Fine chocolate is a finicky thing, especially when you're talking about the kind of tricked-up, hand-painted beauties that Kate Weiser is crafting at her new spot in Trinity Groves. You'll probably remember Weiser from her stint at Chocolate Secrets a few years ago, but this new shop is inarguably all about her own fresh and creative approach to an art form that has always been known for being a little too traditional.
Kate Weiser's "artistic chocolate" is both beautiful and expertly made in full view of customers who stick around to enjoy their treats in the shop. On your visit, you might see fresh chocolate bars coming out of a mold, or most excitingly, a team of chocolatiers and cooks hand-painting each individual bonbon. Weiser has always been attracted to quirky flavor combinations, and that creativity is boldly on display here. You've probably never seen a sweet potato or butterscotch orange bonbon before, so hustle down to Trinity Groves post-haste before she decides to switch things up.
Beyond the rows and rows of delicately painted bon bons, bars, and chocolate pops, Kate Weiser is doing a lot more than just chocolate. Housemade ice creams, flavored with sweet basil and coffee from Ascension in the Design District, along with a daily rotating sorbet, were perfectly refreshing on a scorching August afternoon. You'll also find vanilla bean and dark chocolate popsicles, both of which were close to selling out when I stopped by on opening day.
Also in the case: Weiser's French macarons in five fancy flavors. Most macarons in Dallas are overly heavy, but Weiser's are perfectly airy and crisp. If you tried macaron before and didn't like them, come here before you decide to shun the cookie for good. A black truffle macaron is particularly interesting, even if it is more of a novelty than something you'd choose for dessert after dinner at Casa Rubia. Still, good luck trying to resist the rest of Weiser's flavors, like a sweet and summery strawberry and traditional pistachio that will transport you to the streets of France in the middle of South Dallas for just $2.50 apiece.
Weiser also adapted her traditional recipe to create an extra-large salted pistachio macaron for her "French mac" ice cream sandwich. It's a little crispier than you're used to, but that's only because these delicate cookies hold a healthy scoop of housemade ice cream flavored with more pistachios and fresh bing cherries. Macaron ice cream sandwiches are trendy right now, and Weiser has given Dallas maybe its only respectable version.
Whether you ultimately decide to come for the chocolates, the ice creams, or the macarons, you're probably going to end up trying all three. Some may find Weiser's artistic approach to chocolate a little over-the-top, but there's no denying that beautiful food just seems to taste better. Even if you don't care about the tiny, individual pieces of art that Weiser creates on the top of chocolate truffles each day, they're plenty good enough to justify spending more than you would on a boring Hershey's bar.
