Sweet spot: Bespoke choctails debut in West London

London – A new chocolate store offers a bespoke experience to lovers of the fine cocoa delight. The Artisan du chocolate boutique, which has just opened in London’s Westbourne Grove neighbourhood, features a tasting menu and a range of made-to-order cocktails from expert bartender Nick Strangeway that infuse spirits with cacao for intense flavour and aroma.

The store, designed by Bart Lens of Lens Associates, boasts, as a centrepiece, a large curved lamp embellished with a print of a cacao plantation on the inside, reminding visitors where their chocolate goodies originate.

Offering much more than a hot cup of cocoa and a bag of truffles, dessert stores such as this are putting the artisanal experience and a sense of destination back into chocolate.