Dandelion Chocolate will open its world-first combined store, "Dandelion Chocolate Kyoto Higashiyama Ichinenzaka Store," on April 26th. It combines a new concept store, "CACAO BAR," with a bean-to-bar chocolate cafe.

©Dandelion Chocolate Japan
Founded in San Francisco, USA in 2010, Dandelion Chocolate pursues small-batch production of "bean-to-bar chocolate," handling everything from sourcing cacao beans to final product. The brand has embraced the values of transparent consumer culture, where producers and manufacturers can be seen, and craft culture, and has developed stores while carefully selecting communities and locations that resonate with these values. The brand will open a store in Ichinenzaka, Higashiyama, Kyoto.

Protected by the Agency for Cultural Affairs as a traditional landscape preservation district, this area is bustling with tourists visiting Kodaiji Temple and Kiyomizu-dera Temple, yet still offers a taste of the elegant scenery of Kyoto. The store building is a stately Japanese house over 100 years old that has been designated as a traditional building by Kyoto City. Sano Fumihiko, who has an unusual background as a sukiya carpenter, has given this precious space a sophisticated appearance while making use of the traditional flavor.

©Dandelion Chocolate Japan
And the Kyoto Higashiyama Ichinenzaka store, Dandelion Chocolate's fourth store in Japan and its first in the Kansai region, will be attempting a world first: a "CACAO BAR." "CACAO BAR" offers more than just bean-to-bar chocolate. It's an experimental initiative that uses single-origin cocoa beans, including nibs and cocoa pulp, in a variety of ways to fully bring out their unique characteristics and charms, resulting in "desserts" that pair perfectly with alcoholic beverages. The bar offers a limited-edition menu exclusive to Kyoto. The bar will be open by invitation only until the end of May. The "cacao dishes" that inspired "CACAO BAR" were created by Lisa Vega, executive pastry chef at Dandelion Chocolate in San Francisco. Named a San Francisco star chef in 2016, Vega stayed in Japan to prepare for the opening, where she worked with Yasushi Morimoto, who was appointed chef at the Kyoto Higashiyama Ichinenzaka branch, to develop a menu that redefines the concept of "dessert." Dandelion Chocolate's new adventure is sure to raise expectations as it pursues new possibilities for the cacao experience by linking America, the home of bean-to-bar, with Kyoto, a city with a deep culinary tradition.

Nib Bousse (450 yen)
©Dandelion Chocolate Japan
At the cafe, you can enjoy classic chocolate drinks and pastries baked in the in-house kitchen every morning. The Kyoto-exclusive Nib Bousse (450 yen) pastry was created by Chef Morimoto and is based on the familiar bousse pastry known to Japanese people. With a particular focus on the texture of the nibs, granular nibs are mixed into the rich buttercream made from egg yolks, and powdered nibs are mixed into the fluffy batter. Enjoy the change in flavor when you add the chocolate from the Dominican Republic that is used to finish off the dipped treat.

Brownie Bite Flight (630 yen)
©Dandelion Chocolate Japan
The Brownie Bite Flight (630 yen) is Dandelion Chocolate's most popular signature menu item. You can compare three types of brownies, each made with single-origin chocolate from a different region. Apart from the origin of the chocolate, the ingredients and manufacturing process are all the same, allowing each one's unique flavor to shine through.

House Hot Chocolate (580 yen) ©Dandelion Chocolate Japan
Hot chocolate has long been a favorite in America. Dandelion Chocolate prepares its House Hot Chocolate (580 yen) using the most delicious chocolate available in season. This hot chocolate has a light and mild sweetness, allowing the natural flavor of the beans to shine through, and can be enjoyed with marshmallows, which are available in-store.

Opening Commemoration Pre-Sale: Wanpu, Honduras 70% (1,200 yen)
©Dandelion Chocolate Japan
The newly opened Kyoto Higashiyama Ichinenzaka store will feature a gift shop, the first of its kind in any other store, and to commemorate the opening of the Kyoto Higashiyama Ichinenzaka store, they will be selling a new chocolate bar, "Wanpu, Honduras 70%" (1,200 yen), in advance for a limited time. The cocoa beans grown in the Rio Platano Biosphere Reserve in the Mosquitia region are known for their lustrous, natural flavor. This chocolate has caramelized almond and vanilla flavors with a hint of chai.

SOU・SOU x Kameya Yoshinaga "SO-SU-U CACAO Wasanbon" (850 yen)
©Dandelion Chocolate Japan
To coincide with Dandelion Chocolate's arrival in Kyoto, a triple collaboration has been realized with Kyoto textile brand "SOU・SOU" and long-established Kyoto confectionery maker "Kameya Yoshinaga." This dried confectionery is made by blending the elegantly sweetness of Wasanbon sugar with the cacao of Dandelion Chocolate, and is shaped like the numbers "SO-SU-U." You can enjoy the differences in the three different cocoa blends for each number: 1, 4, 7, and 9 are 20%, 2, 5, and 0 are 33%, and 3, 6, and 8 are 50%. Other attractive products include the "Ise Cotton Hand Towel" (1,200 yen), a collaboration product with "SOU・SOU" to celebrate the store's opening. The hand towel features an original pattern used in the packaging design of Dandelion Chocolate bars, hand-printed on Ise cotton, a traditional craft from Tsu City, Mie Prefecture. The limited-edition product will be sold exclusively in Kyoto. The "Ubatama CACAO" (6 pieces for 980 yen) is a masterpiece made by mixing plenty of Dandelion Chocolate cocoa into "Ubatama," a specialty confectionary of Kameya Yoshinaga since its founding. The smooth, koshian (smooth bean paste) made with brown sugar from Hateruma Island is softly intertwined with the gorgeous aroma and flavor of chocolate. The store also offers a wide variety of appealing products, including tableware from "SUEKI CERAMICS," which is used in the store, and the original Japanese product, the Dandelion Notebook. Why not try a new chocolate experience on Higashiyama Ichinenzaka, a charming area brimming with spring charm?