Zingerman’s is to the upper mid-West, what Zabar’s, Balducci’s, and others are to New York: stores for the besotted gourmet. In addition to a wide range of deli items, they also sell a varying range of chocolate items and other sweets.

For some time, the Chocolate Bar in Manhattan (48 8th Avenue) has been getting a lot of press, and reviews of it on NY CitySearch (ny.citysearch.com) and similar sites are generally very favorable. Although I live only 30 minutes by train from Grand Central Station and get into Manhattan weekly, I rarely have a reason to go down to the West Village. So when a lunch meeting was in the offing I picked a spot nearby so afterwards I could stop by and see what all the fuss was about.

Originally posted January 2003.

eChocolates.com (http://www.echocolates.com/) is the exclusive importer and distributor of Michel Cluizel in the US. Other featured chocolatiers include Chocolat Moderne, Fritz Knipschildt, and Marquise de Sevigne, plus low-carb chocolates from Yamate.

For professional pastry chefs they also import and distribute products from Sevarome and PCB among others.