Prestat

So we had the toughest time finding this little chocolate spot (that I was asked to find for a coworker) apparently they sell large chocolate eggs filled with truffles. Arcade means a side street through a larger street I think.
I also THOUGHT there was alcohol in the eggs, and at the airport I nearly panicked because I put them in my carryon. Was I going to have to Crack them open and chug champagne and rum?????
Gladly ( and sadly) no.
Champagne truffles and rum truffles haha on me.
I had a pic of one of the Unopened boxes but my phone crashed. One gift recipient didn't think of sending me a Pic and the other is saving it for a special day. The recipient that ate the rum version told me it was good but she did not sound enthused. I believe it was the lemon and chocolate combo that was meh to her.
The lady behind the counter was major chill, didn't bother us at all with suggestions, a smile or salesmanship.
Take that as you will.

As I mentioned before chocolate are really a girls best friend.

My best friend today came in 3 tiny balls that packed an amazing flavourful punch in these tiny things.

I had to close my eyes and dream they were amazing.

The pink champagne truffle tasted like champagne.

Red velvet had a slight sour coating that reminded you of the cream cheese icing.

The strawberry one tasted like a strawberry shortcake.

Very awesome customer service.

3 balls were around 3 pounds which was a lot more reasonable than initially I was expecting walking in through the doors.

This is the Willy Wonka's of posh chocolate shops! The decor of the shop is bright and colourful, all pinks and swirls: perhaps a little camp but deliciously fun. The history of this Prestat goes back well over a hundred years when Antoine Dufour brought the chocolate truffle (his family's creation) to the London masses.

Since then, Prestat has been serving all kinds of unusual truffles and chocolates to an adoring crowd, and caught the attention of the Queen too - they are By Appointment To Her Majesty The Queen as Purveyors of Chocolates.

I could go on and on about all the truffle varieties and chocolate bars in this store, but for me there is only one truffle that trumps them all: White chocolate Banoffee Bliss. I bought a box for £10, for a friend, but had to go back the next day as I ate them all myself.

The Prestat chocolate shop in Piccadilly is very bright, vibrant, and smells fabulous. Prestat is well-known for their truffles. The associate recommended that I try Pink Marc de Champagne, Red Velvet, and Dark Sea Salt Caramel truffles. They were all fabulous. He also had me try the Velvety Milk Chocolate Thins with English Earl Grey Tea and bergamot which are amazing. It is no wonder Prestat was granted a Royal Warrant. I love the unique flavors such as London Gin truffles, Matcha Green Tea, Yuzu Sake truffles, and Orange and Cardamon Chai Thins. They have a large assortment of gift boxes. Open Monday-Friday 9-17:00 and Saturday and Sunday. www.prestat.co.uk

You cant really miss the vibrant display if you pass through the arcade, prestat is one of the finest chocolatiers in London. Their packaging is excellent which makes it my go to place when i want to get a chocolatey present!

I wouldn't say that all the truffles are worth getting but some of them are exceptional. It is worth spending 10 minutes talking with the super friendly staff and finding out which truffle would be best suited for you.

The only problem is that there shop is tiny, probably the max you can fit in there are 5 people and there is usually 1 person at the counter. So what i usually do is if I see more than 2 people in the shop is to go for a walk and come back when it is empty.

We came here on vacation to buy my sister some specialty chocolates. The two salesladies were very friendly and patient as we decided which chocolates we wanted, even offering up a sample of something so delicious that I bought it as well. Has good reviews on Yelp and Zagats so that was why we chose this place in particular. Love the bright decor of the shop as well. Plus it's close to other tourist attractions like the palace and Picadilly Circus. I enjoyed a couple pieces myself as well and they were quite tasty. Very pleased.

Prestat is what I imagine a chocolate shop to be from Roald Dahl's decriptions of Willy Wonka's chocolate factory and also from his autobiographies of candy shops from his childhood. I suppose then it's no surprise that this holder of a royal warrant was his favourite chocolate shop when Dahl was among the living.

Just walking into this shop brings out your inner child and lets him run rampant. Colorful doesn't even begin to describe the cacophany of bright colours, glittering labels, shiny stickers, and decadent chocolates. This was stop 3/5 on our Chocolate tour of Mayfar and what a stop it was. The nice little added benefit was that we could taste as many of the chocolates as we wanted (and taste we did!).

I started with a chilli and lime chocolate and was surprised at how much the sweetness and hint of acidity in the lime brought out the creaminess of the chocolate. The kick of chilli a few seconds later in the back of my throat was also a welcome surprise. From there, it was on to a saffron and stem ginger chocolate that was an intriguing but enjoyable experience. I didn't get much saffron flavour as it was a bit overpowered by the sweet bite of the crystallised stem ginger but a good idea nonetheless.

Prestat is known for it's Napolean truffles which were first made (according to legend) after Napolean was exiled from France (the 1st time) and came to live in London. His chef became close friends with Prestat's chocolatier and taught him how to make Napolean's favourite truffles and they've been making them ever since. The Napolean and coffee truffle caught my eye and I enjoyed the rich coffee aroma and flavour in a fairly delicate truffle.

Overall, I must have eated about 20 pieces including salted caramel (love how salt brings out sweetness in things), orange and rose, and more than I can even remember.

Basically, I love this place and would go in for a few minutes even if chocolate was the furthest thing from my mind just for the joy of being in such a vibrant little shop!

This sweet little chocolatier was an inspiration for Roald Dahl and is totally adorable. It's very brightly coloured and has a selection of mouthwatering chocolates as well as some cool framed letters from her lady in waiting which really add to the British feel to the place. It's a lovely little place and worth a detour!

And sometimes as good as it gets.

I love Prestat chocolates and have been spreading the word and boxes of these great British chocolates to friends, family and just about anyone who mentions chocolate in passing for about the last 8 years. The peppermint cremes are simply the best. The violet cremes divine and the old fashioned selection box conjures up fantasies of old fashioned Christmas's ........ I'm drifting here. I think I have made my point that I'm rather keen on Prestat.
The store however leaves me a little less than impressed. Just too cramped for browsing and far too blue. I always end up buying my Prestat from Fortnums round the corner.
I'll even buy the paint if you supply the labour Prestat. How about some nice Farrow and Ball colours.
Oh and don't forget the chocolate thins.

I like and I don't like. It's a bit hard to miss, having a very busy window the last time I was there and yet the small size means you could miss it. That's not what makes me feel mixed about it.


The chocolate is OK. Seriously, the packaging is excellent and it's better than Hotel Chocolat in the quality stakes but suffers the same shortcomings as Rococco - the additives to give it a longer shelf life taint the experience of the chocolate itself and make the ganache not as pleasurable as the shorter shelf-life chocolate.


The chocolate flavourings are pretty standard these days and they do offer higher quality than is available but Chocococo for example offers a better experience flavour-wise.


I would not wish to put you off though - this is very good chocolate and much better than other stuff available on the market and for that reason, I've given it a 4 out of 5 though I simply cannot give it more based on the additives detracting from the flavour.