Make Your Own Chocolate Bark at Pure Dark in the West Village

Posted by Nikki Goldstein, November 17, 2009 at 2:30 PM

[Photos: Kathy Chan]

I'm a fan of customizable food stuffs—even though I'm by no means a picky eater, there's a certain satisfaction in feeling part of the process. That's what drew me to Pure Dark, the Mars Company's West Village foray into high-end chocolate making—where, as of last week, you can make your own chocolate bark.

Pure Dark occupies a hefty space on a prime stretch of Bleecker, and it shows in the offerings: goodies like raspberry acai chocolate coins and cases of chocolate bark varieties speckled with crystallized ginger, nuts, dried fruits, and so on.

The make-your-own service contains all these toppings and more, which customers can mix and match to their own tastes. I liked the unlimited toppings setup (who wouldn't?), but was a little dismayed by the narrow selection, which included five kinds of nuts (either chocolate covered or plain), dried mango, cherries, cranberries, ginger, sea salt, and three kinds of cacao nibs (raw, chocolate covered, and caramelized).

Here's how it works: for $20, you choose whatever combination of sweet things that sparks your interest. (Remember the prime real estate? Now you do.) Expect a custom sample, or a little cup with the combination of toppings you've selected for your approval. Blocks of chocolate are then tempered on the spot and poured into a to-go container which acts as the base for the toppings. Twenty minutes later, you wind up with 8 oz. of your own signature bark. There's one caveat: the only chocolate you can get is Pure Dark's signature 65% cacao, so if you prefer milk, white, or even ultra-dark, you're out of luck.

That aside, I thought it was a fun service, and frankly, a good price compared to the other barks on sale in the store, which go for $22 for the same weight. When you're already paying that much, why not customize? Even still, I'd love to see more adventure in the toppings, and think it would be great if they'd offer to keep your favorite barks on file so you could call ahead and order your personalized variety. One way or another, customized chocolate is certainly something I can get behind.

Pure Dark

350 Bleecker Street, New York NY 10014 (map)
917-284-1927
puredark.com

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Tags: chocolate, chocolate bark, DIY, Manhattan, Pure Dark, West Village