Serendipity

While "serendipity" might mean "good fortune or luck," when it comes to San Carlos, "serendipity" refers to chocolate - Serendipity Chocolates at 1152 Arroyo Ave, and it is to my "good fortune" that I found them.

With the drinking chocolates at Rue du Thé and Back Yard Coffee becoming a bit too sweet for cacao-me, I wanted to find a place in the peninsula that offered something with more of a bittersweet, high quality chocolate bite.  Serendipity was my answer.  

Opened about a year and half ago, this little chocolate shop just off of Laurel in Downtown San Carlos offers artisan chocolates to the peninsula community.  With most of the high quality chocolate shops up in the City, Serendipity saw the need and has found a local clientele for its collection of confections, bars, pastries, and of course, drinking chocolates.  Though they do not make anything in their storefront (other than drinks), they feature only the best and freshest chocolate products from many local suppliers, chocolatiers, and bakers.

I was pleasantly surprised to find a 2-hour, non-metered spot just a few feet from the entrance - luck?  serendipity?  I was thankful that parking was not an issue as I had some work I wanted to get done while enjoying this new find off of Yelp.  (I searched for "sipping chocolate".)

Though there were 5 "drinking chocolate" options on the menu, I knew I needed to go with the "sipping chocolate" which, according to their online menu, is "a creamy, rich, and thick chocolate drink made with real chocolate chunks and water."  In spite being made with water (which is the "French-style," like at The Xocolate Bar), this was their cioccolata calda, made with real chocolate, not chips, not powder, not a pre-made mix. I was excited to give it a try.  

Rather than served from a chocolate dispenser, each cup is made to order from a blend of Belgian chocolates - milk and dark - from 50-70% cacao.  It is a secret blend, which I later learned comes from master New York pastry chef, Jacques Torres, who is known as "Mr. Chocolate."  According to one of the managers, Fatima, Serendipity is the only California store to feature Jacques Torres' special blend of hot drinking chocolate. 

With limited seating, I was fortunate to snag a table by the window.  With a rather stark interior design, this little store front does not have an inviting visual appeal.  The staff however is wonderfully friendly.  As I began working, the server brought me a little espresso cup of super thick "sipping chocolate."  Though made with water, it was very smooth, and was really more of a "spooning" chocolate than "sipping" as it was very thick.  Did I mention it was thick?  In spite being a bit too thick, it had an excellent balance of sweet and bittersweet notes, and lives up to Jacques Torres' reputation.  I did appreciate the flavors.

What made this little cup of chocolate hard to enjoy was that it cooled rather quickly, and soon turned into a pudding consistency and then hardened, in spite my mixing it up.  It was hard to savor the moment as it didn't seem to stay warm for very long, which is unfortunate.  

The little mocha macaroon, however, did pair nicely with the chocolate.  It had a wonderful chewy texture and light mocha cream center that did cut the richness of the chocolate which was a bit stodgy towards the end.  It was good that the macaroon was small because before I knew it, the cup was empty! 

I really wasn't able to get any work done while enjoying this sipping chocolate so I decided to order another drinking chocolate on the menu to savor a while longer with the work I needed to do.  

In talking with the servers, I discovered that all their drinks can be veganized through milk choice (almond or soy at no extra charge).  Even their sipping chocolate can be made vegan by using TCHO chocolate rather than the Jacques Torres blend which incorporates some milk chocolate.  I will definitely need to give their vegan sipping chocolate a try next time. (May be it won't be so thick!) They also offer local Guittard chocolate as a third option.  Though all their sipping chocolates are made with water, they can also be made with milk upon request.  And while $3.75 isn't cheap for a little espresso cup of goodness, I know I can taste the difference in quality of a drinking chocolate made with love and good ingredients.

With time left before my next meeting, I decided to go with their Mexican Chocolate with almond milk.  Not made from a powder as in other places I've sampled, they blend cinnamon, clove, vanilla, and agave with real chocolate shavings.  The server used TCHO because she knew I wanted it vegan.  It was a soothing blend of warming flavors which lasted as I finished up the work I needed to do.  They have a spicy option as well, which I will also want to try on another visit.  

To be honest, Serendipity does not have an inspiring ambiance, but they do serve a wonderful variety of quality drinking chocolates, many I am curious to try like their peanut butter drinking chocolate.  With adequate parking, a friendly staff, and a location which is fairly convenient for me, I know I'll be back.  They do have a friend in me!  I just won't bring a lot of work to do when I'm there.