Locomotoring

tcho-a-day

Following up on our coffee and chocolate trail (inspired by David Lebovitz), the second one on our list is Tcho.

• Location: Pier 17, San Francisco
• Coffee: Blue Bottle
• Chocolates: Tasting squares and bars

We had known about Tcho long before we sampled it. They had been getting reviewed on boingboing since their beta days (yes, even chocolates have beta versions in silicon valley).

Our first taste of Tcho’s chocolates was on a walk along Embarcadero. On that occasion, we tasted all four of their varieties and picked up a small pack of 8 tasting squares. On our last visit, we picked up a 30 day package called tcho-a-day.

The chocolates come in four flavors – chocolatey, nutty, fruity and citrus. But these are not flavors in the traditional sense. Their “flavor” is just the true taste of that particular varietal, not due to additional flavoring agents. The fruity one do tastes of berries – honest.  We were impressed even before we saw the KQED documentary (the first 5 minutes are a bit generic, wait til you get to the Tcho specifics) or the boingboing one.

The coffee is Blue Bottle. Brewed with a manual dripper, it is thick like a stout beer, fragrant and chocolatey and greatly enhances the flavor of chocolate. Tcho storefront is small with a couple of plastic chairs to sit and enjoy your coffee.  Our chat with the friendly staff revealed that they are indeed planning to expand the storefront to occupy part of the adjacent pier building where the final stages of chocolate preparation happen.

Here are some photos from a recent trip:

Tcho Storefront on Pier 17 (Jun 09)

Chocolate gallery

Sampler at the store

If you are going …

You will have delicious views of the San Francisco Bay. You can also check out the popular Ferry Building Farmer’s market. A unique San Francisco experience is a hike up to Telegraph Hill via Filbert steps and see the stunning houses and gardens on the hill. And if you are feeling utterly and completely lazy, relax at the nearby Levi Plaza garden.

For more of our explorations of San Francisco, with photos, maps, walking tours, click here.