The newly launched outlet of Cheers Chocolates is like the Lego Store, but for chocolates. It’s a riot of colors with red, yellow, blue, green chocolates and dragees in front of the glass counter.
As soon as the kitchen door opens, the rich aroma of tempered chocolate comes out. Inside, the team combines various dessert components to create a finished product. There are chocolate cigars filled with hazelnut, gianduja and coffee, a bright red stiletto (a lot) the devil Wears Prada), a snowman, a bottle of wine… all edible.
“Making chocolates requires specific skills, temperatures, the right molds and equipment,” says SS Keshav Krishna, who launched Cheers Chocolates in 2012. He believes that the making process brings joy and this is something he now wants to share with his customers and chocolate lovers. Customers walking in can try their hand at chocolate making in short 15-minute sessions. They make their own fillings, and sprinkles,” says Keshav.
Furthermore, the outlet also has a dedicated space for basic, intermediate and advanced workshops, These are approximately three hours long, and cover a wide range of topics, from tempering and molding chocolate, the difference between couverture and compound, to creating innovative recipes, ,
At Cheers, they make 20 types of fillings including spiced pumpkin latte, tiramisu, wasabi ganache with raspberries, banana peanut praline, apricot honey ganache and mango passion fruit. They also make hot chocolate bombs and powder. Keshav says he waited 12 years to open a store because he felt the city wasn’t ready for the unusual flavor combinations he was creating.
The brand started with offering customized gifts to corporates, and launched online retail in 2017. During the pandemic, Keshav saw a surge in orders from across the city and from Tirunelveli, Dindigul and Salem. “The customers were mostly Gen Z,” says Keshav. They are open to new flavors and flavor profiles, and I knew it was time to set up shop.” He added that he is also going to reintroduce paprika jelly filling soon.
Keshav is also a cricketer and has played for Ruby Trichy Warriors in the TNPL. He now wants to make sports performance bars and protein bars. “We are planning to launch bean to bar chocolate. These pods are from Rajahmundry in Andhra Pradesh and we are looking at pods from all over India,” he says, pointing to a large basket of cocoa pods at the store. At present, he buys raw material from Belgium which comes in the form of callets and bars. These are then melted, tempered and molded here. “We also have sugar-free bars and we source 60% of our dark chocolate from Colombia,” says the 35-year-old.
Keshav graduated from SRM University with a degree in Hotel Management, trained in food production at Taj Coromandel, followed by Callebaut Academy in Mumbai. He says, “I also learned myself through many days of trial and error. Then I did short courses in Paris, Malaysia, Dubai…” Keshav says he is a first-generation entrepreneur in the family who found his passion in the kitchen, in the world of taste and vibrant chocolate.
Cheers Chocolates is located in Shenoy Nagar. A box for 12 chocolates costs ₹990.
