The very mention of Switzerland brings chocolate to mind, whether it's creamy truffles, succulent ganaches or crunchy pralines. Switzerland is one of the leading countries in the development of chocolate and invented the process for making milk chocolate in 1879.
Did you know that the Swiss are the biggest consumers of chocolate per capita in the world, eating 23 pounds a year? As a visitor, you might want to indulge in the best experiences that this country has to offer, including its world-renowned chocolate. Naturally, one would need a comfortable place to stay to make the most out of their journey. You can check out a list of top accommodations in the city of Zurich by visiting https://www.top-hotels-switzerland.com/en/zurich-hotels-18190/.
As Zurich is Switzerland's capital and largest city, there's no better place to get your chocolate fix and we've compiled a list of our favourites. Moreover, there's a convenient platform to book hotels at tophotels.com to make your planning undemanding.
Richard Nahem
1. Max Chocolatier
Located on a cobbled street off the beaten track in Zurich's old town, Max Chocolatier handcrafts some of the city's best artisan chocolates. After a day of exploring these palatable delicacies, retire into the comfort of a luxury accomodation like the Zurich Marriott Hotel.
For the 2021 festive season, Max Chocolatier is offering seasonal specialities such as a box of Advent Calendar truffles, grapes dipped in grappa liqueur and coated in dark chocolate, dark chocolate squares with cranberries and peppers, a chocolate Santa perched on a motorbike, and a chocolate spread to put on toast or bread.
Another great holiday gift for chocolate addicts is a 4, 6 or 12 month chocolate subscription, where you or your gift receive a tasting box.
Pro tip: Chocolates can be ordered online and shipped to the US and worldwide.
Richard Nahem
2. Sprungli
Sprungli's flagship shop on Bahnhofstrasse, in the heart of Zurich city centre, is a chocolate and pastry wonderland artfully presented in shiny glass cabinets and stacked on shelves.
Founded in 1859, and still family-run for six generations, Sprungli is one of Switzerland's best-loved chocolate brands. Loyal Swiss and international visitors flock to the modern shop to stock up on its delicious specialities such as Luxemburgerli, a succulent bite-sized macaroon with tons of flavour, the fresh truffle of the day, cherry-filled pralines, dried waffles, marzipan bars, and white chocolate sprinkled with edible Alpine flowers.
After shopping till you drop, relax at Café Sprungli, which serves a full breakfast and lunch menu of savoury dishes such as sandwiches, soups, fresh salads, quiches and hot dishes. Of course, there's always room for dessert, such as the famous truffle cake or a steaming cup of hot chocolate.
Richard Nahem
3. Teuscher
Teuscher is famous for its legendary champagne truffles, extravagantly drizzled with Dom Pérignon and lightly dusted with icing sugar. Founder Adolf Teuscher opened his first shop in 1947, priding himself on travelling the world in search of the finest ingredients for his products. Today, Teuscher is owned by his son Dolf, who maintains a high standard of quality chocolates.
Other varieties of truffle flavours include coffee, praline, pistachio almond, jasmine tea, salted butter caramel and Bailey's Irish cream.
Christmas boxes and tins of truffles and other confectionery are packaged with vintage illustrations of Father Christmas and winter scenes. Another holiday gift box has a bouquet of colourful silk flowers on the cover.
The flagship shop and café on Storchengasse have rows of its products festively wrapped in colourful tissue paper and decorated with heaps of soft silk flowers.
Pro tip: Teuscher flies its champagne truffles at night in its US shops in New York, San Diego, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Philadelphia and Boston.
MRicart_Photographie / Shutterstock.com
4. Vanini
Another long-established Swiss chocolate company, Vanini has been making chocolates and confectionery since 1871, first in Lugano and then in Zurich. Its little chocolate jewels are still made by hand, and its cocoa beans are imported from Ecuador and Venezuela. Its fresh chocolate bar flavours include 88% cocoa, amaretti, lemon, chilli, ginger, curried almonds and white chocolate with red fruit. At holiday time, Vanini's bestseller is a classic panettone cake, wrapped in rust-coloured gift wrap with a chocolate brown satin ribbon. Another treat on offer is a Cuban chocolate cigar in different flavours such as lemon, hazelnut, milk chocolate and fondant, wrapped in coloured foil.
The shop also has a café and serves its own brand of homemade ice creams.
Vanini ships its products internationally via its website.
5. Honest
A rich and fascinating family history follows the Honold brand of chocolate and patisserie. Fritz Honold-Herzog, originally from Ticino, a town in the Italian region of Switzerland, bought an existing confectionery and café in Zurich in 1905. He immediately made his mark on the city's café society by serving a sponge cake sprinkled with almonds based on a recipe from Genoa, Italy. The family business was inherited by Fritz David Honold, who created confectionery and chocolate on a luxury liner, SS Belgium, and as he travelled the world, he was inspired to make new creations based on his travels. Today, Fritz Honold's great-granddaughter Cristina de Perregaux runs the expanding business and maintains its high standards of quality products.
A highlight of Honold is its liqueur-based pralines and truffles in attractive flavours such as Grand Marnier, cherry, kirsch, gin, Sabayon, champagne and Negroni. Among its vast choice of pastries, its chocolate menu includes a truffle cake, a black forest cake, a chocolate mousse tart, a milk chocolate sponge cake, and for the little ones, a chocolate cake with coloured sweets.
Richard Nahem
6. Lindt Chocolate Museum and factory shop
When you arrive at the Lindt Chocolate Museum, the 65,000-square-foot state-of-the-art museum that opened in 2020, you'll find a colossal 30-foot-high chocolate fountain, where a golden whisk drips 1,500 litres of chocolate a day. Discover the history, culture and manufacturing process of Lindt, one of the world's leading chocolate producers, on a tour of the three-storey museum with interactive exhibits.
After your visit, browse the world's largest Lindt boutique, a 5,500 square foot chocolate wonderland selling its full range of products. The main counter has live chefs preparing chocolate specialities right in front of you all day and you can even customise your own chocolate bar and personalised wrapper.
To complete your chocolate experience, the Lindt Museum complex also has a café, serving a sweet and savoury menu. Toppings and accompaniments for its rich hot chocolate include orange liqueur, fresh whipped cream, a dash of Tabasco sauce or a pinch of chilli flakes. Enjoy hot waffles topped with Lindt chocolate sauce and homemade ice cream cones.
7. Vollenweider
The family-owned Vollenweider label makes its traditional chocolates and confectionery the old-fashioned way, with great care and superior craftsmanship.
Santa's gift bags are available in a variety of cheerful fabrics and colours including bright gold, Harris tweed, star pattern, Royal Stewart plaid and Saint Nicholas red. The bags are filled with milk and dark chocolate hearts wrapped in coloured foil, delicate holiday-shaped butter biscuits and chocolate bars. Its sample boxes, elegantly packaged in black with bold white lettering and tied with black satin ribbon, contain dark and milk chocolate truffles in a variety of flavours. Another fabulous product is the pink champagne truffle, flavoured with rosé champagne and dipped on the outside in white chocolate. For the romantics, there's the Romeo and Juliet box with little red hearts in dark chocolate and flavoured with fresh raspberry juice.
Pro tip: Most of the shops listed above ship internationally when you order from their websites.
Chocolate-loving travellers never seem to run out of places to find this delicious treat: