CHOCOLATE WORKSHOP IN GHENT
A small-group chocolate workshop in Ghent where you make your own chocolate from scratch.
Not your typical chocolate workshop.
Instead of starting with melted chocolate, you work with real cacao beans.
Discover how chocolate was made in the past and how it evolved into what we know today.
By tasting, grinding cacao by hand, and bringing historical recipes back to life, you experience the history of chocolate up close: from 5,000 years ago to Belgian craftsmanship today.
This 1.5-2 hour workshop takes place in a heritage-protected 16th-century building, in the shadow of the Castle of the Counts (Gravensteen).
What you’ll do during the workshop
- Start with real cacao beans
- Crack and peel the beans
- Taste a 5,000-year-old cacao drink
- Grind cacao by hand
- Discover the history of chocolate
- Make and shape your own chocolate bar
- Taste artisanal Belgian pralines
- Compare your chocolate with that of a top chocolatier
You leave with your own handmade chocolate and a deeper understanding of chocolate and its history.
THROUGH THE EYES OF OUR GUESTS
“It was the highlight of our trip to Ghent.”
“Have been to a number of chocolate history museums and the workshop beat it hands down.”
“Absolutely fantastic! Great host. Informative and interactive.”
As featured in Vogue
With thanks to @meganarztravels for sharing her experience
THE ESSENTIALS
WHEN: Friday to Tuesday at 11:00
HIGHLIGHT: Make your own chocolate
GROUP SIZE: Max. 8 people
DURATION: 1 h 45 min – 2 hours
PRICE: 65 € p.p.
AGE: +12
LANGUAGE: English
ABOUT THE CHOCOLATE WORKSHOP....
Step by step, you’ll experience chocolate as history brought to life: from its origins as a cacao drink to modern Belgian chocolate.
Discover cacao in its purest form
Try a 5,000-year-old chocolate drink and taste fresh cacao fruit juice while learning about the origins of chocolate
From bean to nibs
Crack and peel your own cacao beans, separating shells from nibs. Use the nibs for your chocolate and the shells for a cacao tea.
Like the Maya and Aztecs
Manually grind cacao into a paste, just as it was done centuries ago.
Create your own chocolate
Shape your own dark chocolate bar and make it entirely your own.
Cacao arrives in Ghent
Discover how Ghent was among the first places in Europe to receive cacao, as early as 1635.
Recreate a 17-th century hot chocolate
Use a 1640 medicinal recipe and a selection of spices to create your own hot chocolate.
How Belgium became a chocolate country
Discover how chocolate evolved in Belgium, and how the bonbon was first created in a pharmacy.
Taste artisanal chocolate
Enjoy a selection of 4 artisanal bonbons from Gault & Millau-awarded chocolatiers.
Taste and compare
Taste the chocolate you created yourself and compare it to chocolate made by a top chocolatier, using the same beans.
Most chocolate workshops focus on melting and shaping chocolate.
What I always found missing is everything that comes before.
Chocolate has a long history, but in many museums it remains something you observe rather than experience. This workshop was created to change that: by starting with the cacao bean and making that history tangible, step by step.
What's included in the chocolate workshop
- Your own chocolate bar
- A selection of artisanal bonbons
- Cacao Tea
- Cacao fruit juice & ancient cacao drink
- All materials & ingredients
Please note
This is not a chocolate-making class focused on techniques like tempering, melting, or shaping chocolate into truffles or bonbons. Instead, in this workshop, participants create chocolate from scratch by grinding cacao beans.
This activity requires “normal” strength in your hands and wrists. If you experience reduced strength (for example due to rheumatism or arthritis) grinding the beans may be challenging.
FAQ
You don’t need to bring anything special for this activity. Since you’ll be making chocolate yourself, comfortable clothing is recommended. It is always possible that a small amount of chocolate may land on your clothes while grinding, so you may want to keep this in mind when choosing what to wear. To preserve the quality of our chocolate, the temperature in our shop is kept around 18°C, or even lower. If you tend to feel cold easily, it might be a good idea to bring a sweater or light jacket.
Our tasting room accommodates up to 8 participants at a time, ensuring a personal and intimate experience for everyone.
For this activity, we only welcome children aged 12 and older. The reason is that participants will be making their own chocolate by manually grinding cacao beans, which requires a certain amount of physical strength. Younger children may struggle to complete the process, which could lead to disappointment.
If you have children under 12, we recommend joining us for a drop-in tasting in our chocolate café without reservation, which is more suited for younger participants.
Our tasting room and shop are located in a historical building, which features a small step at the entrance. While this may pose a minor challenge, it is possible to enter with a wheelchair with a little help. We are always happy to assist in making your visit as comfortable as possible.
Absolutely! If you wish to purchase any of the chocolates you’ve tasted, you are welcome to do so—but there’s no obligation. If you’d like, we’re happy to offer personalized recommendations based on your tasting preferences or assist in finding the perfect gift.
What to do in Ghent after the workshop?
Our workshop takes place in the heart of Ghent.
Afterwards, many of our guests choose to have lunch in the Patershol or along the Kraanlei, just a few steps from the shop. From there, a visit to the Castle of the Counts (Gravensteen) is an easy next stop, right around the corner.
Those who feel like walking a bit further will soon find themselves in the Prinsenhof, a neighbourhood that also comes up during the workshop.
Above all, Ghent is a city best discovered slowly. Not a list to tick off, but a place to wander, along the water and between historic façades.
The main sights are all within walking distance.
End your day with a drink on a terrace (or two).
Time travel through 5000 years of history
“Unique chocolate workshop with lots of knowledge, creativity and passion from the owner, must do ! It is Incredible to see how chocolate changed in the last hundreds of years”
John
