Koko Black
http://www.kokoblack.com/
23 St Quentin Avenue, Claremont (in the Claremont Quarter)
Tel: 08 9284 2049
Open: Mon – Thurs 8am – 10pm, Fri 8am – 11pm, Sat 9am – 11pm, Sun 10.30am – 10pm
Who doesn’t like chocolate right? Bad bad people, I imagine. Gaddafi for instance? No one in their right mind dislikes chocolate surely. But other than Gaddafi, everyone likes chocolate right? (OK to be fair, he probably does like chocolate, but only if it is a chocolate covered weapon of mass destruction).
But seriously, I think we’re in agreeance that chocolate is good, if not great. So what better way to spend a lazy child-free Sunday than to give my pancreas a work-out Koko Black style.
The Smiling Assassin (TSA) and I strutted hungoverly in to the newly opened Koko Black (they have stores in Melbourne and Canberra) on the dot of 10.30am (opening time), the bright lights and all-over shiny newness making our bloodshot eyes squint momentarily.
Koko Black’s interior is impressive to say the least. Glass display cabinets proudly show off an array of delicately hand-made chocolates, mini-tarts and cakes to entice. To the right of the counter is a glass see-through zoo enclosure-like kitchen where the ‘chocolate master’ works her magic, and staff flit about happily (well they do work in a chocolate shop after all!) giving the place a pleasant vibe.
We were welcomed warmly by the young man behind the counter who directed us in to the ‘salon’ (cafe to the uninitiated) around the corner where we could choose where to sit. We sat down on some lovely comfy leather couches in front of a low coffee-table, trying to sit down as elegantly as possible given the rather posh surrounds (we were in Claremont after all dahlings). The French-style Salon is very smart indeed, with it’s bistro chairs and wood-paneled walls, bringing me back to my time in Paris although the space is a little shinier, newer and spacious than anywhere I ever ate in Paris.
Our super friendly, yet professional, waitress was upon us soon enough and, having no braincells left from the night before, let her make a chocolatey recommendation. Her suggestion was the “Autumn Spoil for Two” $24.00 (including a drink each of your choice) which is basically a chocolate share platter for two with a beverage to wash it down with, and it was exactly what we needed.
Our St Ali coffees arrived tout de suite. The coffee was skillfully and artistically made, my cappuccino served with a small bowl of shaved chocolate on the side for sprinkling which took the humble cappuccino to new heights. I haven’t encountered St Ali coffee in Perth before (they are Melbourne based), and I’m going to go out on a limb here and say that it is my favourite brand (is that even the right word?) of coffee. Obviously I’m no coffee aficionado though.
Before long the chocolate share plate was upon us and it made me salivate at the mere sight of it. The feast before us consisted of a rich gooey square of chocolate brownie, some decadent hand made chocolates, chocolate-drizzled crumbly shortbread, rich chocolate mousse and silky smooth chocolate ice-cream. Each element of that share plate was an absolute delight, never too rich or too sweet, and we had to stop ourselves short of licking the plates clean.
Soon we were lolling back in our comfy chairs in a sugar-coma, sipping our glasses of water, which were kept topped up the whole time, wondering out loud between groans how Perth had ever survived, how we had survived, without Koko Black. Our chocolate-loving lives were to never be the same again.
Food: 10/10 (best chocolate you’re probably going to find in Perth)
Service: 10/10 (table service yippee, water was kept topped up, were asked how everything was. I found staff to be generally very enthusiastic and well trained)
Ambience: 9/10 (the space is a little too big and can feel a bit empty/sparse)
Total: 9.5/10
ediblescapism 