Hutt ValleyShopping
A staff member arranging chocolates in the glass cabinet inside The Chocolate Story/

The Chocolate Story

The aroma as you walk through the door at The Chocolate Story is enveloping. Piles of artisan chocolate bars line the shelves and bonbons tempt you from behind glass displays. French caramel, raspberry, plum, and flavours you could only dream of. Behind the counter, rich dark chocolate is mixed with hot milk to create velvety hot chocolates.

The exteriror of The Chocolate Story Petone with a blackboard sign outside.
An array of choclates behind a glass cabinet at The Chocolate Story Petone. In focus, Lemon Cream Souffle.
The interiror of The Chocolate Story Petone, where a worker is laying out chocolate behind the counter.
A close up of some sweet treats inside The Chocolate Story Petone.

Store owner and chocolate maker, Brett Nicholls, keeps the store’s ethos simple. He uses quality ingredients to produce good old-fashioned chocolate without additives. He makes all his chocolates by hand. Timeless French and European recipes are adapted for the local climate and ingredients.

The Chocolate Story has stood the test of time and taste. Brett opened the store in 2012 when New Zealand’s appetite for boutique chocolate was just beginning to gain momentum. He saw a gap in the market and set about learning his trade from a French-trained chocolatier here in New Zealand. Bonbons immediately became his speciality.

Brett has built a loyal following of customers eager to try his latest creations. It’s his enthusiasm for experimentation that keeps them coming back.

Pick up some bonbons, bark, or bars, or choose from the huge selection of local and international teas, fudges and sweets.

A person facing a shelf inside The Chocolate Story, a chocolate shop located in Petone in Lower Hutt.