Chocolate gets re-imagined with opening of new SoHo store

Published on NBC New York‘s The Feast, November 2011.

Last month Shaineal Shah, one of the crowning jewels at last year’s Chocolate Show, opened Xocolatti, his first boutique chocolateria, in the heart of SoHo. Here, in his 150-square- foot space stocked floor to ceiling with his trademark green and brown boxes, Shah sells hand-made chocolate and other sweet treats that bear more of a resemblance to glimmering jewelry pieces than candy.

Instead of going into the jewelry and diamond business, which his family has been a part of for three generations, Shah ventured into chocolate. Like the name Xocolatti, which is a creative spin on the Aztec word for chocolate, Shah’s truffles and slates are a twist on the traditional favorite. Paying homage to his Indian heritage and his world travels, Shah incorporates unorthodox ingredients, such as paprika, saffron and sake, into his creations.

Shah places an emphasis on re-imagining chocolate – from combining unusual flavors, to dusting and coating each truffle by hand with shimmering dust and sparkles.

Hit play to get see Shah describe his inspiration for the concept of Xocolatti, and get a look at the space along with some of his hand-made gems.

Xocolatti; 172 Prince Street; 212-256-0332

Posted on Tuesday, January 10th, 2012 at 10:59 PM. Filed under: Broadcast RSS 2.0 feed.