Scharffen Berger Factory Tour
If you’re ever in the San Francisco Bay Area, I highly recommend the Scharffen Berger chocolate factory tour. As much as I love European (and especially French) chocolate, I can’t complain about the stuff they make here, as they specialize in dark chocolate.
I took the tour last Thursday morning. Be sure to make reservations online before attending, the tours are free but can only accommodate 35 people at a time. Also remember to wear close-toed shoes, as you get to actually walk through the facility.
You knew you were in a chocolate factory the minute you stepped through the doors of the gorgeous brick building at the bottom edge of the city of Berkeley (across the bay from San Francisco). A big warm puff of chocolate-scented air wrapped itself around us and lured us in. Since we arrived early, we sampled some of their hot chocolate and looked around the store after checking in with the cashier.
The tour started with a guide taking us outside and explaining the history of the building. Then we proceeded into what he called the “classroom,” and we spent the next 40 minutes listening to him give a history of Scharffen Berger, chocolate, and their production process. I found it fascinating and informative- they are one of the few producers in the US to start their process from the plantations and beans themselves. The explanations were clear, concise, and he used pictures and actual samples of pods and beans that we passed around.
Oh, and did I mention the free samples we got during class? Large pieces were passed around of their classic blends, and we got to try their limited edition and seasonal blends at the end of the tour. Trust me, they didn’t skimp!
The tour ended with a walk-through of the factory, where we saw the machines that roast the beans, temper the chocolate, mold the chocolate, and finally the workers that wrap the bars. Everyone there seemed friendly and happy- I guess I would be too if I smelled chocolate all day.
Even though Scharffen Berger got purchased by Hershey’s last year, they said they wouldn’t change their processes. But then again, they almost have to say that, don’t they? I can’t imagine the tour guide saying that it was a bad thing. From what I could tell though, they still seem to maintain a lot of quality control and high standards.
There is an on-site restaurant called Café Cacao that looked like it had an interesting menu, plus pain au chocolats that looked mouth-watering. How can you resist chocolate wrapped in puff pastry?
A caveat: if you have small children (probably under the age of 6 or 7), I’m not sure they can sit through the classroom portion of the tour, as it’s catered more to educating adults than children. The few kids on our tour were slightly older but still seemed to enjoy listening to the explanations.
So if you ever find yourself in the Bay Area and want to learn how quality chocolate is made, make an appointment at Scharffen Berger and enjoy! If you can, go on a weekday to actually see the factory in production. I promise you’ll learn something new.
Scharffen Berger
914 Heinz Avenue
Berkeley, CA 94707
510-981-4066
Tours daily, reservations available online
*must wear closed-toed shoes!
Thanks for the great write up.
My son and I went on this tour several years ago. Back then you had to be at least 10 years old. The dark chocolate samples were too strong for his taste buds at that time and the lecture part of the tour was a bit too long and technical for him, but he did enjoy the part on the factory floor. (I belive his exact words were: “It’s too much like being in school, Mom.”)
Note: closed toed shoes were mandatory when we took the tour.
I’ve had some wonderful chocolate drinks and pastries at the cafe. (Try the cocoa nibs cookies.) I believe it is run by an independant contractor, not Scharffen Berger.