I saw OC mentioned and, while I’m not well versed in chocolate, I’ve enjoyed what I had at Francium Chocolate in Tustin/Irvine and thought I’d throw their name out there if anyone’s in the area. Really friendly, local, and I quite liked what I had.
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It’s no longer at my local Whole Foods anymore unfortunately.
onNom is at my local Whole Foods. Unfortunately they removed Marou chocolate though.
Milla is my go-to. Her wares aside, the space is just so classy chic and calming- really a diamond in the neighborhood. My personal favorites include the black sesame double dark chocolate cookie, black sesame caramel, hazelnut praline bar and hazelnut feuilletine bar, and the tahini almond bar.
I love Christine. She makes magic happen.
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Thank you for these suggestions. Grabbed a haul at Monsieur Marcel a month or so ago and have been nibbling my way through it. Dandelion is the standout so far for both my wife and I. I got the little sampler of Pralus and didn’t really enjoy the the first few, but tonight had the Ghana and Tanzanie 75% which I really enjoyed. Domori criollo is really good, but 90% was too bitter for my wife.
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Glad you like them!
Give Pralus time. The texture is part of what makes their bars so satisfying to me. Some producers’ bars are crisp and snappy, and that’s great too (kudos to Akesson), but Pralus bars are dense and rich. It’s the combination of that decadent texture and the darker roasted flavors (compared to Dandelion’s lighter, fruitier flavors, for example) that I crave.
Also try this — Pralus Infernale Pistache Praline Bar 75% – Bar & Cocoa These “Infernale” candy bars are my favorite candy bars by a wide margin, and the pistache is probably the best of all.
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Ja wohl, mein Herr honkman…
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Just got a bar of 70% dark Marou at Whole Foods. $2.99 for 24 grams. That’s $56 a lb if you care. It’s really good. Thin skinny bar. Not too bitter and intense at that %. Smooth. Would recommend.
They had about 5/6 different types. The cafe de sua flavor intrigued me but wanted to start off with the dark.
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Check out https://www.whitelabelchocolate.com. Some really amazing single origin bean-to-bars made in Santa Cruz. The chocolate maker used to be a chef at a lot of Bay Area Michelin restaurants.
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Couldn’t find it in the Westwood one. Will try one of the other local WF locations…
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Marou has a separate stand at Brea with the other baking chocolates. It’s not in the chocolate bar section with the other brands.
Here are all 5 bars. 68% and 70% seem so close together not sure how much different they are.
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I was wondering about that! We were kind of in a rush when we went to the Westwood one, so we only hit one chocolate section.
Will take another look this weekend…
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Has anyone tried this??? @SpockSpork
I hadn’t heard of the original until seeing this.
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I still can’t figure out why dubai chocolate took over social media. It’s a wildly overrated concoction.
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Helpful to read to temper my expectations.
I do like pistachio cream, and I don’t mind the $4 being a loss, so I’ll prob give it whirl soon… 
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It’s been a popular topic on HO this year. Not my thing, simply because I’m not a major pistachio fan.
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I’ve tried it! I have no comparison point, but I enjoyed it. I like pistachio. I like crunch. Done and done … I’d love an even less sweet version but my default chocolate is 70% sea salt or w chili, so there’s that.
What I’ve really learned here is to slather pistachio cream on random stuff, really.
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I haven’t!
I’ll have to double check what we’re having at home now (in terms of percentage). It’s TOO dark and bitter (even w/ the almonds), and I think it might be 70%. So maybe this Dubai dupe will work just fine for me.
Is pistachio cream sold somewhere (like TJ’s)? La Puglia does/did have a pastry w/ pistachio cream, and I thought it was divine…