With February 14 right around the corner, you’ve probably been searching high and low for the perfect Valentine’s Day gifts to give your loved ones. Well, it’s time to stop looking and start indulging! With this list of the best Black-owned chocolate shops around the world, you can shower your partner with sugar and support Black business owners—all at once. If you’re a fellow lover of chocolate, this list is for you.
Midunu Chocolates
Midunu Chocolates are artisanal handcrafted chocolates. Made with Ghanaian cocoa, they feature the flavors and essences of Africa. Taste the subtle infusion of the bounty of the African continent – fruits, spices, coffee, teas, and tisanes. These complex flavor profiles embody the beautiful patchwork of Africa’s culinary heritage. The inspiration for the chocolates comes from different parts of the continent, reflected in the name given to each truffle. They have named the truffles after different African women who have inspired the truffles and are culinary custodians throughout the continent.
Savanna Premium Chocolate
Savanna Premium Chocolate is a woman-owned and run business. It is co-founded by two award-winning chocolate makers from Zambia. Their chocolates have no preservatives, no additives, and no artificial flavors or colors. The milk and white chocolates are made using pure cocoa butter and we do not substitute with cheap oils. Their Ginger Milk Chocolate Bar won the 2019 European Bronze International Chocolate Award. Zambia’s first president Dr. Kenneth Kaunda celebrated his 95 Birthday with Savanna Premium Chocolate.
3 Some Chocolates
Patrick Ali Glanville, in his own words, was sick of getting fired and being underpaid, so he didn’t get mad — he and his wife Kristin Parker started 3 Some Chocolates in 2019, using the chocolate-making skills he had gained as a kid with his grandmother. Wow. Yes, the name is saucy, but it’s also a reference to the blend of dark, milk, and white chocolates in his trademark gourmet chocolate bars. 3 Some Chocolates is made with the finest premium chocolates to satisfy your cravings, allowing you to indulge your senses and your passion.
Viveré Chocolates
All-natural chocolate, creamy ganaches, artisanal truffles, and cacao blends sourced straight from Africa, Central America, and South America are just a few of the magical things you’ll find at this New Jersey-based chocolate shop. Founder Robert Bowden serves homemade chocolates made from 70% chocolate and cream ganaches and other treats. The brand works with seasoned chocolatiers to develop a line of confections that they are proud to bring to you.
Dapaah Chocolates
This family-owned company makes dairy-free chocolate with coconut milk. Inspired by their grandmother’s cocoa plantations, siblings Kwaku Dapaah and Raphael Daapaah hope to become globally recognized for celebrating their country’s origin of premium cocoa. Dapaah Chocolates are handcrafted from bean to bar in micro batches, using only the finest organic cocoa from Ghana, and the most premium ingredients from across Africa. After sorting, roasting, cracking, and winnowing our organic cocoa beans by hand, the nibs, alongside their premium ingredients, are conched for up to 72 hours in our melangeurs until their signature velvety-smooth chocolate is made.
Loshes Chocolate
Loshes Chocolate creates premium handcrafted bean-to-bar chocolate from cacao beans sourced ethically from South Western Nigeria. Their mission is to change the approach of chocolate making in the country. Sophisticated branding and locally-sourced cocoa help Loshes stand out from the pack.
Harlem Chocolate Factory
If you want a taste of Harlem, stop by Harlem Chocolate Factory for a medley of milk chocolate, dark chocolate, chocolate bark, turtles, and various other flavors. Founder Jessica Spaulding tapped into her love for chocolate to create handcrafted signature collections of chocolate, despite being allergic to it at a young age. Their most sold-out item is the Triple Berry Brownstone bars, made with strawberry, raspberry, blueberry, and a sprinkle of 24k Gold. Woven into each recipe are the names of historic Harlem landmarks, such as Strivers’ Row and the Pan-Pan Diner. Check back for truffles in flavors like Rose Champagne, Red Velvet, First Night on Lenox (made with dark chocolate, peach caramel, and smoked peach jam) — even one featuring Uncle Nearest Whiskey.
’57 Chocolate
’57 Chocolate is the pioneer bean-to-bar chocolate company in Ghana. ’57 is short for 1957, the year of Ghana’s independence. Founded by two Pan-African sisters, Kimberly and Priscilla Addison, ’57 channels Ghana’s Independence Day spirit by manufacturing finished goods using the country’s resources to create delicious treats in small batches. Since 2016, they’ve taken dried cocoa beans and processed them into luxurious chocolate and confections. Using their creativity, they make products that are a reflection and celebration of African art and culture.
Cru Chocolate
Cru Chocolate was founded in 2016 by Karla McNeil Rueda, a Honduran Woman, Industrial Engineer, and Culinary Artist. After pursuing a degree in engineering and an advanced degree in sustainability, McNeil-Rueda studied cacao technology and fine chocolate confectionery at the Chocolate Institute of Latin America and the Caribbean in La Habana, Cuba. Cru Chocolate is deeply rooted in Mesoamerican Cacao and Chocolate Heritage and is empowered to reimagine a new world of chocolate. Cru Chocolate’s mission includes a focus on assisting people at origin in creating and growing their own businesses by providing education and facilitating small-scale equipment.
Askanya Chocolates
Les Chocolateries Askanya is Haiti’s first premier bean-to-bar chocolate company. They exclusively use Haitian cacao to produce their chocolates in their facility located in Ouanaminthe, Haiti. The owners turned their grandparents’ home into a bean-to-bar chocolate factory, employing more than 3000 Haitian cacao farmers to help get the job done. In addition, the owners have consulted with world-class chocolatiers from France and the USA who meticulously trained the team in the bean-to-bar chocolate making processes. The company is named after one of the founder’s German hometown “Aschersleben”. In its Latinized form “Ascania,” it connects to the ancient figure Ascanius. Just as Ascanius became the legendary King in Roman mythology, they are sure Askanya will become the Queen of chocolate in her new Caribbean home.
Mon Choco
This artisanal bean-to-bar chocolatier creates fair-trade chocolate exclusively from West African producers. In their workshop located in the heart of Abidjan, they carefully handcraft products that reflect the exceptional taste of the Ivorian region. The cocoa beans, as well as all of their raw materials, come from organic and fair trade plantations in Côte d’Ivoire. The chocolate range includes a number of palette-teasing flavors, including ginger and cashew. Reductions in energy expenditure at all stages of production are essential to the owners. The cocoa beans are dried in the light of the sun, crushed by bicycle, and the packaging is made of recycled paper. Their motto is “Earth is the only planet where you can find chocolate. Save it!”
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Boitumelo Masihleho is a South African digital content creator. She graduated with a Bachelor of Arts from Rhodes University in Journalism and Media Studies and Politics and International Studies.
She’s an experienced multimedia journalist who is committed to writing balanced, informative and interesting stories on a number of topics. Boitumelo has her own YouTube channel where she shares her love for affordable beauty and lifestyle content.
