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This owned & operated café is part of a worldwide chain that has just started operating in the U.S., starting within California. (This location opened February 2008.) The main act is chocolate, however - Belgian pralines and overly sweet confections. It's located on the subterranean, lower level floor of the Crocker Galleria. There's a lot of space and a lot of chocolate, but there's no place to sit - so it's more of a kiosk than a site-down café. Any coffee has to be consumed out of cheesy, small paper cups at the stand-up counter or on the go. Behind the counter, the staff use a single-group Schaerer Ambiente superautomatic machine to spew out espresso shots with a thin, pale blonde crema. It's served at a modest temperature, and not surprisingly the flavor of the Leonidas roast contains chocolate notes (artificially added to the coffee or otherwise). It's smooth and tepid, and yet not completely a bore for what you get crapped out of such a machine.
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