Destinations

Stepping into the Salon du Chocolat

By Jessica Marati Stepping into Hall 5 of the Porte de Versailles convention center Tuesday night was like stepping into a pink, chocolate-scented dream. It was the avant-première of the Salon du Chocolat, an annual trade exhibition celebrating all things cacao. Massive signs for some of the world's most famous chocolatiers – Lindt, Jeff de Bruges, M&M – hung in the distance, while elegantly dressed guests sipped champagne and sampled delicate hors d'ourves in the front foyer.

And then, of course, there was the chocolate – stall after stall featuring every type you can imagine. There were bars and blocks and truffles; milk, black and white chocolate, with nut, nougat and tiny pieces of fruit. Chocolate was baked into cookies, melted into fondue, molded into the Eiffel Tower. I jumped from one tasting stall to the next, like a kid in a candy store.

The Salon, which moves to New York, Tokyo, Beijing and Moscow later in the year, features tastings and events from over 400 participants between October 29 and November 2 at the Porte de Versailles.

The show also features a number of exhibits intended to awaken the senses to the pleasures of chocolate. A retrospective of porcelain serving accessories celebrates the seasonality of chocolate, while the "Delicate Little Museum of Appetites" by Wero attempts to interpret the emotions of gourmet eaters. Daily events include a behind-the-scenes look at chocolate manufacturing, a "Choco Dance" exhibit featuring cultural dances from around the world and the creation of a giant chocolate graffiti wall. The exhibition also features a children's workshop, recipe demonstrations and a lecture series on subjects like "Hot Chocolate through the Centuries," "Chocolate and Ethics" and "The Ovomaltine's Saga."

At a certain point in the evening, the crowd stopped tasting and started congregating in the center of the room. The "all-cacao" fashion show was about to begin. Designers like Christophe Guillarme, Marcia de Carvalho and Paul Hardy teamed up with France's best chocolatiers to present a lively exhibition of the latest trends in chocolate. The show, which benefited children's charity Voix de l'Enfant, also featured trapeze artists, stilt-walkers and stuntmen in a heady spectacle exploring the decadence of chocolate.

The Salon organizers, Sylvie Douce and François Jeantet, say that the Paris exhibition places a particular emphasis on the artisanship of chocolate, while celebrating its accessibility. "Chocolate for all... all for chocolate!" they proclaimed as the credo of the exhibition. That's one rallying call I can get behind.

Jessica Marati is an American freelance journalist based in Paris. For more of her work, see her online portfolio at: http://jessicamarati.wordpress.com.