A Trip To This Epic Chocolate Factory In San Francisco Will Make You Feel Like A Kid Again

Forget the kids! What reasonable adult would not want to have their very own Charlie and the Chocolate Factory adventure? (As Charlie, of course; we promise you won't get sucked up a chocolate pipe here). Well, this is very much a reality right in the heart of San Francisco's Mission District at the small-batch, bean-to-bar chocolate maker Dandelion Chocolate. Aside from offering some of the highest-quality, single-origin chocolate bars and exquisite chocolaty treats, Dandelion offers tours and classes within their small working chocolate factory at 740 Valencia Street. As of this writing, they're in the process of launching a bigger factory on 16th and Harrison that they plan to open soon to host even bigger chocolate tours and events. You want to visit this chocolate factory in San Francisco.

The Bars: Sweet & Simple

Started in 2010, Dandelion creates small batches of rich, dark chocolate (all are 70% cacao) from just two ingredients: high-quality cacao beans and organic cane sugar, both from sustainable farms around the world.

Perfecting the Small Batch

This right here is the guts of the factory, which is attached to the cafe. Yep, it's small—but the best things come in small packages, right?

Chocolate 101

There is a ton of valuable information about the chocolate-making process throughout the cafe and factory.

Take a Tour

Factory tours happen every Wednesday to Saturday from 6:10-6:50pm. A guide will go over the production process and how cacao beans magically turn into mind-altering chocolate bars.

Sorting the Beans

You may catch them fastidiously sorting through the cacao beans, making sure each one is of the utmost quality.

Don't Forget to Try a Bean!

At Dandelion, they really want you to understand where your chocolate is coming from, so they highly recommend you sample one of their roasted beans. Slide off the shell by rolling it between your fingers to get to the pure cacao inside.

Watch the Beans Grind

After the beans have been sorted and roasted, the cacao nibs are then ground together with sugar in a melanger.

Try It All Out For Yourself

Dandelion also offers a Chocolate 101 class, which describes the chocolate-making process with machine demos and tastings, as well as a Chocolate 201 class, which lets you make your own small batch of chocolate.

Learn to Taste Chocolate

Tasting chocolate involves much more than just stuffing it into your mouth. First, cleanse your palate, then take a sniff, let it melt slowly on your tongue, and enjoy.

Take a Sample... Or Two

One of the best parts about visiting Dandelion is the samples. This is a great way to detect the different nuances in chocolate depending on where the beans come from.

Dessert Time

And don't forget to try their decadent desserts, all inspired by bean origins.

If you weren't salivating already, this video from Hannah Radcliff offers a great introduction to Dandelion Chocolate and their intricate chocolate-making process.

Not enough sweetness for you? Then, check out some of San Francisco's best ice cream shops—a great palate cleanser after all that rich chocolate!