Godiva Flagship Store (Yes, Godiva!), Harajuku, Japan

Does your local Godiva look like this? I didn't think so. Created by the Japanese design firm Wonderwall, this new two-storey shop breaks free of the brand’s traditional mold with a sleek and surrealistic interior where chocolate seems to drip from the ceiling.

{Images by Kozo Takayma}

--Jennifer

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Jenn's Breakfast?

{Hot Chocolate with Homemade Marshmellow at City Bakery, submitted by Jenn Shreve.}

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Pretzel-Covered Sea-Salted Caramels

Salty and sweet marry beautifully in these genius confections from New York's Rachel Zoe Insler. Dark chocolate shells (filled with liquid caramel flavored with touch of sea-salt) are coated in crushed local Martin's Pretzels.

{Chocolates from Bespoke Chocolates in New York City; Image from here}

--Jennifer

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Hot Chocolate...at Ladurée, Paris

We all know that Ladureé is famous for its macarons, chocolates, and patisserie. But has anyone tried their fabulous hot cocoa? I think it's just the thing for a nippy winter's day like today. Here's wishing I was sitting at their cafe on Rue Bonaparte right now...

{Image from here}

--Kevin

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In Love With...Meringues

Ottolenghi in London's Notting Hill never ceases to amaze us. Just when we thought that their plum tart couldn't be any better, or that their sky-lit back room any more serene, they have to tempt us with yet another new creation.

{Image from here}

--Kevin

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Chocolate Oasis on Lexington Avenue

Payard's Francois Chocolate Bar in New York City.

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Are They Too Pretty to Unwrap?

Brooklyn's own bean-to-bar chocolate wunderkinds, the Mast Brothers, wrap their artisan chocolate bars in paper from Florentine paper maker Rossi, as well as paper designed by local artists. The wrapping is as distinctive as their flavors (dark chocolate with almonds and sea salt and the popular salt-and-pepper bar come to mind), and transform the chocolate bar into an amazing gift.

{Chocolate from Mast Brothers Chocolate Image from here.}

--Jennifer

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Strawberries & Dark Chocolate

Inspired by an idea from a customer, Parisian chocolatier Jean-Charles Rochoux set out to create a bar that would marry fresh-fruit and chocolate, without the moisture in the fruit destroying the chocolate. Rochoux places seasonal fruits (Gariguette strawberries in the spring) atop one of his chocolate bars and drenches the fruit in chocolate. The results are astounding, ephemeral (they’ll keep for two days at the most) and hard to get – they’re made and sold out every Saturday.

{The "Saturday Bar" from Jean-Charles Rochoux}

--Jennifer

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Dark Chocolate with Maldon Sea Salt and Fried Corn

{Chocolate by Oriol Balaguer, Barcelona; Image from here.}

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The Adventure Begins...

Welcome to our new blog. We've created Haute & Sweet because of our shared obsession with great chocolates, shopping, and travel. And isn't it even better if you can combine all three by traveling around the world and shopping for the best chocolates? So this blog is devoted to the most exquisite, seductive and delicious images of la dolce vita. If you share our passion, please join us by commenting and sending in your favorite pictures and stories. We're on a quest for all the fabulous treats that make life a little bit sweeter everyday.

Cheers,

Jennifer & Kevin

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