The City of York is a beautiful city in Yorkshire. With so much to offer, your split with choice on what to do! One of my favorite things to do in the city, is visit York’s Chocolate Story. Not only do you learn about the history of Nestle, but if you are a chocolate lover like myself, you get to try lots of free samples too!
Home of Nestle
Did you know, York is home to Nestle chocolate?
That’s right, York is the place where they make all those tasty KitKats and Terry’s Chocolate Oranges! I even found out during the tour that there use to be a Terry’s Chocolate Apple! How amazing does that sound?
The Location
York Chocolate Story is located in King’s Square, next to the Shambles and Newgate Market, in the centre of York. There is no parking at the place.
The two closest car parks are:
Q-Park Shambles, Garden Pl, York YO1 7NZ
Coppergate Car Park, Piccadilly, York YO1 9NX
The Tour
The tour lasts around 60 – 90 minutes. I recommend booking it in advance to avoid disappointment!
For prices and bookings, please visit their website: https://www.yorkschocolatestory.com/
The tour takes you right through the history of Rowntrees, which we now know as Nestle. You get to sample the very first chocolate ever made, see how it’s evolved over the years, and how chocolate is made. At the end of the tour, you have the opportunity to make your very own chocolate lollypop and watch some chocolate truffles being made, which of course you can sample too.
I don’t want to give too much away about the tour as I want you to experience it yourself. However, there are some interesting facts which I learned on the tour which I want to share with you. Firstly, did you know Snickers is the world’s most popular chocolate bar? Secondly, did you know Mars Bar is the world’s second favourite chocolate bar?
Another really interesting thing I learned was about Japan and KitKat’s. Japan’s most popular chocolate bar is the KitKat. It’s so popular over there that they offer a huge variety of flavours: green tea, blueberry cheesecake, brandy and orange, custard, cherry blossom, and the list goes on. If they’re not strange enough, then here are some that definitely are: hotdog, broccoli, and mash potato.
After the tour, if you have a little bit of time, why not pop into their chocolate shop next door? We got to the tour a little early so we decided to pop in then. They have a great range of chocolates and unusual flavours to choose from. It was a tough decision with all the choices! I ended up choosing the one shown in the picture below: Apple and Raspberry Crumble White Chocolate. I can confirm it tastes as delicious as it looks!
Heard of Guppy’s Chocolate?
Want to know a little information about Guppy’s chocolate? Guppy’s is handmade and hand-packaged from family-run premises in York. The name Guppy’s came from the surname of the married couple who produced this chocolate; Peter and Fran Guppy. They started producing it in 2010 when they decided to give up their day jobs in the financial industry. Who blames them? Making chocolate is a lot more fun! Their aim is to carry on the family traditions in the Rowntrees and Terry’s families, handmaking great quality chocolates in the city. I definitely feel like they’re meeting their aim successfully!
Want to see what else there is to do in Yorkshire? Please check out some of my other blogs: https://livingwiththewolf.co.uk/category/yorkshire/
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