{"id":1568,"date":"2010-08-16T20:37:18","date_gmt":"2010-08-17T03:37:18","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/silenceoftheclams.com\/blog\/?p=1568"},"modified":"2010-09-17T14:12:38","modified_gmt":"2010-09-17T21:12:38","slug":"mmmm-chocolate","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/silenceoftheclams.com\/blog\/2010\/08\/mmmm-chocolate\/","title":{"rendered":"mmmm… chocolate!"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a>My mom recently spent a week visiting here in Seattle. It was all the excuse I needed for another Savor Seattle<\/a> tour.<\/p>\n

Since taking the Pikes Place Market food tour in 2008, Angela and company at Savor Seattle have introduced a Chocolate Indulgence Tour<\/em>. Apparently, along with coffee and fresh seafood, Seattle has developed a reputation for great Chocolate.\u00c2\u00a0 It’s no secret that the sweet tooth runs in our family, so choosing this 2 hour walking tour was a no brainer.<\/p>\n

We invited my siblings and their spouses to join us. We met up with our spunky guide, Amy, and the 8 other guests, put on our cool wireless headsets and were on our way.<\/p>\n

\"\"We started off at Oliver’s Lounge<\/a> at the Mayflower Hotel, where the bartender created a chocolate cocktail <\/em>for everyone… except us.<\/p>\n

Since we’re non-drinkers, we opted in advance for hot cocoa.\u00c2\u00a0 But after hearing him talk about what goes into the cocktail and watching him create it, I really wish I’d tried it (even with the likelihood that I wouldn’t like it).<\/p>\n

Next time I take the tour – and believe me, there will <\/em>be a next time – no substitutions for me.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>Next stop was The Dahlia bakery<\/a> – owned by renown Seattle chef Tom Douglas.<\/p>\n

There we sampled his famous Triple Coconut Cream Pie<\/em> and a completely decadent chocolate truffle cookie<\/em> – which\u00c2\u00a0 Seattle Magazine named as one of Seattle’s best desserts. \u00c2\u00a0 So moist, so delicious! Mmmmm…<\/p>\n

I want one right now.<\/p>\n

And we’re walking….. we’re walking….<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

<\/div>\n

We made our way to The Chocolate Box<\/a> to sample gelato<\/em>, sweet mini cupcakes <\/em>and absolutely TO DIE FOR Chocolate Enrobed Brownies<\/em>.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a> Enrobed. <\/em><\/p>\n

Doesn’t that sound decadent? Moist brownies enrobed<\/em> in chocolate.\u00c2\u00a0 So moist they were almost like fudge (but better).\u00c2\u00a0 I think that was my favorite taste of the day<\/em>.\u00c2\u00a0 And we came back here after dinner (at Machiavelli’s, of course) to pick up more brownies (and tried both the Walnut and Rocky Road varieties – both delicious).<\/p>\n

After that we wandered on over to Pikes Place Market for a stop at The Confectional<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\"\"There we enjoyed delicious, rich Colombian Sipping Chocolate<\/em> so thick you could use it as a topping. It had a bit of spice added, and tasted a lot like I imagine Juliette Binoche’s character, Vianne, served in the wonderful movie Chocolat<\/a>, also starring Johnny Depp. One of my favorite movies – you should really see it if you haven’t.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>But I digress…<\/p>\n

An even bigger hit was the White Chocolate Raspberry Cheesecake<\/em>. This shop is another ‘must visit’ stop if you’re ever in Seattle.<\/p>\n

All of their cheesecakes are made in individual serving sizes – so perfect for on the go. And lots of delicious flavors to choose from.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>From there we walked to Kukuruza Gourmet Popcorn<\/a> where not only did we get to sample yummy chocolate coated popcorn<\/em>, but we were entertained by a dancing employee. Awesome. Some of us also tried the cheddar and caramel popcorn mix, as well as a lavender lemonade variety (which smelled like lavender, but tasted like lemonade, imo).\u00c2\u00a0 All quite delicious.<\/p>\n

\"\"Our last stop was Fran’s Chocolates<\/a>. Three luscious treats awaited us:<\/p>\n