La Chocolatrice Workshops - Durham

yazhu W.

I went today with two friends and it was a huge disappointment. The instructor was professional and great. Three of us went in as a group, were allocated the same amount of tools and chocolate as those came in pairs. When complained to the owner, Zoe, who deliberately lied to my face that we had more chocolate in the bowl than the other two pairs. But I wasn’t blind, I compared, we didn’t. We had the same amount of cream in a jar like other pairs, and the same amount of chocolate. Zoe wouldn’t want to prove me wrong nor providing any evidence, only accused me of spoiling the workshop regardless the fact that I came out of the workshop to talk rather than making a sense in front of other customers. Zoe called me rude and said no one ever complained about the workshop. So I shouldn’t Zoe said it was recommended to come in pairs - nothing like that was suggested on the webpage as attached. No one contacted us beforehand to say it’s the best to come in pairs. After that I was suggested to leave my friends and leave the workshop and would be given the refund for myself, as Zoe said I would ruin the workshop for the others and shouldn’t stay until the end just to give a one star review. I don’t want to exchange honesty for money tho. Here is the one star review - the one and only star was for the patient instructor. The attached photo x3 was the amount of chocolate we got for £142.5

Natalie

I attended a chocolate truffle making workshop with a friend at the end of November 2024. We did not have a pleasant time and felt that the workshop was not worth the money. I wrote to Zoe in more detail about our experience and suggested areas of improvement. Zoe responded and offered some chocolates as an appreciation (we did not expect nor ask for this). I provided my address but never received any said chocolate, nor did I get a response from my follow up email.

Poor customer service, both how she chose to respond to my email and also during the workshop to a group of 3 who raised their displeasure at working on a single bowl of chocolate among themselves for £47.50 each.

Here is what I thought of the workshop:

For £47.50 we made a total of 15 truffles each. I did not feel that we were given a lot to take away. I genuinely felt sorry for the group of 3 which had the same amount of truffles to take away and perhaps just a few measly extra chocolate flakes to take home. The description of the website mentioned that we would have the opportunity to do some tasting and experimenting with flavors. We were given a communal bowl of chocolate pellets (the same variety that we were about to temper) and offered some shop-bought flavors of vanilla, peppermint or orange to add to the truffles. We were only able to choose a flavour to add to the truffles, with peppermint feeling like a cop-out as we were already making peppermint bark (well, that’s what we thought but we ended up just watching a demonstration instead). We felt the description in the workshop did not match the expectations on our visit.

Some simple refreshments such as water, tea and coffee would have been greatly appreciated. The tasting aspect of the workshop left little to the imagination, perhaps offering a selection of chocolates (or even samples as an advertisement of what you offer in the shops) would make the experience better! Over £90 for the experience for 2 was an extremely steep price for what we were offered. I would not recommend this to anyone. I understand there are overheads but it was still the most expensive chocolates I have ever ‘purchased’.

Rebecca L.

Attended an advent calendar workshop today and it was such a wholesome, festive experience. The team were so informative and made everything so easy and enjoyable to follow along to. They even accommodated my Mam with a different chair that was better for her arthritis without either of us having to ask. And as for the chocolate, no words other than amazing!

Ailsa S.

What a fabulous birthday event at La Chocolatrice! Tamsin was truly delightful and full of information.
Our party of six spent an hour and a half learning about and making chocolate treats with so much hands on .... literally, not figuratively! Went away with all our handmade treats. Enjoyed it so much we're making plans for a repeat visit.
I'd especially recommend this for a hen do, catch up with old friends, or a family gathering. It was so much fun!

Adam L.

Went to a chocolate making workshop with Zoë and it was fantastic! Incredibly educational, super hands on and great fun. Uses high quality ingredients and impressive yet simple recipes to emphasise the difference small batch or homemade chocolate makes. Would highly recommend to any group or individual that loves chocolate! You end up with plenty of chocolate to take home too!

steph L.

We loved our chocolate making workshop, it was a great way to celebrate our 10 year anniversary and something different we'd never done before. Kendal was great and we had lots of laughs and fun and took home loads of treats to eat!♡♡♡

Isa S.

Went with my husband and was pleasantly surprised to see the chocolate making sessions are private, so it was just us two in the workshop. Zoë, who also led the session, was so lovely and personable. She was clearly knowledgeable in all things chocolate as well, and made me feel more confident that I can make truffles, flakes, etc. We went home with all the chocolate that was made during the workshop, and they were all so delicious. Highly recommend the workshop, and I will certainly be buying my chocolate here as well.

Noemi P.

The Truffles Workshop was our first time at La Chocolatrice and omg, what a great experience it was! We had a lot of fun while learning a lot of helpful tips and tricks to make chocolate. The location was super clean, well organised and super fashion. Our teacher was F A N T A S T I C , and thanks to her support, we actually managed to make our own chocolate truffles and bring them home… they were so delicious that didn’t last long! LOL - Can’t wait to attend the next workshop!