What goes better with shopping? Chocolate, of course. LA’s most stylish and divine chocolatier Compartes went to extreme lengths to reinvent the candy store experience with their latest opening in the revitalized Westfield Century City mall. Owner Jonathan Grahm likes to describe the new flagship store as golden Gatsby meets Emerald City meets California cool, and tapped celebrity interior designer Kelly Wearstler to bring the beautiful space to life. In fact, the two even collaborated on a line of limited-run chocolate bars which you’ll also find in the shop. The store opened without any fanfare or press in August, but it’s already been selling out of the dessert daily- so much so that Grahm’s already considering expanding the walk-up concept down the line. For the time being, you can order frozen hot chocolate, truffles, caramel sauces, bars and chocolate-dipped dried fruit daily, and on weekends you’ll find chocolate-dipped strawberries, though those are headed for the everyday lineup. Soon, you’ll be able to order frozen chocolate-dipped bananas and a few seasonal desserts from the mind of Grahm, who’s been making chocolates in the family business based since he was 14 years old.
Though the chocolatier sells bars, truffles and other sweets next to its chocolate kitchen in Brentwood- and even launched an extended West Hollywood pop-up- this is the brand’s first permanent, designated retail space, and it’s a real looker. And, of course, there’s the chocolate. “This is brand new technology, nobody’s ever done this before,” Grahm says of the frozen hot chocolate, which only uses two ingredients: milk and 67% dark chocolate. There’s no sugar, no eggs, no preservatives- just tempered chocolate that springs from constantly flowing brass taps, which churn with milk in a proprietary machine to create a thick, rich treat to hit the spot in the Indian summer heat. And in fall and winter, you’ll be able to walk up to the window for hot chocolate. You may already recognize the now-iconic Compartes chocolate bar, each variety housed in its own eye-catching, specially designed box. So when you head to Westfield Century City for the new iPhone X later this year, make sure to visit Compartes and get properly dosed for that long wait at Apple. www.compartes.com
Tags: Chocolatier, Compartes, Culinary, Los Angeles, Westfield Century City
