Tucked away in a tree laden industrial park, sits the factory and main office of Chuao Chocolatier.  Started in 2002 by two brothers, Michael and Richard Antonorsi, this San Diego favorite has grown from a 1200 sq ft space that was both factory and storefront to five elegant stores in Southern California and a sixth recently opened in Miami.  I have been fortunate to participate in the first two of four chocolate making courses offered by Michael at their Carlsbad headquarters.  His love for the subject matter is evident from the first moments of the two hour class, which is filled with anecdotes and chocolate wisdom, and finished with a wine and chocolate pairing.  I met with Michael before my participation in the Level II course.  We walked back to a small office crowded with three desks opening directly on to the production floor.  I asked if his brother Richard also worked at this location, and Michael pointed to the cluttered desk behind me.

Having run several businesses together, Michael is the Chocolatier of Chuao (pronounced chew-WOW), while Richard handles the business and marketing side.  Michael has always loved cooking, and joked about cooking his way through his schooling in biomedical engineering at UCSD.  Being from Venezuela, cooking would not have met with his family’s view of success, so he returned to Venezuela to complete his MBA.  From there he and his brother Richard built a successful computer networking and communications business.  After 14 years, Michael decided he never wanted to work for money again.

At 38 years old, Michael moved his wife and two children to France where he was to fulfill his dream of attending the finest cooking school in France.  The chosen institution is actually an extremely challenging professional high school filled with 16-18 year old students in training.  Michael graduated with his CAP de cuisinier and went to work in a 2 star restaurant in France.  He found the environment very chaotic and stressful and soon decided it was time to move to the next step.  Having taken some specialized classes in chocolate and pastry, Michael was attracted to chocolate partly because it can be a 9 to 5 job since chocolate does have a shelf life, though short, unlike pastry or restaurant fare.

Together with his brother, they analyzed the best location in the US for a chocolate business.  They decided to return to their college town of San Diego because they had enjoyed the area so much as students, and there was no artisan chocolate in the area.  They further decided to differentiate themselves by using only Venezuelan chocolate, renown for its superior quality.  In 2002 they opened their first location, a 1200 sq ft space that served as both the production facility with 3 chocolate tables, 1 chocolate wheel (pictured), a proofing cabinet and an enrobing machine.  During the first class I attended at Chuao, Michael made use of a rather well used Cuisinart machine which he mentioned had been with them from the beginning.  I was sad to learn that 4 months later, when I took the second class, it had finally stopped working.  During class, Michael struggled with the unfamiliar replacement, with hot cream spewing out some opening at one point.

After little more than a year, Chuao was ready to open its first pure retail location.  It was a big commitment with a 10 year lease, but the loyalty and response from the San Diego patrons had been very encouraging.  In 2007 they are preparing for the next big growth spurt, which will include locations in Northern California, Chicago, Seattle and New York.  All locations will be stocked with chocolates made in the Carlsbad facility.

Creating is at the heart of Michael’s drive, as evidenced by the now more than 75 different recipes in Chuao’s arsenal of “Dare to be Different” chocolate flavors.  Chuao’s tag line of “Unusual, Unexpected and Delicious” is at the heart of all their creations.  Michael wants his chocolates to impart good sensations with a clear message, so that you know what is going on in your taste buds.   He feels chocolate can be a gratifying experience as it is an instant pleasure with a small commitment (as compared to sitting down for a meal in a restaurant for instance).  Each month a new flavor is created, and if it is popular, it becomes one of the regulars, included in the 30 or so rotating selections offered at the retail locations.

Chuao uses single origin El Rey chocolate, exclusively grown in Venezuela.  They pair this with spices, fruits and nuts to create among other things, bars, Chocopods, which are cacao shaped pods filled with such things as strawberry balsamic caramel, and bonbons of striking flavors.  Their special collections include a purple line, Caramelos, which is exclusively caramels; the Dead Sea Scrolls which is a collection of three chocolates (Qumran, Song of the Desert, and Land of Milk and Honey) offered only in this boxed set of 9; as well as hot chocolate and assorted collections of both milk and dark chocolates.

In addition to creating Unusual, Unexpected and Delicious chocolates, Michael and Richard are working to revolutionize the way cacao is grown.  Michael believes all the focus on refining chocolate starts after the purchase of un-roasted beans.  By working more with soil conditions and other environmental factors, Michael thinks the resulting raw material (beans) can be improved.  The sole focus is on cultivating cacao in Venezuela, where governmental red tape is slowing the process.  One day Chuao hopes to be growing and processing their own beans in Venezuela, but for now they will continue to use El Rey for their chocolate making.

Today Michael spends much of his time talking about Chocolate.  In addition to his chocolate classes, he recently participated in a food festival at Epcot in Florida, and travels to all the fancy food shows, speaking about chocolate to a variety of audiences.  The penetration in the marketplace is evident as you can find Chuao bars in stores such as Cost Plus World Markets, Bristol Farms and Whole Foods, but also in many chocolate and gift stores across the country.  Chuao has also recently signed a deal with Omni Hotels for them to serve Chuao hot chocolate nationwide.  

When I told Michael how much I envied his getting to create chocolate for a living, he countered that getting to buzz around like a bee and experience many different chocolatiers is an even better job.  We had to wrap up as our class was about to start. When I asked Michael how he will know Chuao is successful, his reply was “when we are running two shifts.”  That doesn’t sound like a 9 to 5 job to me, but when you are as passionate about your art as Michael clearly is, I guess it is no longer a job.