Chicago Chocolate Tours
Guided two-hour crawls lead as many tourists as locals through one of Chicago’s most notoriously vice-ridden underbellies: that of our sugary network of cupcakeries. “Cupcakes have been around long enough now that they are more than a trend; cupcakes are here to stay,” says Valerie Beck, president, founder and self-proclaimed “Chief Executive Chocolate Lover” of Chicago Chocolate Tours. The Downtown Loop Cupcake Route meets at the fountain at Macy’s on State Street and samples some of the more popular varieties at shops like Sarah’s Pastries and Candies (Black and White), Flirty Cupcakes (A Raspberry Stole My Heart) and at mySpa in the Fairmont Hotel. Beck’s Gold Coast Cupcake Route meets in the lobby at 900 North Michigan and tastes at spots like Swirlz Cupcakes (gluten-free pumpkin cream cheese), More (Bacon Maple; Feta Cranberry) and Hendrickx Belgian Bread Crafter. Beck says the current trend is salted caramel, a flavor evident in samples at tour spots like Loop-route stop Toni Patisserie (Salted Caramel Tarts). A nominee this year for the tenth annual Chicago Innovation awards, the six-year-old tour company has expanded to guide tours in Boston and Philadelphia.
Chicago Chocolate Tours
Downtown Loop Cupcake Route
Tuesdays at 3:45pm, meets at Macy’s, 111 North State
Gold Coast Cupcake Route
Thursdays at 4:45pm, meets at 900 North Michigan
(312)929-2939
chicagochocolatetours.com
Best of Chicago 2011
