Spagnuolo’s Chocolate

21 06 2009
  • 115 E. Main Street
  • Owosso, MI 48867
  • (989) 729-9590
  • No Known Website
Spagnuolos Chocolate in downtown Owosso.

Spagnuolo's Chocolate in downtown Owosso.

Leave it to us to find the chocolate shop in town.  On our way to Owosso, we saw billboards for “historic downtown Owosso.”  After eating lunch at the Wrought Iron Grill, we decided to find downtown and see what the billboards were all about.  On our first pass through town, we saw a little candy store that still had an “open” sign lit up.  We went around the block to find a parking spot then headed back for some dessert.

Spagnuolo’s Chocolate has a tiny store front on Main Street.  We parked around the corner where there is some angled parking.  In front of the store, there are some parallel spots, but I didn’t realize that and the walk didn’t hurt us any. 

We walked into the chocolate shop at 3:45…about fifteen minutes before they were set to close.  There was one lady who was already gearing up to close.  We started looking around.  We saw a sign for fudge, but didn’t see any in the case.  The lady noticed we looked a little lost and asked if there was anything in particular we were looking for.  She pointed out the fudge in a basket behind us.  It was already cut and wrapped.  They only had two flavors but one of them was peanut butter.  I grabbed a chunk of fudge and J kept looking. Read the rest of this entry »

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Categories : Candy, Downtown, Ice Cream, Local Flavor, Michigan, Owosso, Reviews

Kilwin’s Chocolate & Ice Cream – St. Joseph

11 05 2009
  • 217 State Street
  • St. Joseph, MI 49085
  • (269) 982-1330
  • Website
Kilwins Chocolate & Ice Cream Shop on State Street in St. Joseph

Kilwin's Chocolate & Ice Cream on State Street in St. Joseph

I freakin’ love fudge!  When we took a day trip to Traverse City last fall, we found a Kilwin’s Chocolate Shop in downtown.  That was our introduction to the Northern Michigan chain of stores. 

A Mother’s Day isn’t complete without chocolate and, as luck would have it, there was a Kilwin’s across the street from our brunch destination.  After a good meal and a quick stroll through downtown St. Joseph, we loaded up on fudgey goodness.

The St. Joseph Kilwin’s store is on State Street in downtown St. Joseph just a few blocks from Lake Michigan.  Like most of the other stores, you can watch the candy makers apply their craft in the window.  On the day we were there, one guy was making caramel apples an another was making fresh waffle cones.

The inside of the store smells so good.  Just past the candy making area are the cases of candy.  The first case has the fudge.  This shop didn’t have nearly as many options as the Traverse City shop, but still had two of three flavors I wanted.  Read the rest of this entry »


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Categories : Candy, Chains, Chocolate, Downtown, Michigan, St. Joseph

MSU Museum Chocolate Party

20 02 2009

I saw an ad for this in City Pulse so I went looking for information.  The following is from the MSU Museum website.

 MSU Museum Chocolate Party Benefit

Sunday, February 22, 2009
1:30pm – 3:30pm
Kellogg Hotel & Conference Center
South Harrison Road, East Lansing, MI

The Michigan State University Museum Chocolate Party Benefit is set for Sunday, Feb. 22, 1:30 to 3:30 p.m. in the Kellogg Hotel & Conference Center, Harrison Road and Michigan Avenue, East Lansing. The event features samples to savor from the area’s finest “chocolatiers.” In this popular community event, chocolate lovers indulge for a great cause — all to benefit the care and preservation of the MSU Museum’s collections.

Chefs, caterers and all-around chocolate connoisseurs compete to make extravagant masterpieces using the key ingredient, chocolate. The event is unique in that it’s one of the few professional culinary industry competitions open to the general public. Meanwhile, the MSU Museum will also mount an exhibit showing a sampling of its diverse holdings, which number nearly 1 million objects, artifacts and specimens.

Tickets are $30 for the general public and a special “Premier Chocolatier” ticket for $75 offers an advance preview of the elaborate Chocolate Party creations and a year-long MSU Museum membership.


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Categories : East Lansing, Food News, Michigan

Cupid Candies – Oak Lawn , IL

12 02 2009
  • 4707 W. 95th Street
  • Oak Lawn, IL 60435
  • (708 ) 423-2729
  • Website
  • Menu
Cupid Candies on 95th Street in Oak Lawn.

Cupid Candies on 95th Street in Oak Lawn.

I sort of get a double whammy on Valentine’s Day.  Getting something for J is not a problem.  She’s got flowers waiting back in Lansing and tickets to a show that I’m pretty sure got lost in the mail.  Not only is February 14th Valentine’s Day, but it’s also my mom’s birthday.  Birthday’s aren’t a big deal in my family.  If we do anything at all, we do something small. 

Since J and I are back in the Chicago area, my mom decided to meet us for lunch tomorrow afternoon at Portillo’s Hot Dogs (review HERE) in Crestwood.  J suggested since we were meeting her before her birthday we should get her some candy or something.  When I was driving around lost this afternoon, I noticed Cupid Candies on the corner of Cicero and 95th.  I suggested we stop in and pick up some chocolates when we went out for dinner. Read the rest of this entry »


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Categories : Chocolate, Illinois, Oak Lawn, Reviews

The Chocolate Garden

5 01 2009
  • 2691 Friday Road
  • Coloma, MI 49038
  • (269) 468-9866
  • Website
  • Menu
The Chocolate Garden outside of Coloma, MI

The Chocolate Garden outside of Coloma, MI

What would you do if you were faced with giant truffles staring at you from a billboard overlooking I-94 in southwest Michigan?  We have passed this billboard so many times on our way back to Lansing from Illinois, but always make excuses not to stop.  A few months ago, we needed gas and I pulled off in Coloma to find a BP, but we couldn’t find The Chocolate Garden, so we gave up and went home.  Turns out, we took a right when we should have taken a left.  This time, we were in no hurry and had no excuse not stop.

The Chocolate Garden is in the most unassuming location.  Heck, we weren’t even sure we were in the right place.  When you get off the Interstate in Coloma and take a left, you pass a number of U-Pick farms and even other chocolate places.  The Chocolate Garden was smart enough to put signs up across the street from these places to tell you to keep going. 

After about a mile, you come up a farm house with a sign out front telling you to turn in for the Chocolate Garden.  Not what we were expecting at all.  The shop sits behind the farmhouse in a little building that would be more in place in a downtown shopping district among other boutiques.  We actually passed the house the first time thinking 1.) it wasn’t open or 2.) we couldn’t possibly be in the right place.  I went up to the next farm house and turned around.  When we made our way back, I noticed the sign on the side of the building that said “open” and the other cars now turning in.  Read the rest of this entry »


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Categories : Chocolate, Coloma, Local Flavor, Michigan, Reviews

Ghiradelli Chocolate Shop – Chicago

30 11 2008
  • 830 N. Michigan Ave.
  • Chicago, IL 60611
  • (312) 337-9330
  • Website
Ghiradelli Chocolate in downtown Chicago on the Magnificent Mile

Ghiradelli Chocolate in downtown Chicago on the Magnificent Mile

By the time we made it to Ghiradelli, we had already been to two candy shops, but that wouldn’t stop any of us.  After leaving Hershey’s Chicago, the four of us walked across the street to Ghiradelli to see what they had to offer. 

Ghiradelli sits about a half block off of Michigan Avenue in the square surrounding the old pumping station.  Like other stores on the block, it’s hard to miss with all the bright signage.  We walked in and were met by a guy passing out squares of peppermint chocolate.  The shop is more of an ice cream parlor than a retail shop even though they have a wide selection of their chocolates on display near the wall. Read the rest of this entry »


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Categories : Chicago, Chocolate, Downtown, Illinois, Reviews

Hershey’s Chicago

30 11 2008
  • 822 N. Michigan Avenue
  • Chicago, IL 60611
  • (312) 337-7711
  • Website
Hershes Chicago on Michigan Avenue in downtown Chicago

Hershe's Chicago on Michigan Avenue in downtown Chicago

Hershey’s Chicago is an interesting store.   By this time in the day, my brother and sister-in-law had rejoined J and I and we started walking back down Michigan Avenue so they could check out the holiday lights and do a little shopping.  We made it back down to the Water Tower Place area and the area around the old pumping station was shoulder to shoulder people.  We made our way around the square to Hershey’s to see what they had to offer.

Who doesn’t like Hershey’s chocolate bars?  The Hershey’s Chicago shop is tucked back off Michigan Avenue near the Water Tower area.  It may not be right on Michigan, but you’re not going to have a hard time finding it with the giant Hershey’s sign on the side of the building.  When we walked in, we were met by a security guard who was handing out chocolate squares and directing people away from the door so there wouldn’t be a traffic jam.  J and I started looking at gift boxes and she tried to talk me into buying giant Hershey bars for Christmas presents.  I didn’t listen to her, but I probably should have. Read the rest of this entry »


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Categories : Chicago, Chocolate, Downtown, Illinois

Dunkin Donuts – Downtown Chicago

30 11 2008
  • 6 N. Wabash
  • Chicago, IL 60611
  • (312) 828-9120
  • Website
  • Menu
Dunkin Donuts on Wabash Street in downton Chicago

Dunkin Donuts on Wabash Street in downton Chicago

The end of December in Chicago can get a little chilly.  Luckily, it was a nice day for November 29th, but after three plus hours of walking around, we started to get a chill.  There are Starbucks on every corner and J had been wanting to try their Salted Carmel Hot Chocolate.  We went by half a dozen Starbucks, but every one of them was packed.  On top of that, none of them had any seating, so we couldn’t sit and warm up.  We would have had to take our drinks back out into the cold.

As we were walking through the Jewelery District on Wabash, we went by a Dunkin Donuts.  They had some seating inside and their drinks are cheaper than Starbucks.  Still, we kept going to see if we could find a Starbucks.  We got to the corner and J said if we can’t see a Starbucks from the corner we were standing on, we’d just go to Dunkin.  Well, we could see a Starbucks, but it was just like all the others, so back to Dunkin we went. Read the rest of this entry »


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Categories : Chains, Chicago, Coffee, Downtown, Illinois

Lindt – Chicago

30 11 2008
  • 840 N. Michigan Ave
  • Chicago, IL 60611
  • (312) 440-3986
  • Website
Lindt in Water Tower Place on Michigan Avenue in downtown Chicago

Lindt in Water Tower Place on Michigan Avenue in downtown Chicago

After leaving the Billy Goat Tavern, we continued heading north on Michigan Avenue.  J and I both grew up near Chicago, so it wasn’t our first trip, but it was the first time in a long time we went downtown with no agenda, no tickets for a show, or no reason.  We just went for a walk and took in the sights.  The streets were packed with tourists and street performers so it took a little while to make it down to Water Tower Place.  Later, after picking my brother and sister-in-law up from the theater, my brother said he had no idea there was a mall in downtown Chicago. 

Water Tower Place is a seven story mall right in the heart of the shopping district on Michigan Avenue.  J and I weren’t really shopping, but we thought we’d walk around Water Tower because a.) it was warm and b.) it would kill some time.  We stopped in a few stores, but the first one we bought anything in was the Lindt store on the sixth floor.  Read the rest of this entry »


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Categories : Chains, Chicago, Chocolate, Downtown, Illinois

Kroger – Frandor

17 11 2008
  • 443 Mall Ct.
  • Lansing, MI 48912
  • (517) 332-2090
  • Website
Kroger in the Frandor Shopping Center.

Kroger in the Frandor Shopping Center.

I have a feeling one day I will visit all the Kroger’s in Lansing.  For some reason, when I need something, I instinctively go to Kroger.  Maybe it’s because I’ve been around Kroger all my life whereas the other supermarket’s in the area or foreign to me.  Maybe it’s because there just always seems to be a Kroger when I need one.

J and I were in Frandor to check out Linens ‘N Things again.  My dad wants some pans for Christmas and he’s very, very picky about what he wants, so we were hoping to find something cheap at LNT. They just lowered their prices again, so we thought it was a good time.  We picked up a few things there, but I needed to pick up a few groceries as well and there was a Kroger not too far down the parking lot.

So, we headed back to the truck to drop of the “Things” we bought from Linens ‘N Things before heading to Kroger.  I’m guessing this store is one of the older ones in Lansing.  They still have an old sign on the building and the layout is a little wierd for a grocery store.  When you walk in, you come in behind the cash registers.  There’s only one door in and out so you come out the way you go in.  If you keep walking past the cash registers, you’ll eventually hit produce and you can start shopping just like you would at any store. Read the rest of this entry »


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Categories : Chains, Chocolate, Grocery, Lansing, Michigan, Reviews

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