Delhi, it’s time to drool. From our all-time favourite shopping and food destination, HauzKhas Village, comes yet another sinful offering: Choco Vault. With a huge circular vault-shaped door at its entrance and ‘Choco Vault’ written prominently on top, this hidden treasure manages to catch the eye. In a limited space, a lot has been successfully accommodated: seating for about 10-12 people, which includes a private little nest for two near the entrance; an elaborate and neat display of most of their offerings; a separate quirky exhibit of the various flavours of waffles on sticks; and comfortable red couches accompanied by cushioned chairs made to look like muffins. With chocolate dripping from the tables, off the ceiling and walls, it’s evident that they have incorporated the chocolate theme not just in their food, but also in the interiors.
After a quick glance at the place, you are tempted to indulge in their food. At this point however, you are bound to face a dilemma: what not to eat? It’s not your fault: the desserts on display look yummy and the ones described on the menu sound mouth-watering. Plus, their menu just doesn’t seem to end. They have on offer a wide variety of fondues, chocolate pizzas and chocolate ice-cream sandwiches. To try any item from their ‘mess to share’ part of the menu, an empty stomach is a must as it is a blissful combination of about 7-8 desserts. For those who do not have a separate stomach for dessert, the chocolate shot, the chocolate syringe or a simple scoop of the chocolate ice-cream will satisfy the sweet tooth. We ordered the chocolate shot, which was a complete burst of chocolate. However, using dark chocolate instead of milk chocolate to go with the sweet cookie cup would have kept the level of sugar in the dessert in check. The waffles sticks, available in different flavours- red velvet, brownie, mango and coconut, gulkand, rainbow, after eight and many more- deserve a special mention as they are one of the crunchiest, yummiest waffles you will find in any part of the city. The red velvet waffles stick disappeared from our plate as soon as it arrived as it was perfect in every way: quantity, texture and taste. Their in-house chef has designed the menu keeping in mind the ones who believe that there’s nothing such as ‘too much chocolate’ as well as those who prefer a balanced combination of chocolate, nuts, fruits, caramel etc. To wash it all down, they also have shakes in different flavours, coolers like mojito, iced tea etc. and coffee.
As is evident, Choco Vault is no ordinary cafe. It carries you gently into the divine world of chocolate and you come out only wanting more. Quirky, colourful, and an absolute treat to the eyes as well as the taste buds, there is no reason for it to not take the top spot in your list of ‘favourite dessert parlours’. Next time you are in HKV, let your nose lead you to ‘Chocolate Vault’.
