It’s raining chocolate in Chennai. And no, we are not exaggerating. Celebrating World Chocolate Day, pastry chefs all over the city are going all out to craft savoury creations and desserts that are both inspired and sinful. And after a bit of a treasure hunt, we now have a chocolate trail through the city for you to eat your way through this weekend. Here we go!
Nougat nirvana
Fabelle boutiques across the country have a grand chocolate festival called Fête du Chocolate. The menu has 10 indulgent desserts with chocolate taking centrestage, including Berliners with flavour pairings like espresso and cinnamon, a Passionfruit Frangipani & White Chocolate Tart and a novel Nougat collection. At ITC Grand Chola. INR 235 to INR 325 per piece, notably this is half the cost of items on the regular menu. Available from 11 am to midnight. Starts today.
Feel the beet
Pastry chef Ravi Varma has curated novel creations like Cocoa Ravioli with a creamy filling of beets and ricotta, especially for World Chocolate Day. Also look out for a decadent Hazelnut Praline made with Belgian dark chocolate and a vegan Almond milk, Dark Chocolate & Coffee Cremeux with no added sugar and cocoa nibs for crunch. At La Patisserie, Taj Coromandel. Available on request from July 7 to 9. INR 500++, order on request.
A-mousse me
Surrender to cocoa bliss through the month with an assortment of desserts and confectionaries as part of Textures of Chocolate. This menu features five desserts including a Chocolate Almond Cappuccino with milk custard and chocolate mousse and Arabi Chocolate Salami with ganache and gold dust. At Connexions, Crowne Plaza Chennai Adyar Park. INR 350++. On till July 31.
Cake & caviar
Dig into this delightful and complex Textures of Chocolate dessert with dark chocolate ganache, chocolate mousse, chocolate cake, soil and coffee caviar that is being rolled out today. Multi-layered and with a play of textures, your palate will be singing by the end of it. INR 300. There will also be a line of six new chocolate truffles in different percentages served complimentary for anyone who walks in.
At Finale Dessert Bar. From July 7 to 9.
Fudge a lot of fun!
Leave it to Senthil Kumar Balu, an experimental healthy baker to pair organic cacao with heritage rice varieties like Kaatuyanam and Thanjavur Black Rice. His brand new line of SRC Fudge (the name is a smart acronym for Slow Releasing Carbohydrates) launches this weekend. Apart from being diabetic-friendly and vegan, the recipe also includes healthy ingredients like kidney beans, chickpeas and psyllium husk. Sugar has been swapped for a low GI variant called levulose. Apart from the original, expect flavour combinations like basil with coffee and matcha; dry ginger, fennel and lemongrass; and cinnamon with nutmeg and orange rind to be introduced in the coming months. Or you can customise your own. Fudge bars weigh 30 gm and are priced at INR 100. Minimum order quantity is 125 gm. Orders can be placed via Wholesome Rhapsody on Instagram.
Sponge bath
Adding to the indulgent chocolate beverages on their menu, Kup Coffee Roasters is introducing some new specials this weekend. Picture this: an overflowing cup of Dirty Hot Chocolate placed at the centre of a plate filled with goodies like banana bread, cookies and marshmallows. You could also try their brand new Cold Chocolate or if you’re in the mood for dessert, try the new Dutch Cocoa Sponge with 57 per cent chocolate flexi ganache, cherry cream and maraschino cherries. At Kup, INR 350.