Choco-Story Brussels, formerly known as the Museum of Cocoa and Chocolate (French: Musée du cacao et du chocolat; Dutch: Museum van cacao en chocolade), is a privately owned museum in Brussels, Belgium, established in 1998 at the initiative of Gabrielle Draps,[1] the wife of the famous Belgian chocolate artisan Joseph "Jo" Draps,[2] founder of Godiva Chocolatier.[3] The museum provides demonstrations and tastings, and visitors can book a workshop to make chocolate bars and lollipops.[4]
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Former name | |
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| Established | 1998 |
| Location | Rue de l'Étuve / Stoofstraat 41, 1000 City of Brussels, Brussels-Capital Region, Belgium |
| Type | Food museum |
| Director | Peggy Van Lierde |
| Website | Official website |
History edit
The Museum of Cocoa and Chocolate was founded in July 1998 on the initiative of Gabrielle Draps, who represented the third generation of Belgian chocolate artisans and was married to the founder of the Godiva chocolate manufacturer, Joseph "Jo" Draps. The museum was originally housed in a house dating from 1697, formerly called the De Valck building, located at 9–11, rue de la Tête d'or/Guldenhoofdstraat, just off the Grand-Place/Grote Markt (Brussels' main square).[5] It spanned three exhibition floors.
The museum's management was taken over by Gabrielle Draps' daughter, Peggy van Lierde, in 2007. In May 2014, the museum was renamed "Choco-Story Brussels" following the association of the Van Lierde-Draps family with the Van Belle family, already owner of Choco-Story Bruges, the Bruges Chocolate Museum. In 2019, the museum moved to a new building with 1,800 m2 (19,000 sq ft) of exhibition space, located at 41, rue de l'Étuve/Stoofstraat, near Manneken Pis.[6][7] In 2021, the Van Belle family applied for permission to convert the museum's former building on the Rue de la Tête d'Or into a museum of French fries.[8]
Gallery edit
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Facade of the De Valck building, the museum's former home -
Chocolate tempering machine -
Tasting the chocolate
See also edit
References edit
Citations edit
- ^ Auzias, Dominique (2006). Petit Futé Guide du chocolat et des confiseries. Nouvelles Editions de l'Université. p. 64. ISBN 978-2-7469-1722-4.
- ^ "www.thebrusselsconnection.be". Archived from the original on 18 October 2016. Retrieved 18 October 2016.
- ^ State 2004, p. 107.
- ^ Canning, Amanda (15 August 2022). "Best European city breaks for families". The Times. London.
- ^ State 2004, p. 71.
- ^ Lhuillier, Vanessa (14 February 2019). "Le musée du chocolat fait peau neuve". BX1 (in French). Retrieved 16 December 2023.
- ^ EDA (15 December 2023). "La première trace connue de cacao exposée au "nouveau" Choco Story: 5 choses à savoir sur le musée". lavenir.net (in French). Retrieved 16 December 2023.
- ^ "Frites museum in Brussels turned down". Brussels Times. 22 December 2021.
Bibliography edit
- State, Paul F. (2004). Historical dictionary of Brussels. Historical dictionaries of cities of the world. Vol. 14. Lanham, MD: Scarecrow Press. ISBN 978-0-8108-5075-0.
External links edit
Media related to Museum of Cocoa and Chocolate, Brussels at Wikimedia Commons- Official website
