Schaffen Berger chocolate tour III
I co-lead an AACO event yesterday to Berkeley's gourmet chocolate factory. This would be the third visit to the Schaffen Berger chocolate factory for me since my arrival in the bay area. During that time, this little gourmet chocolate producer has switched hands, and along with Joseph Schmidt and Dagoba chocolate has been sold to the chocolate giant, Hershey's.
The tour was an informative hour of lecture by one of the guides, then we were each given a hair net (yes, we had to put on that piece of fashion accessory: Question: if someone's comletely bald, do they still have to wear one??), and girls were asked to wear closed toe shoes only. The tour talked about the origin of the chocolate, what the fruit looked like, then the fermentation, roasting process, to produce the nib, then finally into chocolate liquid. Plates of dark, semi-dark, and milk chocolates were handed out for tasting, and we also chewed on the essence of chocolate -- the nib to experience the strong aroma/taste.
Overall the tour was informative and educational, though compared with 3-4 years ago, we didn't get to spend as much time on the factory floor.
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Afterwards, a group of us went to the Emeryville public market, where we all grabed a piece of ethnic lunch. The variety there was amazing! I had a delicious Afghan/Persian meal with a lamb shank and safron rice, topped with creamed spinach and curry tofu. Yummy!!! Oh, and a piece of Baklava for only $1!
Quickly making our way over to the Chabot Science and Space center in time for the 2:30pm "Space Now!" live planitarium show, we spent the next few hours exploring "space -- the final frontier!". "Space Now" was a very well designed and educational show, it showed you what the night sky would've been like at the location, and how to locate and identify some of the famous stars/constellation groups. Excellent 3 hours of walking and hands-on playing!
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Next stop, Japan town in SF for some quick Curry Rice dish, and shopping. We also tried the new Photobooth store, they've become very pricy since I first tried them in JP. But regardless, how can one miss an opportunity for "print club"?! =)
Last but not least, we ended the evening with a limited edition showing of "Maxed Out". Now that's a completely different topic, and I will try to post another blog specifically stating my opinion of the movie.
so all in all, it's a good day! =) Oh, let's not forget the cute breakfast muffins!
The tour was an informative hour of lecture by one of the guides, then we were each given a hair net (yes, we had to put on that piece of fashion accessory: Question: if someone's comletely bald, do they still have to wear one??), and girls were asked to wear closed toe shoes only. The tour talked about the origin of the chocolate, what the fruit looked like, then the fermentation, roasting process, to produce the nib, then finally into chocolate liquid. Plates of dark, semi-dark, and milk chocolates were handed out for tasting, and we also chewed on the essence of chocolate -- the nib to experience the strong aroma/taste.
Overall the tour was informative and educational, though compared with 3-4 years ago, we didn't get to spend as much time on the factory floor.
==============
Afterwards, a group of us went to the Emeryville public market, where we all grabed a piece of ethnic lunch. The variety there was amazing! I had a delicious Afghan/Persian meal with a lamb shank and safron rice, topped with creamed spinach and curry tofu. Yummy!!! Oh, and a piece of Baklava for only $1!
Quickly making our way over to the Chabot Science and Space center in time for the 2:30pm "Space Now!" live planitarium show, we spent the next few hours exploring "space -- the final frontier!". "Space Now" was a very well designed and educational show, it showed you what the night sky would've been like at the location, and how to locate and identify some of the famous stars/constellation groups. Excellent 3 hours of walking and hands-on playing!
================
Next stop, Japan town in SF for some quick Curry Rice dish, and shopping. We also tried the new Photobooth store, they've become very pricy since I first tried them in JP. But regardless, how can one miss an opportunity for "print club"?! =)
Last but not least, we ended the evening with a limited edition showing of "Maxed Out". Now that's a completely different topic, and I will try to post another blog specifically stating my opinion of the movie.
so all in all, it's a good day! =) Oh, let's not forget the cute breakfast muffins!
-- posted by Pooh Bear @
3/11/2007 10:29:00 AM
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