NT NETWORK
PANAJI: “In the beginning, the Lord created chocolate, and he saw that it was good. Then he separated the light from the dark, and it was better. ”

So reads a verse on a board displayed at the newly launched chocolate shop in the city – ‘Theobroma Cacao’. A chocolate outlet from the Chocolate Man’s Production and third in the series – the others located at Mapusa and Candolim – it provides sweets of all sizes and varieties including chocolates, pastries, confectionary and breads, exclusively made in a bakery cum chocolate factory at Parra, in Bardez.
Savio Monteiro, the executive chef and chocolatier, who has a rich experience in the field, narrated the sweet tale of ‘Theobroma Cacao’ for ‘The Navhind Times’ readers.
The Goa-born Savio Monteiro, who was based in the Channel Islands off the French coast for a long time, has a passion for chocolates and learned all about them before opening his first chocolate boutique, Theobroma Cacao - which incidentally is the botanical name of the cocoa plant - in Mapusa, and yet another one called Guanaja two months later, at Candolim.
“The outlets are not all about just chocolates,” Savio observes, “They are also about a range of breads, pastries, cakes and all kinds of other confectionary.” However, the chocolatier has 20 to 25 varieties of chocolates including those enshrined with delectable liquor and fruit puree of mango or raspberry or tamarind. And then there is the classical rum and raisin, as also almond praline chocolates. Furthermore, he has intriguing cheese chocolates and coconut jaggery white chocolate fudge.
Savio spent 12 years in a pastry shop and has travelled to Spain and Slovenia among other countries, besides a stint at the Jersey Island, in England. “It was a great privilege to cater to the Skiing World Cup called "Golden Fox", ladies championship,” Savio informs proudly. He also does three and five litre chocolate fountains, which are all craze at special occasions like marriage receptions, birthdays and anniversary parties.
With the chocolates from ‘Theobroma Cacao’ now also available at Aparanta, the emporia of the Goa Handicrafts Rural and Small Scale Industrial Development Corporation, the expansion of business is naturally the next step for Savio.
He informed that setting up a special unit at Parra, which could provide insight into the techniques of chocolate making, is in the pipeline. “I would like the visitors to the unit to undertake a 15-minute tour of this mini chocolate factory and actually see chocolate making process, and may be purchase chocolates at the end of this tour as a souvenir from Goa,” he informed, pointing out that he is also planning to bring out a chocolate package for couples on their honeymoon trip, in Goa. The ‘Honeymoon Chocolate Pack’ will consist of an earthen pot of clay filled with assorted chocolates from the chocolate factory.
‘Theobroma Cacao’ is also all set to take the Goan chocolates to US, when the Goa Tourism Development Corporation will be participating in a market to promote Goa and Goa products.
As the chocolate shop puts it – Children relish them, lovers share them, chocoholics stash them, designers market them and pagans worship them – yes, you have guessed it right. They are simply delightful chocolates.