Little did I know that this fable inspired the Queen of Chocolate, Raquel T. Choa. I had the distinct pleasure of getting to know her during my visit to Cebu. She runs two facilities in Cebu. The first is The Chocolate Chamber (TCC), the most amazing cafe that I have ever visited. The second is Casa de Cacao, the birthplace of the world’s greatest chocolate. This thriving company is actually a family business, with everyone having their own role. Raquel is a mother of eight, the Chocolate Queen, and the inspiration for TCC. Her daughter, Angelie, is the chocolate sommelier, and you will find her teaching and serving. Another daughter, Hannah, is a registered dietician who uses her skills and knowledge to balance ingredients so that they not only taste good but are nourishing for the body. Her sons Jonathan and A.J. do everything from making candy and working with the farmers to helping with the business side. The youngest son John Paul is quickly becoming a world-renowned artist with his art hanging in the Philippine and Mexican embassies as well as in personal collections in Singapore, the United States, and Korea. He developed a technique to paint with cacao when he was just 9 years old. He has a very promising painting career, and I can’t wait to see what he does in the future.

I visited The Chocolate Chamber twice during my trip because it was so marvelous that I wanted to go back and experience more of what they had to offer. They are most famous for their chocolate which is made of 100% natural cacao that has been meticulously fermented and roasted, resulting in uniquely deep rich complex flavors of chocolate.  

On my first visit, I got to experience the Chocolate High Tea. This is served at 15:21, a significant time in Cebuano history because that was the year Magellan was defeated by Chief Lapu-Lapu. This tea is a journey of the senses as pure cacao tablets evolve into both sweet and savory dishes. This was the first time I experienced chocolate that wasn’t sweet. We had three different types of sandwiches called tablea bun sliders. The bread was infused with cacao, an edible cacao flower, and fresh cacao nibs were sprinkled on top. The dish was completed when the chocolate sommelier topped it tableside with freshly grated cacao de bola. We also indulged in the sweet rice surprise which was a steamed glutinous rice with a touch of ginger and a hint of coconut milk served with homemade mango jam and native hot chocolate. Finally, the meal was completed with a BIY (Batil-It-Yourself) hot chocolate. The batil or batidor, known in Mexico as a molinillo, refers to the wooden mixing implement used for frothing and mixing up hot chocolate. At The Chocolate Chamber, you can choose from many flavors of hot chocolate like cinnamon, mint, hibiscus, or salted caramel just to name a few. 

The second time we went to TCC we had their all-day breakfast called Mornings with Cacao. This was a savory combination of meats like pork tocino sautéed with cacao-infused oil and a sunny-side-up egg served over chocolate-infused rice along with an amazing salad to round out the meal. To satisfy our sweet tooth we had a traditional Filipino rice porridge called champorado that leaves you warm and satisfied. They serve a lot of wonderful dishes but no trip would be complete without trying one of their many cakes. So, we tried three different types of cake. My favorite was the sinfully delicious Mud Cake filled with soft marshmallows for a silky touch and walnuts for a satisfying crunch, making each slice unique and indulgent. It offered a delightful mix of textures in every bite. It was not too sweet and not too bitter, it was just the right flavor for me. 

The ambiance of The Chocolate Chamber is one of a kind. It is cozy and peaceful and at the same time, it is elegant and unique. Remember when Maria Cacao came to protect the forest where the chocolate queen lived in the secluded mountain? There fireflies would join the party. This is why when you go to The Chocolate Chamber you will see a beautiful chandelier representing the fireflies. The tables are decorated with big rocks and sticks to represent Raquel’s journey to school where she had to walk across seven rivers and the fable of Maria Cacao comforted her during her daily journey. Before you leave, you can purchase chocolate bars, boxes, tablea, cookies, and lots of other goodies from her chocolate closet.

To continue my cacao journey I was able to visit Casa de Cacao. This is the birthplace of Cacao de Bola and TCC’s tablea, pure cacao tablets.  The tour started with a viewing of cacao trees and understanding how cacao fruit grows, gets pollinated, develops into pods, and eventually turns into the wonderful chocolate we all love. It was not peak chocolate season when I visited, but I got to see at least 4 cacao trees with blossoms and various pods on them. They explained the traditional and new methods of fermenting the cacao beans, one of the most important steps in developing the intense complexity of flavors in quality chocolate. From there I was able to learn about roasting cacao beans. We were lucky and were able to attend one of their daily roasts. TCC is an artisanal company that hand roasts their beans. We even got to help in the roasting process. The smell was almost as good as the taste.  

From roasting, we entered the chamber and learned all about the true essence of chocolate from around the world. The first stop was the sikwate station. Sikwate is what they call hot chocolate in the Philippines. Raquel recounted a story about how she grew up and drank sikwate every morning, but she called it bitter water because it was made with tablea and water, not tablea, sugar, and milk like we do today. We used traditional tools and could taste different versions of hot chocolate from around the world. I had a hard time deciding if I enjoyed the super-rich and creamy Spanish hot chocolate more than the Mexican hot chocolate that was sweet and had just a little heat from chili peppers. The sommelier taught us the 5s’ of chocolate; swirl, smell, sip, swish, and swallow. This helps you appreciate all the different notes and complexity of flavor.

From there I learned more about the art of making tablea by pounding cacao nibs and forming cacao paste that was then shaped into tablets or balls. I also never knew what was in a cacao bean. It’s a mixture of fat, carbs, protein, polyphenols, and minerals. Cacao beans have all sorts of health benefits and if eaten in their purest form, are a healthy addition to any diet. We even watched a display of chocolate tempering and chocolate candy making.

The final stop in the tour was a banquet table where we did more tasting including Venezuelan and Colombian Tskolate, along with their accompanying traditions. We indulged in Tartufini, a whole cacao bean coated in caramel and covered in sweetened dark chocolate, hand-rolled truffles filled with chocolate ganache, and choco-mango nuggets with just a hint of sea salt. 

This is just a touch of what you can see in Cebu. They offer a chocolate appreciation where you can embark on a sensory journey learning how to nourish the mind and body with chocolate. Or you can take a Cacao to Beverage 101 class where you learn to craft authentic chocolate drinks. Reservations are highly recommended at The Chocolate Chamber Cafe. Private tours of Casa De Cacao are available for groups of 8 or more but if you’re traveling alone, email them and they will try to add you to a group where you can enjoy chocolate and meet other travelers from around the world. I hope you will start your chocolate journey soon.

For more information them on Instagram or Facebook @TheChocolateChamber  

Phone in Cebu: +63 (917)151-1521

Email viajes@thechocolatechamber.ph 

About the Author

Mack Rock is 15 years old and resides in Pyeongteak. Mack is fluent in English and Korean and is a co-author of Korean/English education book Real United States English Word Picture Dictionary Basic Words (진짜 미국 영단어 그림 서전).

Mack gained popularity in Korea for his appearance as the youngest cast member in South Korean Foreigners (대한외국인). He has also appeared in many Korean movies, dramas, and reality TV shows. Mack has been in several viral videos that have amassed over 150 million views. Asian Boss named Mack the most popular American boy in Korea. Mack’s hobbies include coin collecting, metal detecting, riding a unicycle, performing magic tricks, and playing video games.