By: Michael Sarko | December 05 2011
Posted in Seattle - Find It - Seattle

100% Cacao bar from Marie & Freres. Photo by: Michael Sarko

For edible gifts, nothing beats fine chocolate. Seattleites have a plethora of choices when it comes to the city's other favorite bean, but chefs and gourmands alike won't find anything better than the cacao purity of Marie & Freres in South Lake Union. They offer bars, beans, nibs, and various bon-bons for chocolate enthusiasts of every stripe.

Don't be intimidated by their 100% Cacao bar. Made of sustainably shade-grown cacao from a fair-trade farm in Brazil, this ultra-dark bar is a delight with a glass of wine, some fresh market berries or just on its own. It even makes an excellent hot cocoa. The secret, according to M&F proprietor Marie-Francoise Barnhart, is to use water instead of milk. The 100% bar is a no-filler approach to chocolate, meaning half its content is pure cocoa butter. One part M&F 100% Cacao to three parts water on low heat, finished off with a quick frothing makes for the best hot cocoa in the city. Marie & Freres is located at 2122 Westlake Avenue.

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