The world's largest chocolate festival, Salon du Chocolat, will be held at Isetan Shinjuku again this year from January 23rd (Wed) to 28th (Mon) in the main building's 6th floor event space. This year's 11th edition will feature over 70 participating shops from around the world, including the debut of a new and popular chocolatier from France. More than 25 top chocolatiers and pastry chefs will gather to present cutting-edge chocolate trends under the theme of "Renaissance (Rebirth of Knowledge)." Sébastien Godard, a genius pastry chef recognized by Pierre Hermé, will make his debut with a collection of classic chocolates, including pralines and tablets. Frédéric Awecker, who received the M.O.F. (Meilleur Ouvrier Nationale) award in the chocolate category in 2011, will also make his debut, selling bonbons and limited-edition chocolates available only during the Christmas season.

This year there are four types of "Selection Boxes," which are filled with chocolates from multiple chocolatiers. 15 chocolatiers participated in the "Selection Box Renaissance" (6,930 yen). The box design was created by artist Sasaki Goro, who used a stereo print of an illustration based on Sandro Botticelli's "The Birth of Venus." Other products include the "Selection Box Les médailles (My Award-Winning Chocolates)" (5,040 yen), "Selection Box Les (Milk Chocolate Box)" (3,780 yen), and "Selection Box Charity" (2,415 yen), which feature a selection of "award-winning" chocolates that launched the chocolatiers' careers.

Also keep an eye out for new proposals from popular chefs. Bernard Loiseau's "Ballade en Bourgogne (A Walk in Burgundy)" offers limited-edition chocolates made with local Burgundy ingredients, such as chocolate smoked with grape shavings and grape juice and pine nut praline. The ultra-luxury resort hotel, Hôtel du Cap-Eden-Roc, beloved by celebrities worldwide, offers "capsule chocolates" carefully selected as a treat for its guests, "prescribed" for busy partying celebrities. Also worth checking out are chocolates from BONNAT, sold exclusively at Paris's Salon du Chocolat, truffles from Jean-Charles Rocher, and chocolates made with cacao from Vietnam and Hawaii, emerging cocoa-producing regions in Southeast Asia. This year's offerings are packed with collaborations with renowned shops, including Jean-Paul Hevin and the Parisian renowned campagne bread shop, Poilâne.

It will also be held at Nagoya Sakae Mitsukoshi from January 30th (Wed) to February 5th (Tue), JR Kyoto Isetan and JR Osaka Mitsukoshi Isetan from January 30th (Wed) to February 14th (Thu), Iwataya Main Store from February 1st (Fri) to 14th (Thu), Marui Imai Sapporo Main Store from February 2nd (Sat) to 13th (Wed), and Sendai Mitsukoshi from February 5th (Tue) to 14th (Thu).