10 years after opening his first boutique shop, Benoît Nihant, the bean to bar Belgian chocolatier, has opened his second shop in Brussels in the Fort Jaco area in Uccle.
The elegant store, which opened in August was officially inaugurated last week and marks a shift from the more classic store in Ixelles with its modern lines and white, black and gold colours. The large photos which adorn the shop show you part of the process to turn cocoa beans into the end product. Known as the bean to bar process, this Belgian chocolatier, who has his workshop in Awans, close to the Belgian city of Liege, has been producing his own chocolate from the beans he procures for the past six years.
Benoit Nihant is one of only very few chocolate makers worldwide who starts his chocolate making process buying his beans directly from different plantations worldwide. He has recently also invested in his own plantation in Peru.
In an interview with Food and Wine Gazette he had said it was not an easy journey because he had to start from scratch not only to find the raw materials but also the machines he uses in his workshop.
A mechanical engineer by education, he decided to follow his passion and quit his corporate job together with his wife just before they turned 30. Together, they set up Benoît Nihant and today they are reaping the rewards of their work by being recognised as one of the elite chocolatiers in the world. They have five stores in Belgium and the chocolates are also sold in Japan.
International customers can buy his chocolates online at his online store.
For the opening of his boutique store, Benoit Nihant served a refreshing and nutricious iced juice of cocoa pulp common in South America but very rare to find in Europe.
Address: The new Uccle store can be found at 1359, Chaussee de Waterloo, Uccle. It is open every day from from Monday to Saturday between 10am and 7pm. On Sunday, it is open between 11am and 5pm.
Leave a Reply