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Park Slope Reader
Summer 2005 issue
There’s
Always Room for
Chocolate:
Park Slope’s
New Chocolate Room
By Jillian Lubow and Nicholas Taylor
In addition to
the delectable table
menu, the Chocolate
Room also boasts
a spectacular display
case filled with
the amazing confections
of their off-site
chocolatier, Fritz
Kripschildt.
Before they
were small
business owners,
Jon Payson
and Naomi
Josepher were
both once
struggling
artists, he
a drummer
and she a
dancer.
They met,
fittingly,
how many struggling
artists meet:
while waiting
tables at
the same Manhattan
bistro.
They married
after six
years of dating,
and after
another six
they were
brought back
into the restaurant
business,
working together
this time
as owners
rather than
servers.
“The
process of
opening the
store helped
us rediscover
the romance
of the city,”
Naomi reminisces.
Naomi, a modern
dancer and
personal trainer,
found the
whole experience
- from searching
for a location
to open their
café to purchasing
the plates
and silverware
from merchants
in the Bowery
- to be “a
gift from
the world.”
They met many
unusual characters
and discovered
corners of
the city they
never knew
existed. In
addition,
they found
corners of
each other’s
personalities
they never
knew existed.
Jon had wanted
to start his
own business
for a long
time. After
moving to
Park Slope
from the Upper
East Side,
Jon and Naomi
were eager
to get involved
with the Fifth
Avenue renaissance,
hearing that
it was the
“new
Smith Street.”
At first he
was thinking
of a small
café or dessert
place, but
after thumbing
through a
book about
chocolate
one day, a
different
idea took
hold of him.
Manhattan
boasts excellent
chocolate
cafés, like
the Chocolate
Bar, but Brooklyn
does not.
Although neither
Jon nor Naomi
had ever been
a chocolate
connoisseur,
like most
of us he always
had a love
for chocolate.
Sensing that
he had found
his niche
in the market,
he began to
learn more
and more about
chocolate.
As he learned
more, he found
that he was
becoming passionate
about well-made,
hand-crafted
chocolate.
After a while,
his enthusiasm
rubbed off
on Naomi,
and in September
2003 they
purchased
a storefront
on lower Fifth
Avenue. In
early February
2005, the
Chocolate
Room opened
its doors,
just in time
for Valentine’s
Day.
Jon was looking
to create
a fun dessert
shop, with
a little fanciness
but nothing
pretentious.
Most importantly,
he aimed to
create a “total
chocolate
experience,”
providing
not just chocolates
and cookies,
but a wide
range of chocolates,
cakes, and
other desserts.
The finely
crafted menu
offers sweet-tooth
staples like
chocolate
layer cake,
but also updated
classics like
chocolate
flan. The
menu has recently
been expanded
to include
homemade ice
creams as
well as dessert
wines. The
menu at Chocolate
Room is small,
but somehow
there’s
something
for everyone.
The meal starts
with a complimentary
plate of chocolate
ginger biscotti,
which is presented
at the table in
much the way bread
and butter would
be brought out to
you at an Italian
restaurant.
And, in addition
to the delicious
desserts they offer,
all priced reasonably
between $6.00 and
$6.50, there is
also a variety of
chocolate and coffee
drinks. We
enjoyed our biscotti
and perused the
menu while taking
in the sights, sounds,
and smells around
us. The atmosphere
of the chocolate
room -- a restored
tin ceiling, an
exposed brick wall,
marble table-tops,
a theme of circles
running throughout
the café, Ella Fitzgerald
singing softly in
the background --
put us in the perfect
mood for a sweet
indulgence. The
atmosphere is relaxed
yet sophisticated
-- you can almost
believe you’re
no longer in Brooklyn,
but in a cozy Parisian
café, sipping coffee
and nibbling on
a tasty treat. Not sure what to
order, but encouraged
by the warm atmosphere
to expand our horizons
a bit, we opted
for the frozen white
chocolate raspberry
mousse and the lemon
buttermilk soufflé.
Both dishes were
delicious and rich,
yet not too heavy.
Jon said that he
aims to provide
desserts that leave
the customer satisfied
but not stuffed.
Providing enough
sweetness and weight
to make you feel
like you’re
indulging, yet not
so much that you
feel sick to your
stomach, is a delicate
art that Jon and
Naomi have mastered.
In addition
to the delectable
table menu,
the Chocolate
Room also
boasts a spectacular
display case
filled with
the amazing
confections
of their off-site
chocalatier,
Fritz Kripschildt.
At ten dollars
for a quarter
pound, Fritz’s
mind-boggling
variety of
subtle yet
exciting chocolates
is well worth
the price.
All these
wonderful
chocolates
are also available
in gift packages
and sets,
so you can
share the
beauty of
Fritz’s
creations
with your
friends and
family.
Given the space’s
cool and calm air,
it’s amazing
to consider that
only a few months
ago it was a dingy,
dirty wreck of a
storefront. Jon
and Naomi completely
renovated the space
themselves, refurbishing
the brick wall and
salvaging the classic
tin ceiling from
under layers of
plaster. Prior to
its incarnation
as the Chocolate
Room, 86 Fifth Avenue
had also been diner,
a car shop, and
a video store. Jon
said that even though
it hadn’t
been a diner in
many years, amazingly
there were still
grease stains on
the walls that he
had to remove. It
is Jon’s hope
that his business,
along with a lot
of the other new
business entering
the neighborhood,
will end this cycle
of constantly revolving
stores and institutions.
The Chocolate Room,
Total Wine Bar,
Surreal Café, and
the countless other
new businesses in
the area hope to
help build a sense
of community and
continuity in a
section of Park
Slope that has for
too long been in
a constant state
of flux. In that
spirit, Jon and
Naomi report that
the growing community
of committed small-business
owners on lower
Fifth Avenue has
been very supportive
of their endeavor,
offering help and
guidance at every
turn. The entrepreneurial
couple is optimistic
about the prospects
of the neighborhood,
convinced that the
activity and prosperity
of upper Fifth Avenue
is already working
its way north toward
Flatbush. “That’s
part of the thrill,”
said Naomi, “diving
into the unknown.”
Whether you’re
a young couple interested
in seeing and tasting
the chocolate handiwork
of another young
couple, or just
a regular old chocolate
freak, be sure to
take a dive into
the wonderful pleasures
available at the
Chocolate Room.
The
Chocolate Room
86 Fifth Avenue
718 783 2900
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