Bocelli, Iced

Merkel and Myrtle returned to Bocelli on the corner of Wakefield and Hutt Streets.  It was a warm night and Merkel chose to have the iced chocolate with his dinner.  The drink came in a big glass and with a scoop of very chocolaty gelato floating on top.  The gelato was the highlight of the drink as rest was just chocolate syrup and milk.  The cost was $5.50.

House of Chow

Merkel and Myrtle dined with some friends at the House of Chow on 82 Hutt Street recently.  The House of Chow has established itself as a Chinese restaurant with an excellent reputation.  The food, service and décor are very good.

Asian restaurants are not usually noted for serving hot chocolates but Merkel decided to try one at the House of Chow.  It came in a glass with a handle and saucer.  The drink came with complimentary chocolate mint and was topped with a froth and sprinkle of chocolate powder.  The taste was creamy and chocolaty.  The cost was $3.50.  It was good to see that the restaurant considered every detail including the standard of the hot chocolate.

Café Ivy

Café Ivy at 230 The Parade, Norwood has recently opened.  It is in the same block of shops as the the American Candy Stand Cupcake Café.  Café Ivy provides a menu with a number of Italian and Greek dishes and friendly table service.  There is plenty of seating inside and on the wide footpath of the Parade.

The hot chocolate came in a glass and saucer with two marshmallows.  The drink was topped with a white froth and a sprinkle of chocolate powder.  The drink was a little weak and did not have a good chocolate flavour.  White hot chocolate is also available.  The cost was four dollars.

Paddy’s Lantern

Paddy’s Lantern is a little café and coffee retailer at 219 Gilbert Street in the Adelaide CBD.  They provide specialist coffees and do range of light meals featuring some delicious specialty breads from the Mylor Bakery.  The café is narrow shop which looks like a converted Besser Block warehouse, but there is comfortable seating inside and on the footpath.

The hot chocolate came in a glass and saucer and was topped with a brown froth and a latte art design.  The glass was hot and a napkin would have been useful, however the chocolate flavour was rich, dark and flavoursome.  The cost was $4.00 for the regular sized drink.

Grinders, Perth Airport

My impression of Perth was that food and beverages are more expensive than in Adelaide and a similar quality.  I would have loved to visit a couple of the specialist chocolate places there but did not have the opportunity this visit.  In Perth Airport I thought I should try the Grinders stall in the domestic terminal. 

The hot chocolate came in small, regular and large sizes.  The drink was provided in a good quality takeaway cup.  It was served with three marshmallows floating in the drink with a white froth and a sprinkle of chocolate powder.  The drink had a good dark chocolate flavour and was not too sweet although it was not as creamy as other hot chocolates.  The regular size hot chocolate cost $5.45.

Miss Maud

Miss Maud has a number of Swedish pastry houses around Perth.  I attended the one in the Belmont Forum Shopping centre.  There is a Swedish theme to the shops with the staff dressed in national costume.  The menu is a fairly standard café menu.

The hot chocolate came in a branded mug with two marshmallows.  It was a light and frothy hot chocolate in the Swiss milk chocolate style.  It was pleasant but not chocolaty enough for my taste.  The cost was $5.10.

Cocolat Airport

Merkel has been a frequent visitor at Cocolat in Rundle Street so he relished the opportunity to try Cocolat at Adelaide Airport before he flew off to Perth.  The shop is in the domestic terminal and provides the similar décor to the Rundle Street shop.  The menu was the same but the selection of cakes was probably smaller.  Nevertheless the chocolate jaffa cake was still a delight.

Merkel tried the Chilli Hot Chocolate.  It was served in a tall glass with a handle.  The drink was topped with a white froth and chocolate flakes and marshmallow was provided.  This drink packed a punch and with good chilli and chocolate flavour in a creamy drink.  The cost was $4.30 although larger mugs were also available for $6.30.

Plant 13

One of the advertisers on this page is the Bowden redevelopment which is construction of a whole suburb where the Clipsal factories used to be. Readers will see the Life More Interesting advertisement come up occasionally.  Click on it see the details of this new housing development.  Your reviewer visited the site of this development recently and found a garden, a café and an office housing the model of the proposed development.  The Café was called Plant13 and I paid it a visit.

Plant 13 is at 16 Park Terrace, Bowden.  It is the old Parkview Hotel and is referred to as Plant 13 because it stood between Plant 12 and Plant14 of the old Clipsal buildings.  The café specialises in American dishes and has plenty of seating inside and outside.  The lunch menu is brief, with American dishes like pork ribs, tortillas and fried chicken.  There are a range of American beers to drink with your meal.  It is also open for breakfast and dinner.

The hot chocolate came in a green ceramic cup and saucer topped with a froth and a sprinkle of chocolate powder.  The drink was good and rich and cost $3.50.

Ivia Espresso

Ivia Espresso is a café at 27 King William Road north of the main shopping precinct on that road and the Red Door Bakery.  It provides plenty of comfortable seating inside and on the footpath beside the paved road.  Merkel and Myrtle visited there for a light lunch.  There was a good range of sandwiches and salads and a few specialty meals.  The calculation of the bill was incorrect but was sorted out in good humour.

 

The hot chocolate came in a glass with a wire handle.  It was topped with a light froth and a semi-circle of chocolate powder.  The drink was light and milky and not particularly rich.  The cost was $3.30 for a regular and $4.30 for a medium all though I am not certain that was what was charged because of the confusion over the bill.

san Churro Azteca

Merkel and Myrtle returned to Chocolateria san Churro.  This time it was the outlet on the corner of Rundle Street and East Terrace.  This shop has had a number of previous incarnations including a Caffe Primo in 2010.  We dined on Sushi a couple of doors down before going to Chocolateria san Churro where we shared a churros for two with two dipping sauces.

Merkel was keen on the Azteca hot chocolate this time.  This was thick dark chocolate with a sprinkle of chilli.  Again, it was thick, quality chocolate served in a decorative mug and saucer.  Chocolate heaven for 5.95.

Chocolateria san Churro

I am glad to report an exciting development for Adelaide chocolate lovers.  Chocolateria san Churro has moved into town.  Their shops at in Rundle Street and Gouger Street have now been joined by a chocolateria in Marion Shopping Centre.  I went along to the shop at 43 Gouger Street to see what all the fuss was about.  The store used to be the House of Pearl Malaysian restaurant and prior to that it was the Petty Sessions coffee shop.  There is plenty of seating inside and on the pavement.  This place is dedicated to chocolate so there are no savoury dishes.

After looking through a menu that included Aztec hot chocolate, couverture dark hot chocolate and peanut butter hot chocolate, I settled on the Spanish hot chocolate.  This was pure, thick, quality chocolate served in a decorative mug and saucer with the slogan “Sweeten thy Soul” inscribed on the inside.  This was rich treat and I could feel my heart pumping faster from the first sip.  The cost was $5.95 and I could have had cream or marshmallows for extra cost.

Kicco on Flinders

The Stax coffee shop at 60 Flinders Street in the foyer of the Santos building has changed hands.  It is now a Kicco franchise.  The Stax at 88 Flinders is still there though.  There are also Kicco boutique espresso bars in Pirie Street and Glenelg.  The Santos foyer is still comfortable place to have lunch.  The the range of sandwiches and roles has reduced with Kicco focussing on the coffee sales.

The costs of the hot beverages are $3.60, $3.80 and $5.50 depending on the size.  I settled for a small hot chocolate.  It was served in a ceramic cup and saucer with a liberal dumping of chocolate and top.  The drink was rich and creamy.

Do Duck Inn Cafe

Merkel and Myrtle revisited this Café after last lunching there last in 2011.  The décor has changed again and it has cosy atmosphere with its red walls with flying ducks painted on them.

Do Duck Inn were promoting their coffees so Merkel was hoping for a good hot chocolate and was not disappointed.  The hot chocolate came in a white ceramic cup and saucer with two marshmallows.  The drink was topped with froth and a sprinkle of chocolate powder.  The drink was rich and creamy and the marshmallows made it a nice way to finish lunch.  The costs for beverages of different sizes were $3.10, $3.70 and $4.70.

Grass Roots

Grass Roots (Soup, Salad, Savoury), have two outlets in Adelaide.  The one reviewed earlier on 2 Pirie Street is fairly small compared with the newer location at 50 Grenfell Street.  Another example of Café Foyerism this is located in the light and airy foyer of a Telstra building.  There is plenty of seating inside and out and a good range of light meals.

The beverages come in three sizes for three, four or five dollars.  The hot chocolate came in a white ceramic cup and saucer.  There was a creamy froth on top with semicircle of chocolate powder.  The drink unfortunately was weak and sweet.

19 on Exchange

19 on Exchange has recently open at 19 Exchange Place near the corner of and Grenfell Street and Exchange Place.  The Café at the back entrance of on a tall office block is a good example of Café Foyerism as it open to the foyer area.  The Café is a bit like a Subway but with more class and a cappuccino machine.  When I was there they were all out of sub bread but provided me a bagel instead.

The hot chocolate came in a white ceramic cup and sauce with froth and a liberal sprinking of chocolate on top.  The drink was creamy sufficiently rich to be a satisfying drink.  The cost was $3.40 for a regular cup.

Caparezza Espresso Bar

Caparezzo Espresso Bar is small café at the South end (36b) of James Place in the Adelaide CBD.  It uses part of the space where Rush Espresso was previously.  Caparezzo has an active Facebook page and serves a range of Italian meals.  There is comfortable seating available inside and on James Place.

The hot chocolate was served in a Vittoria coffee cup and saucer.  The froth had a criss-cross pattern of chocolate powder on top.  The drink was creamy and not too sweet.  The cost was $3.60 for a regular cup or $4.60 for a large one.>

Fair Espresso

Your reviewer visit Fair Espresso recently.  The name was familiar as your review had a hot chocolate from a Fair Espresso cart at the Semaphore Music Festival in 2010.  The new shop at 20 James Place is cozy with limited seating inside and out the front.  It specialises in fair-trade and organic food and beverages.  It does light meals and a range of coffees and hot chocolates.

The choice was between a fair-trade or a dark hot chocolate at $4.00 or milk hot chocolate at $3.80.  Your reviewer tried the fair-trade hot chocolate.  A large cup was 70 cents extra.  The drink came in a brown ceramic cup and saucer.  There was a well-executed example of latte art on the froth and a sprinkle of chocolate powder.  The taste was creamy and rich and proved to be an excellent drink.  The shop has fulfilled the early promise shown by event cart.

Stephen ter Horst, Fruit de Bois

Merkel and Myrtle returned to Stephen ter Horst Chocolatier after a long break.  There have been a few changes since this shop on Unley Road first opened, but the splendid array of magnificent chocolates are still there to marvel at and indulge in.  The Café is now open more often at night and provides more desserts (other than individual chocolates) which attract the dessert Café crowd.  There are more seats and most importantly more hot chocolates on the menu.

Merkel could have chosen a hot chocolate with hazelnut praline, Spanish spices or chilli but the one he chose on this visit was “Fruit de Bois”.  This is literally fruit of the forest and had a strong flavouring of raspberry and blackberry.  The flavouring was strong to blend with the rich chocolate flavour of the drink.  The drink was served in a modest black ceramic cup and saucer with a brown froth on top.  The cost for the normal hot chocolate is $5.50 and the Fruit de Bois was $6.00.  The indulgence was well worth the price.

Dulwich Bakery

Dulwich Bakeries have recently started serving coffees and hot chocolates in their bakeries.  Merkel and Myrtle have gone along the Dulwich Bakery in Unley Shopping Centre and the Dulwich Bakery at the Malvern 7 day Centre to sample their offerings.  Both are on Unley Road.  A small number of tables are available at both locations.  The cakes and pies are good and the service is friendly.

The hot chocolate is served in a white ceramic cup and saucer and finished with a white froth and a sprinkle of chocolate powder.  The drink however is too week and sweet for the taste of your reviewer.  The cost was inexpensive probably about three dollars.

Whisk Patisserie

Merkel and Myrtle recently returned to Whisk Patisserie  at 113 Goodwood Road for a pleasant lunch. It provides a tasty range of roles, quiches and pastries and now has its own web-site.

The hot chocolate was served in to stylish tall white ceramic cup and saucer with three marshmallows.  The drink is topped with a light brown froth and a sprinkle of cocoa with a hint of cinnamon. The drink is light and frothy and made with real chocolate with Belgian flavour.  The cost was four dollars.

Waverley House Cafe

The old Café Symphony has been taken over by a licensed Café called Waverley House Café.  The new owners have focused on the history of the old building at 97 Belair Road, Torrens park, opposite the Torrens Arms Hotel.  The new Café is open for breakfast and lunch Monday through Saturday.  There is seating inside and outside.  The inside is comfortable furnished with classic décor and local paintings on the wall.  The staff are young and friendly.

There hot chocolates on the menu are Belgium Milk and Belgium Dark chocolates.  The Dark chocolate was light and frothy with a sprinkle of chocolate on top.  It was not quite rich enough for your reviewer.  It came in green cup and saucer with a white and a pink marshmallow.  The cost was four dollars.

European Cafe

Merkel and Myrtle stopped by the European Café at 219 The Parade, Norwood one evening.  This is a well-established Italian restaurant on of Adelaide's best restaurant strips.  We shared an apple and strawberry crumble which was delicious except that it was made with raspberries and seemed to have no strawberries.

The hot chocolate was served in ceramic cup and saucer advertising “64” which is a blend of Rio coffee.  The chocolate was a bit week and I discovered that most of the chocolate had coagulated in the teaspoon that had been served already in the cup.  The hot chocolate was served with a light froth with slight latte art pattern.  The hot chocolate was four dollars.

Delish Iced

Delish seems to have changed hands since they used to put their flavours of hot chocolate on the sandwich board outside this Café on Victoria Square. The hot chocolates are still available although not in the exotic flavours.  This time Merkel tried and iced chocolate and the reasonable price of $4.60. It was sweet and creamy but not that chocolaty. Still it was cooling drink on a hot day.

Big Coffee and Food

Lizzie’s has now been replaced by Big Coffee and Food on Unley Road. There has been a significant change in décor with a lime green theme, a kid’s corner and a some original artwork. The menu has changed as well. Merkel and Myrtle visited for lunch. This is still a nice location for meal despite the venue change hands a couple of times over the last few years. The service was attentive and friendly.

To Merkel’s delight there was a Belgian hot chocolate on the drinks menu. This cost $4.30 for a good sized stylish cup. This was topped with a light froth. The taste was sweet but had an excellent Belgian chocolate flavour.

Howard Winery

I recently went a tour of the Adelaide hills with some friends from the UK. We visited a number of wineries and the Melba chocolate factory but the venue of most interest for hot chocolate lovers was the Howard Vineyard. We had a pleasant lunch overlooking the lawns and the grape vines, consisting of platters of various dips and nibbles.

The hot chocolate was served in a glass mug and saucer. It was rich and dark and was topped with a white froth and sprinkle of chocolate powder. The cost was four dollars.