even though I did have the small and cheap Swedish breakfast at Ikea that morning. With the entrees, we ordered bowls of their popular tomato basil soup, which really hit the spot on that cold day. To drink, we ordered house coffee and a hot chocolate. The house coffee is refillable while the hot chocolate is not, but that's standard protocol just about anywhere. With a name like Chocolate Cafe,' we did not order dessert. My friend left first and I stayed behind to look at the dessert case. I later caved in for a slice of their moist and rich chocolate fudge cake to take with me. Like I said, it was moist and rich ... and also very tasty and filling. The pricing here is standard and appropriate. The service was folksy and very attentive, despite their being full on a weekend approaching the holidays. The interior is bright because of the floor-to-ceiling windows around the perimeter of the restaurant. That really scores points with me. Lastly, upon pulling in, the parking lot was full and I had to park a short walk away, all the while paying attention to parking signs and rules. This implied that Chocolate Cafe' was most likely a good place ... and that was corroborated. I have never driven down I-71 into this city's center once past its beltway. I have doglegged and taken Highway 315 - the Olentangy River Parkway. At its top end, it winds a little and it's slightly scenic. As you start approaching OSU, all these different medical towers with different specialties loom over you ... from both sides of the road! It's similar to the feeling one gets when they drive past the Texas Medical Center south of downtown Houston, as in, "What a maze ... why so many damn medical buildings?" But that doesn't affect their rating. It's just a personal pet peeve. I'm going to go with 4.5 stars for Chocolate Cafe', which obviously rounds up to 5 stars. It makes for an interesting meal and experience and, while I would not repeat it like clockwork because of how rich it can be, I could definitely see repeating it if I lived in its general area. My friend said he would be coming back with family members. That said, you clearly see two seals of approval.

Driving around the OSU area and wanted to find some local coffee. We had driven by the Chocolate…read moreCafé a couple times already and decided to stop in for a coffee. The store is so cute. There is decent parking and ample seating. We were just taking coffee to go, but it seemed like a great place to be able to meet with friends, get some work done, or enjoy a quiet moment. Our coffee was good. There weren't a ton of options for customizing, but the ones they had were great. We didn't get any of the signature chocolates to go (big mistake on our part), but the case was tempting. If you're in the area, skip the chains and head to Chocolate Café.

Love this place! I've been coming here for years! Great seating area! Great service! Delicious and…read moredecently priced! I've alway gotten one of the frozen drink and they are always full of sweet flavor and blended to be silky smooth! definitely stop in if you're visiting German Village!

Love Winans! They have good coffee with fun flavors, and very yummy gluten-free pastries. Plus all…read morethe chocolate you could ever want. They recently expanded so there's additional seating in the back, which is super cute and cozy. It's in a great location in German Village near Schiller Park. Their new rewards program is cool, too -- download their app & you can order ahead or in-person to earn points on purchases. I always make a point to stop here when I'm in town.

I have now taken the bean to bar class and the hand painting truffle class. So informative in a…read morerelaxing and fun experience. I would highly recommend these classes.

I absolutely love stopping in here... once or twice a month…read more I can't speak of the coffee, but the chocolatier side is quite excellent. I almost always put together a 16 piece box of mixed truffles. As for the chocolates, I obviously think very highly of them... The caramel cashew crunch and butterfly pea flower are both exceptional and The rest are nothing short of high quality thoughtful treats. When put together, the assortments in the boxes are colorful and stunning every time. HOWEVER The packaging needs to be rethought. Everything about these delectables are elegant until you try to pick one of your chocolates out of The plastic casing they sit in. The plastic they sit in (just the bottom side of It) are almost a half inch too deep. The elegance goes out the window and is traded for an awkward fumbling experience of trying to get your chocolate Out of the Case without smudging, smashing, spilling your lovely and expensive treats. It's almost comical how poorly it's designed. It's the one area that really needs to be reconsidered. But everything else is fantastic.

This is the place you want to go to, but you're trying to also get lean for the summer…read more So I over indulged and got so many sweets. It was worth it. I'll just workout harder to burn it off. Their fudge on the wooden rack is so soft and delicious. You got to check this place out if you haven't before.

What a little gem of a place! Me and my friend went here because she knew one of the workers and…read moreshe happened to be working that day and she is soooooo nice. The owner came out and introduced himself and he was also sooo nice. Everything is homemade and the shop is just too cute. I normally don't like caramel, but it's absolutely delicious and the lemon dark chocolate is to die for!! If you are in the German village of Columbus you gotta go to this place.

Decided I needed to stop in at Eagle Family Eagle Family Candy Company LLC today. I was fortunate…read moreenough to finally meet Dee Dee Eagle one of the owners of the 4th generation candy makers. It was great to be able to learn more about the history of the company. But let's get down to the real reason you're reading this is the goods in the pictures below. Everyone needs to come out and support OUR small businesses. You won't be disappointed.

I use to spend summer in Columbus with my Grandparents. One of the best parts of the summer was…read moregoing to Eagle Candy store. The best cream candies I have ever eaten along with everything else there. If you have never tried this candy you are missing out on the best taste ever. Wish I was closer to enjoy this candy more

I got to try Coco Cat Confections at the Hot Times Festival in Olde Towne East this evening. They…read morehad a cute little food truck/stand serving up some delicious treats. I walked by the stand for two days and my partner said let's get some. We both got the MUNCHIE BUSTER BOWL and it was amazing. We had different topping and was able to customize it. It was beyond delicious and simply delightful! Fresh fruit and that chocolate is amazing! It you see the stand around town you simply gotta treat yourself. You will not be disappointed.

I found this place while exploring North Market and decided to give it a try because I liked what I…read moresaw. The display of chocolates was completely mesmerizing and contained a wide variety of truffles and handmade candy bars. The shop owner was very friendly and also gave recommendations on what to try. I tried only two truffles because I was so full from all the foods I tried before: Lavender Hand Rolled Truffle: The truffle itself was very dense and rich with a strong presence of cocoa. Every bite melted in my mouth just like any good quality chocolate. What ruined this one was the lavender flavoring which was so overpowering that all I could taste was cocoa and lavender. Vietnamese Cinnamon Hand Rolled Truffle: I really enjoyed this one. The cinnamon and honey in the truffle paired perfectly with the strong cocoa flavor and the chocolate itself was very rich. If I was ever in the area again, I would probably come by to try their handmade candy bars and white chocolate items.

I have been to Winans when I was in Downtown Columbus. My friend & her son and I went to get some…read morechocolate. I had the 3 Buckeyes and Cherry Cordial (1 dark chocolate and 2 milk chocolate) and her son had the chocolate coins and cars, along with my having a Buckeye. The person over the counter was very friendly and helpful in the our chocolate selection. I will have to go back there for a coffee drink blended with a sweet treat. The ambiance was great with selections of chocolates, sweet treats, and coffee.

It's often freezing cold in there (I feel like moreso starting at 2pm usually), which makes it…read moredifficult to justify going to if want to work on computer there for a bit. I asked the worker about it and she said she turns it all the way down when she comes in. Idk why haha maybe I'm crazy cause other people seem fine wearing t shirts. Other than that it's good. No other complaints.