March Chocolate Tasting Dinner

With few spots remaining for our Valentine's Chocolate Tasting Dinner, we're already getting reservations for the next prix fixe concept in March. So here's the low-down...

Exclusively March 20th and 21st, join us at Eclipse for a Mediterranean Chocolate Feast featuring three courses for just $25 per person. Yes, just three courses for $25! This is the first of our new three-course dinner line-ups and we're excited about the new, lower price point. Join us Friday (6.5pm, 8.5pm) and Saturday (4, 6, 8pm) for the following:

Spinach and Spanikopita with White Chocolate, Dill, & Shallot
Beef and Lamb Kaftas with Cocoa Nib Rice Pilaf (Fried Falafel Veggie Option)
Orange Blossom and Hazelnut Bakalava with Dark Chocolate Sauce

We also have a Hummus and Grilled Haloumi Trio (Optional Starter- $12)

Call the cafe direct at 619.578.2984 or email at info@eclipsechocolat.com. Space limited!

Valentine's Truffles

So a lot of people have been calling to ask if their favorite truffle will be around for the big day. With 32 infusions and a case that only holds 16 flavors at a time, everything always seems to be in rotation around here. Well fret no more, I am excited to have finished my preliminary production schedule for the holiday's truffles and as such I am officially disclosing the line-up.

And since Vday is all about truffles, I'm going out of my way to make sure there is as much chocolatey goodness around the shop as possible. We're even dressing all of our boxes in burgundy ribbon. All you need do is pop in and we've got all of your sweetheart needs!

BUT WAIT... THERE'S MORE (said in sing-song infomercial voice).

All purchases $50 or more come complete with a complimentary Box of Two Truffles! That's an additional treat you can enjoy just for yourself after you've bequeathed to your heart's content. Who needs to know you kept a few bites to yourself?

And the infusions are...

***Drum roll please***

Lavender Sea-salted Caramel
Caramel Pecan
Double Espresso
Goat Cheese & Fig
Banana, Rum, Cigar
Double Dark Chocolate
Salted Coconut Milk
Bergamot Orange Peel
Honey Saffron
Lavender Poppy
Amaretto Almond
Peanut Butter Toffee
Cardamom Rose Petal
Balsamic Pink Peppercorn
Double Coconut Milk Caramel
Basil-Absinthe
Chile-Burnt Caramel
Lemon Ginger

Supplies limited, so I can't guarantee they will all here be for long. Stop in soon!
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Roses and Chocolate

If I got your taste buds perky with the last post, be prepared to be tantalized with this one... What's the next best thing after my Cardamom Rose Petal Truffle? My new Rose Nectar Bellini, of course!

When Ray and I traversed the Fancy Food Show earlier this month, we stumbled upon a Rose Nectar Soda imported from Romania bottled under the label called Essence. We both found it instantly charming and refreshing and knew that it should be incorporated in the upcoming Valentine's Day activities. Made from premium roses, this beverage is distilled, bubbled, and bottled that results in a light sweetness and perfume that I think pairs perfectly with our Karma Champagne. Try it with our Cardamom Rose Petal, Balsamic Pink Peppercorn, or Basil-Absinthe truffles. Or better yet, stop in for our Wine and Truffle Happy Hour and have one of those truffles on the house! When's that?, I hear you all ask? Join us Monday-Friday from 4-7pm when every wine and beer purchase is accompanied with a complimentary truffle!

We will also be featuring this Champagne Cocktail as the newest addition to our Prix Fixe Dinner menus. And if for some reason you live under a rock and haven't a clue what that is, check it: our Valentine's Day Sweetheart Dinner.

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Chocolate and Roses

More than a week has passed since my last post and the little Catholic boy deep inside me (I think he's still in there somewhere) is feeling terribly guilty about it. I'll make amends by posting at least a few more times before the big holiday, as long as I can find the time between drowning in a few thousand truffles.

Speaking of, we've been pouring our little hearts out making as many as possible before next weekend. I'm up to 32 different infusions in my bag of tricks and since my case only holds 16 at a time, many only make seasonal appearances. One that is guaranteed this time of year is a little ditty I made for the first time way back in Vday of 2004 when I was but a naive chocolatier with high hopes and cocoa-glazed dreams. Since then Cardamom Rose-Petal has made an appearance each Vday after.

Enrobed in a 61% dark chocolate shell, this ganache in infused with organic cardamom seeds and perfumed with a touch of rose water. The finished truffle is gilded with a candied rose petal imported from France. And what could be more apropos for your Valentine? Stop in early this week to insure its availability, I only did one sheet of these chocolates this year and it may be gone quickly!
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More Vday Seatings

Our special Valentine's Dinner is selling out very quickly, so we've decide to add two more seatings. With the holiday falling on Saturday this year, we hope those of you who haven't placed reservations yet will be excited about joining us at either 11am or 1pm that day. Who says Vday can't include a romantic lunch? With very limited space left at only the Friday 6.5 and 8.5 seatings, these new time slots should fill up fast so don't wait.

And if you've placed a reservation and would like to change to one of the new times, please don't hesitate to send us a holla!

We will, of course, be taking a waiting list for all 7 (!) seatings. As the date gets closer, we are bound to get a few cancelations.

For the full details check here. For reservations call 619.578.2984. Cya there!

Vday Update!

The strange and unusual nature of being a chocolatier in January is that although few people are crossing our threshold during the month (damn those resolutions!), we are still all running around at full speed preparing for our foray into Vday. Yes, life can be a cruel mistress. What at first appears to be a potential month-long vacation is really 30 days of full-time chocolate production to insure that we have enough to go around come Valentine's.

And I'm pleasantly surprised that many of you are planning ahead as well! Since we posted the info on our Parisian Sweetheart Dinner, many of you have completed your reservations. Even with the five seatings we have between two evenings, we expect to sell out all reservations well before the actual holiday. As it stands now, the Saturday 6pm and 8pm are gone, leaving the Friday 6.5, 8.5, and Saturday 4pm seatings left.

And if that isn't enough motivation to get up and email us already, maybe this is... Because who doesn't want their business day interrupted for a little food porn? Here's our upcoming entree:

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Pink Peppercorn and Rosemary-crusted Pork Tenderloin with Cocoa, Cherry, and Shallot Jus anyone? Pop this baby next to some delicious Pomme Frites and you've got a pretty nice plating if you ask me. Don't eat meat? No worries; we've got a lovely Baked Frommage D'affinois with the same yummy sauce. It's cheesy and gooey and everything a vegetarian should love. But why not try both? After all, the dinner is per couple.... pull up two chairs and stare into each others eyes already!

RSVP to info@eclipsechocolat.com.

Seasonal Dessert Tasting Platter

Well cocoa-kiddies... it's officially 2009 and what better way to bring in the new year than with a new Seasonal Dessert Tasting Platter? If you haven't had it before, this is our featured collection of four little desserts for $12. While it changes every eight weeks, it always features a bread pudding, a chilled dessert, a frozen dessert, and a grilled dessert. It's a fun spread of textures and temperatures and is perfectly sized for two, so find a friend and indulge.

We will have this collection up through Valentine's Day. Take a look at what I've got going this time:

Sweet Potato Bread Pudding

[custard-soaked sweet potato & brioche bread pudding+ cocoa nib-infused creme anglaise]

Frozen Coconut Mousse Petit Four

[frozen 61% dark chocolate & coconut milk mousse+ toasted coconut+ crispy rice crust]

Dark Chocolate-Peanut Butter Pudding

[chilled 61% dark chocolate-peanut butter pudding+ maldon sea salt]

Grilled Fig Cake with Sticky Toffee Sauce

[grilled black mission fig cake+ 38% milk chocolate sticky toffee sauce]