a sweet surprise
New East End sweets shop and bar serves up chocolates and cocktails
An innovative new chocolate shop will soon welcome diners — and drinkers — to its location in the East End. CASE Chocolates will open its chocolate shop and speakeasy this Friday, July 19, at The Plant (3401 Harrisburg Blvd.).
As CultureMap has previously reported, Case uses a technique called Starch Casting to create chocolates that are filled with alcoholic spirits, cocktails, or a non-alcoholic equivalent. The company sources and processes its own cacao from different regions in the world. Notable for its thin shell, chocolates made with the technique seem to contain far more liquid than they actually do.
“The biggest difference is the way we do the liquid center and the way we do our shapes,” owner Casey McNeil tells CultureMap. “We make it seem like there’s more liquor in there than there is. People perceive it as half a shot, but it’s only about one-twentieth, about two milliliters. The mouthfeel is so unique, when the liquid rushes out, it’s different than what anybody expects.”
Customers have two ways to interact with Case. They can purchase boxes of chocolates from its retail chocolate shop, which will be open Monday through Saturday. Alternatively, they may participate in a tasting of chocolates and cocktails, which will be held Wednesday through Saturday at 6:30 and 8 pm at the speakeasy-style bar that’s hidden behind a bookcase at the chocolate shop. Once inside, customers will find both bar and table seating in an intimate environment that features a cacao tree complete with pods.
During these reservation-only experiences, McNeil and his team will guide diners through a three-course progression of spirit-filled chocolates paired with a corresponding cocktail ($68). For example, a chocolate filled with Maker’s Mark 46 bourbon is paired with an Old Fashioned that’s also made with the spirit.
“The tasting experience is part of what we want to offer,” McNeil says. “It’s been really special people to see people come in, get the cocktail pairings with the chocolate, and go through that. The only way we can do that well is where everyone comes in at once for a seated tasting experience where we’re presenting it to you at the same time.”
Long term, McNeil plans to use the space for private tastings with premium spirits. Case’s back bar is stocked with high end tequilas, bourbons, and other spirits, including the Buffalo Trace Antique Collection, three expressions of Pappy Van Winkle, and the Van Winkle Family Reserve Rye. Any of them could be the basis for special events where customers taste chocolates filled with the Van Winkle expressions, for example.
“It’s not like we’re ruining the flavor. We’re not putting it in Jell-O shots. You can taste it. It’s really important to us that flavor’s captured,” McNeil says.
If Case catches on with Houstonians, McNeil already has his eyes on other markets.
“I’d love to see one in Mexico City. I think that would be a phenomenal fit,” he says.