Chocolate Thoughts from India

In February I escaped from here. Accompanied by my darling mum and her narcoleptic friend, we high-tailed it off to India and a warmth that had seemed unimaginable in London. I retrieved some ghastly old gear from one of my charity shop-bound bags and swiftly gave it away on arrival in Mumbai - at once shedding not only winter encumbrances but all feelings of wanting to hibernate as well.


In between dealing with narcoleptic 'crashes' (quickly resolved with a ready lit cigarette) in busy places, pokey G&Ts and cramped, saddle-sore taxi rides, I threw myself into that city with zeal. It engulfed me with its thick heat, each noise and smell that rang out and clamoured towards me felt somehow cushioned.

Safe. I felt safe. I felt like I could've gone anywhere and, though surrounded by so much and so many, I was just caught up in the horizontal life that everyone else was rumbling along in too. India for me was about a life lived in the open air - with all the grimness and magic that this entails.


In Crawford Market at the end of the day, there is the meat enclosure - dangling pieces of fraying red flesh providing a tennuous curtain for the bathing butchers in the background. Each one delighted to be washing clean the days blood.

On Chowpatty Beach we picked past the burrowing rats and the soggy plastic bags to find families bedding down in smog-worn bivouacs, street hawkers plying bhel puri, itinerant chai-wallahs serving up beachside nectar and a whole swathe of neon-lit food shacks competing for your rupee by promising the best pau bhaji on the strip.


I rode the trains from the Northern Mumbai suburbs to the gut of the city's established order in the South. How the view changed - from sprawling organised chaos to unfinished concrete structures; disused buildings, over-used chawls, armpits in my face, warm sticky skin next to my warm sticky skin; hot breeze, funky odors, oiled hair, Bhangra ringtones...


In Bandra chickens pick around in fresh soil under the shadow of Swarovski's Indian flagship and super handsome men serve scamorza risotto in a/c dominated cafes. And down at Oval Maidan are a hundred separate cricket matches being played by teams of varying size and ability - from full whites and trophy tent to sandals being used for wickets.

And then there are the long distance trains! Nudging up against accommodating neighbours, the whole carriage seems animated. At each stop comes another opportunity to snack: vegetable cutlets, bhajis, pakoras, banana fritters, chai, ice cream, bhel puri...and then there's lunch - a 35rp feast of vegetable biriani, curds and soup. Luckily those locomotives are long and I could walk it off by striding from carriage to carriage.


There is much to say about India but what can't be ignored is the eating! From the land of impeccable, relentless service comes food - at all times, in all ways. We barely came up for air. In Goa we nyammed fish curry, millet fried mussels, tandoori Kingfish and real-deal pork vindaloo. We ate masala omelettes for breakfast, Goan bread, butter and jam, fruit salad, pancakes...

Spicy, fragrant, rich and meaty, what I began to crave - and very quickly - was my beloved CHOCOLATE. Sometimes it just wasn't available save for a little pack of cookies bought from the shop. But I did what I could in the name of sweetness - here are some of the results:


I knew it was never going to blow me away but I had to try Trishna's take on the brownie sundae. Best things about it were that it was sweet and warm, otherwise a bit on the Grade D side of things.


Train sweets - peanut clusters, bars, brittle. Kept us quiet for a bit.


La Plage on Aswem Beach right at the top of Goa was such a nice surprise. Despite threats from encircling Russians and protection demands they are still turning out French-style desserts. This crepe with Nutella and toasted walnuts went perfectly with the 'vanille fraiche' Chantilly cream.


But it was nothing next to the Captain Morgan flambeed bananas with iced white chocolate chaser. My God - I was in my clover!


Less successful was Monginis cake shop in Panjim. I loved Panjim in all its dusty, noisy, withered Colonial glory but this bakery didn't really cut it. I'd been sold the place as somewhere that made proper English biscuits so was pretty geed up. The mistake was taking this literally. I had a massive cake craving though so set about devouring as much of what was on offer as possible: dry, vanilla packed fairy cakes and some seriously plastic looking frosted layer cakes...


We had about seven cakes between us, three bottles of Coke and it still only came to about 75p. I certainly sprang back onto those hectic streets with renewed vigor after that little session.


After a Thali that had no end we were nigh on spherical. Our distinguished looking head waiter with the lustrous white hair looked so crest-fallen when I declined the sweet option so I went for it. It was strawberry ice cream - lurid pink, bubblegum fruity. He was pleased anyway.


Aah, the pancakes! I'd forgotten how much I love and need pancakes. The best ones of the whole trip were above, at Casa Susegad in Loutolim (honey & banana) and the Nutella smothered beauties on Cola Beach. Sometimes I'd have three a day.


Margao market, end of the day. Who will buy these bouquets of buttercream?


Gujurati sweets given to my mum on her birthday. We looked at them, took them out of their box, took pictures of them, carried them round with us and eventually they were infiltrated by some particularly determined ants in our Rajasthani tent on the beach.


Off in the interior, living on a purely South Indian diet with no cookies or pancakes for gimmicks, I tucked into this Kheer most heartily. It's a kind of rice vermicelli take on rice pudding: Warm, buttery, cardamon scented it was welcomed after the fiery gobi curry. I think I had about three helpings. (The bowl was quite small).


Hampi and backpackers' central. Quite a rude awakening after coasting between the lines for so long. Right along the river and through the moonlit drenched banana groves lay this barrage of reassurance for the homesick traveler.





Back in Mumbai we headed for the Salt Water Cafe in Bandra and none of us could resist the opportunity to eat flourless chocolate cake, chocolate and hazelnut torte or dark chocolate truffle cake. It was all a bit Sara Lee if we're being honest here but after tying a few Margaritas on none of us cared.


It's a bit embarrassing to admit this but, joined only by my Cola Beach pancakes, the most satisfying desserts for me on the whole Indian voyage were these two souffles from Indigo and Indigo Deli. For savouries there is no contest - I went wild for all that that country was dishing up - but for sweet things, for chocolatey things, the prize has to fall here: Vanilla souffle with bitter chocolate sauce plunged in by night; by day the bitter chocolate souffle with creme anglaise and a warm peanut butter cookie.

I don't remember having better souffles for years.

Introducing...The Experimental Food Society

Hello choc fans. Please forgive the uncensorious lapse in time since my last post, it really is too rude. I went away you see; escaped the brittle clutch of a ghastly February and fled East. There will be pics of my (largely futile) attempts to consume choc whilst in India to follow, but I just wanted to draw attention to a wonderful new cause.

As Britain charges along at full pelt with an ever-increasing choice of food festivals and food-related events, some have wanted to take the next step and progress things along a bit. It's not that we don't all love a good chutney stand or that cider stalls, goats cheese stalls, muesli stalls and onion bhaji mixes to-go don't pique our interest, it's just that we need a new slant now.

And so to food PR and creative thinker Alexa Perrin. She has created the Experimental Food Society to showcase 'a troupe of ground-breaking gourmet artists that demonstrate there is more to life than just swallowing.'

I am delighted that Choc Star has been asked, along with jelly rock n rollers Bompas & Parr, The Rebel Dining Society, food adventurer (we like food adventurers) Stefan Gates and others who have come at food from new and exciting angles.

Have a look at the website and look out for future events of which we'll all be a part. And if there are any tables groaning with jars of chutney please be assured that there'll be a lot more going on than water biscuit paddling.

Choc Star in SW4

There's a new market on Venn St in Clapham (map HERE) - Sourced have branched out from festivals and are now running this new street market and it's full of goodies! As well as choc treats from us there will be cheese from Neil's Yard, fine pieces of meat from Moen's, fragrant delights from Arabica, plus others who know what they're doing when it comes to the mangia.

Choc Star, on account of Jimmy's length and girth, will be down the end of the street holding it all together, (reggae, hot chocolate, truffs - you know the drill). If it goes well we'll be making the short journey from Brixton to Clapham every last weekend of the month.

Hope to see you over there - this Friday and Saturday: 12pm-7pm.

Spacemakers in Brixton Village this Weekend

There's some fun stuff happening this weekend in SW9 - Spacemakers have taken control of the wonderful, disused gem that is Granville Arcade in Brixton Village and turned it upside its head!

All this empty space, all these bright ideas - Saturday 16th January will see all sorts of tasty shenanigans rocking the 1930s lot: A Mad Hatter's Tea Party hosted by Bridget of Wild Caper with myself, Arno, Edwina and Henrietta adding to the mix.

Also, Ms Marmite Lover's pop-up lunch, Travels With My Fork Mexican pop-up, Etta's Seafood Restaurant, The Olive Tree delights from Morocco, Jerk, Colombiano cantinas, cake designing, Ghanaian sweets, Transition Town activities and a whole load more...

I'll be serving mini hot chocolates, truffles, mini Trilli bites and Willie's cacao. We're at No. 40 - hope to see you there!

All that Jazz - Slow Food Market this weekend.

Hi ravers...and jazz heads - this weekend has your names all over it: Slow Food Market + jazz - imagine!

I'm not much of a jazz head but I love a good bit of live horn action on the piazza - and it makes a great backdrop for chocolate...

This weekend we will be serving special Choc Star hot chocolates (yeah, they'll be special all right - for those that know what to ask for), High-Rise Millionaire's shortbread with salted caramel, toasted walnut fudge brownies, Venezuelan hot chocolate shots and Peruvian Maker's Mark infused truffles. Oh, and chocolate bars of varying percentages.

Parp parp!

The Slow Food Market takes place on Southbank Square on the road side of the Southbank Centre, SE1.

Getting Involved

A five course dining extravaganza is occurring. On Sunday night at Hawksmoor, home of some of the tastiest pieces of meat in town, some lucky folks are in store for a serious treat.

Organised by the ever energetic Niamh of Eat Like a Girl and headed up in the kitchen by Scandilicious powerhouse Sig, the night gives London food and drink bloggers' the chance to leverage their blagging capabilities and drum up a whole load of goodies for the very good cause that is Action Against Hunger.

Suppliers from far and wide have given generously to the calls of the bloggers/blaggers in order that such a feast can be laid on and numerous prizes be bid for. If you'd like to come and be part of the giving - whilst getting to indulge in all the deliciousness as the same time - head here to buy tickets.

Choc Star's donation is experiential. I have pledged to turn up at any location in metropolitan London and serve dessert from the choc-mobile to a dinner party of 12 - date to be decided between us and valid for one whole year.

Imagine that!

I heart New York like WOAH!

I arrived back from my New York trip two weeks ago - and haven't quite known how to tackle the task of explaining in any meaningful way quite what went on over there. It's like this: take a person (me) who has a massive sweet tooth, dispatch them to a city that was founded on sugar, pique that person's curiosity with hundreds of tips, articles, blogs and general heresay and then set them loose for three weeks to rampage the streets and devour all in sight.

Of course it wasn't just sugar I was shovelling - but savoury stuff can be discussed elsewhere. This is the sweet spot and it was as evil as it was good.

Not that The Big Gay Ice Cream Truck's famous 'Choinkwich' didn't deliver a stealthy layer of salt. I tracked the highly amusing Doug down in Union Square on his last day of trading for the summer. He was holed up in the truck, dipping and grinding - thrusting out of his hatch all manner of precarious and obscene looking ice cream snacks.

I went straight for the Choinkwich. I needed to know. Between two crunchy choc cookies were voluptuous layers of chocolate soft-serve, on top of which, stretched out in a translucence that was awkward, lay two slices of streaky bacon. I got stuck in, the soft-serve exploding out of either side of the cookies, a crumble, then into the fatty fronds. A kind of glycerined saltiness prevailed, then grease. Grease alongside cold, creamy choc - and cookie crumbs all up in my new Brooklyn nails. I thanked him for the experience and got the hell out of there.

My friend Josh who I stayed with in Williamsburg introduced me to his favourite restaurant in all of New York. All the way down Grand St, under the tracks and to this really odd, pointy little building lies Moto, sold to me as 'just like the restaurant in Delicatessen'. Three of us were given a table for two. A gravel voiced guy sang Ragtime with his group. Questionable items dangled from the ceiling and the lighting was LOW. The grilled donuts came after pudding - we couldn't resist those soft, sugared mounds.

Uptown in West Harlem on a grey, hungover day. I cut through Morningside Park at just the right side of daylight and then chanced upon Make My Cake - a contender for best red velvet cake in New York. I'd already had Cake Man Raven's in Brooklyn so thought I'd give it a whirl. I loved both but there was something about the cosiness of this spot on 116th St that got me all caught up by the cake - and all those other cartoon-like extravaganzas in the counter.

Frozen custard. Those two words are like a great jolt of joy to my entire system. The Shake Shack was high on my list of places to check out - but when we got to the front of the line I froze. How the frick was I supposed to make one choice? I went for a malted chocolate shake in the end. We hauled our orders over to a table and then set about the challenging task of sucking up what was essentially a pint of ice cream - with perhaps a 5 second blast in the microwave. Fat bitch!...but rich and delicious and full of (naughty)goodness.

Someone told me about Roni Sue and her Pig Candy when I was in Paris. Here she was in a little shop in Essex Street Market in the heart of the super Jewish Lower East Side peddling choc-covered bacon. Apparently her sales go soaring right before Passover. Originally sold by her neighbour (and Steve Buscemi look-a-like Jeffrey the butcher), the Pig Candy really caught on and now she's one of the market's main attractions. I tucked into a maple and bacon lollipop and bought some hog choc for the good folk back home (not really my kinda thing as it turned out but great for the looks on people's faces when they receive it).

Clinton Street Bakery: home of the city's best blueberry pancakes. I've had a thing about short stacks ever since being taken to California in the '80s. I was then removed from my new spiritual home and taken on a hippy trek round Mexico via brake-less buses. The highlight for me was whenever we got to stay in 'American style' hotels and I got to re-live my diner dreams. These ones were giant, pillowey discus' of berry studded perfection, drenched - so as to make each 'cake lousy with syrup - in warm maple butter.

Needless to say my walking style took on a heavy waddle character for the next two hours and totally hindered my eat/walk ratio for the rest of the morning.

Hungover in Williamsburg, en route to Queens - a Van Leewan ice cream truck appeared. Unable to consume coffee for fear of feeling like the the end of the world is nigh for the next six hours, I went for the next best thing: a scoop of espresso ice cream. It got me all the way to Greenpoint - a wonderful, warm October day, striding along thinking I was doing ok - before dumping me as soon as I'd finished it, into the truth of the matter: wretchedness.

I picked up this pecan Chelsea Bun from the hottest baker in Bristol, Rhode Island. Well, that's what I was told anyway. The bun was like a meal.

My pal Simon urged me to visit Otto. 'Forget about the mains' he said, 'straight for the gelato'. I almost took heed but can almost never turn down a plate of rigatoni with salsicce, so began with that. It was damn good and a perfectly manageable size, which was unusual. Then to the gelato: salted caramel, milk choc-chip and olive oil with Maldon sea salt. Meredith Kurtzman is New York's best ice creamist according to many. It was light, super smooth, intensely, cooly flavoured and really pepped me up for the hike uptown that afternoon.

A tray of pecan blondies from Kim's fabulous Treats Truck. We became fast friends as soon as the words 'choc treats from a van' were mentioned. It was so fascinating being in someone elses mobile sweet zone. Kim is a proper grafter and as much as I put in the hours at all sorts of unsociable times, this girl never stops. Her chocolate chip cookies were my ideal kind: chewy, extra buttery and studded with deep, dark, fruity choc chips.

And as for her peanut butter cookie sandwiches...fugeddaboudit.


One of my inspirations for beginning Choc Star happened when I was last in New York. A visit to Mariebelle and a taste of their Aztec hot chocolate really got me thinking about our own, largely hopeless hot chocolate offerings over here. It was small, powerful, spicy and gave me that inside grrrr that makes the world seem right. That was five years ago when my taste buds were perhaps a bit less focussed. This time, I'm sad to say, the hot choc tasted like it was from a packet - albeit a far superior packet than an Options or Galaxy sachet.

Egg, a diner round the corner from where I was staying was a revelation. A bit rock n roll, brilliant service, warm, inviting and serving almost wholly egg related dishes. Pancakes, waffles, biscuits, Chelsea Buns, omelettes and great big doorsteps of brioche French toast. If you're feeling cheeky (I was) then you can get a grapefruit Mimosa to help things along. We didn't want to leave.


Things got kind of strange at Momofuku Milk Bar. There we were, sheltering from the horrific, whipping rain and just up for a small slice of something each...when the order got messed up and they decided to bend over backwards to make it better by giving us one of practically everything on the menu. We got compost cookies (pretzels, potato chips, coffee, oats, butterscotch, chocolate chips), candy bar pie (chocolate crust, caramel, peanut butter nougat, pretzels), cereal milk flavour soft serve, cornflake choc-chip cookies, more soft serve and then...CRACK PIE.

I'd heard talk of this stuff all the way over in Brooklyn. It was described to me as like taking all the pecans and the pie crust out of a pecan pie and then turning up the volume on that...stuff in the middle. What we were confronted with was a pie made entirely out of sugar, save for a delicate lacing of rolled oats, there to give the impression of a base.

I'd nearly finished it before I remembered to take a pic - and was wired for the next thirty minutes, whereupon I wanted more. That's how it works.


Sweet potato and pie crust flavour bowls of soft-serve in Momofuku Noodle Bar. Pie crust :), sweet potato not so much.

Chocolate bread pudding at the Hudson. We sat in this strange Harry Potter-esque hall with long banquet tables and enormous high-backed chairs, dining on the finest mac 'n' cheese and chicken Caesar salad. We shared the pud - I ate most of it.

Chocolate and peanut butter ice cream from Emack & Bolios in the West Village. The woman really tried to hard sell me these freaks of nature...

...but I said 'Listen lady, that is just a bridge too far'.

There were all sorts of other treats I managed to find space for in my body but think I'd be pushing it to fit on here. The long and the short of it is that New York is a mecca for all kinds of sweetness. You can't move without seeing a heavy frosted cupcake or a big bulging Rice Krispie treat. Ice cream parlours are round every corner and open til way late at night and I've never seen so many cake shops in all my life - not even in France.

If you like food - of any description - go! Jump into that adventure playground of greed and let it swallow you whole. There may be hints of gout nuzzling up to you by the end of it but that town will feature in your day and night dreams for years and years to come.

Big up to the city that makes you feel brand new!

Choc Star in Delicious Online

Check out this Q&A I did with Delicious Online as part of the Chocolate Week activities (for which I'm there in spirit....).

Getting ready to crunch down.

Right, that's me - summer 2009 was a blast but it's time for a holiday now. I'm off across the Pond for three weeks and Jimmy's having a little break of his own (He doesn't say much but I can tell he's glad of the downtime).

So for now choc fans, here are a few souvenirs until we get back on the road. Our next gig will be the Slow Food Hallowe'en Market outside the Southbank Centre on Belvedere Road - come by for some ghoulish treats....

Victory Primary School chocolate tasting

Schools are different these days. All schools in the country who are involved with the International Scheme have as their Year Three topic, 'Chocolate'. They then study all elements of that subject - from where it comes from to how it got to Europe to why it's so good for you. A teacher who'd visited the van before asked if I'd like to come along and kick start this fun type of learning. I love doing kids' tastings so I happily agreed.

When I rolled into the playground I got mobbed....

Then the playground assistants had to get some of the older kids to stand guard over the choc while I went to scope out the tasting spot. Everything in position we began - and group after group were led out to learn about the magic of choc.

They were such great kids - wild and loud and helpful and sweet. I'm going to scope out some more schools - it's a trip!

September sojourns

Jimmy parked up outside Chiddingstone Castle for a wedding special.

At Monsoon HQ - we swung by their offices to serve hot chocs, ice cream, truffles and brownies...this guy came along after the crowds had dispersed. (Beautiful offices by the way - full of whacking great pieces of pop art).

The bright, deep blue skies of sunny Suffolk where we pitched up for the Aldeburgh Food Festival. As ever it was magical to be there and back on home soil.

ORMS anniversary party in EC1 - this incredible old Victorian warehouse. And the whole thing was catered by local joints: the salt beef guy, Gujarati Rasoi, Cafe Kick, Moro (the best, most smokily delicious gazpacho ever)...and Choc Star!

We also made it up to Ludlow for the magnificent food festival, now in its fifteenth year. What an operation! And so nice to see a whole load of new food stalls - all from the Shropshire area. We stayed on my old friend Chris' pig farm, ate loads of sausages and drank perry galore.

Maradonna! A wedding that was so wonderfully colourful. Theme: UN costume. And it was all held in the divine grounds of Wadham college, Oxford.


And after a few months away we are happy to have returned to the Southbank for the Slow Food market. Lots of familiar faces cropped up. I love this girl's quiff.

...and this family hired the van for their baby's 1st birthday party when Choc Star was in its first year of business. Great to see them still enjoying the treats so much.

And these two are just too darn cute.