On a very hot summer morning, there’s only one way to get Philly PR Girls excited to walk around the city… and that’s food. We met at Reading Terminal Market for the one and only Philadelphia Chocolate Tours. With no idea what was in store for us, we were excited for some delicious surprises all afternoon with our fabulous tour guide, Jeffrey.
The first meeting point was the iconic Reading Terminal Market, where 6 million people visit annually, but we didn’t know which chocolate vendor we’d be tasting. Soon enough we found ourselves at the famous 4th Street Cookie Co. We sampled an obvious classic: their signature chocolate chip cookie! It’s definitely one of the best chocolate chip cookies in the city with the perfect amount of chewiness and ooey gooey chocolatey goodness.
Sad to leave the market without exploring, our group marched to Midtown Village. It was no surprise that we stopped at Verde next, owned by Valerie Safran and Marcie Turney: the queens of 13th Street. The tour guide referred to this as the most dangerous stop because everything inside the shop is frickin’ adorable! Trying not to be tempted by the jewelry and accessories, we allowed ourselves to be tempted by the chocolate bark they offered. The featured flavors were Dried Cherry Bark, a dark chocolate bark topped with dried fruit, and Pub Crawl Bark, a milk chocolate barks with mixed crushed pretzels, smoked almonds, and cashews.
After resisting the urge to splurge, we set off to our next destination: the Bellevue on Broad Street. Unbeknownst to us, there is a magical Swiss chocolatier inside The Shops at the Bellevue called Teuscher. The small boutique was adorned with vibrant red rose vines, and every single piece of chocolate looked pristine. We sampled their famous champagne truffles, which were unique to many that we’ve had in the past. At Teuscher, the truffles are actually layered, with a Dom Perignon champagne creme in the middle as opposed to the champagne being directly incorporated into the chocolate. The shop also features adorable gift boxes, quality cocoa bars, and fresh jams.
Starting to fill up on chocolate, we were still excited about the next stop, which was a brand new addition to the tour. A couple blocks away, we shortly found ourselves at the bustling Rittenhouse Farmers’ Market. We stopped in front of a tent named Freshapeel and all tour members were eager to find out why. Then our minds were blown when we were handed samples of their Chocolate Cherry Hummus. You read that right… chocolate hummus! It basically tastes like an extremely healthy variation of Nutella! It was sweet and creamy but with a tangy taste to it. The best part is that it’s only 75 calories per serving, as opposed to Nutella’s 200 calories. Freshapeel also has some other amazing flavors that we were lucky to sample. Some of our other favorites being Lemon Kale hummus and Pumpkin hummus.
There are definitely many more amazing chocolate finds in Philadelphia, but we were surprised by how many interesting and new things this tour showed us. It’s definitely worth checking out and tasting these special treats. Philadelphia Chocolate Tours also offers a tour through Old City; both routes are offered six days a week by reservation.
For more information visit: http://philadelphiachocolatetours.com/
