Chocolate at the Pen

Everything about this experience exceeded my expectations.
The venue was elegant, beautiful, and well laid out. A live quartet played softly as we ate massive amounts of delicious food items. The chocolate bar was set up in different tables to allow for easy viewing of everything available, as well as easy movement without long lines. Each item was labeled so no guessing was necessary!
I am not a huge chocolate lover, and I still enjoyed nearly everything I tried. The chocolate was fresh, and the combinations were both traditional as well as inspiring. More non-​chocolate dessert items were offered then I would have guessed, and those were also fantastic. We also had the chocolate birthday cake, which my Mom, who is a huge chocolate lover decided was the best cake she has ever tasted in her 73 years. And just to be clear, she’s had A LOT of cake. :0)
But the best part of this experience was the service. Ian was our server, and was by far the best server I’ve had in years, maybe ever. He was friendly and helpful, and served us champagne while he explained what was being offered at each chocolate station, and all other options that were also available to us. Impeccable service, and really went out of his way to make sure my Mom felt very special on her birthday. Thank you Ian!
Chicago has plenty of places to try any kind of food you can think of. For a unique experience and delicious food and beverages remember Chocolate at the Penn.

When in the city this is a great spot! Ambiance is elegant, service is superb and the chocolate is worth it! But be careful dont eat too much! The chocolate is so rich might give you a tummy ache if you eat too much! Definitely a must try at least once in your life! Every time we come seems like the experience and chocolate gets better!

I went to the Chocolate Buffet last night with friends and was underwhelmed by the buffet and the service. There is a lack of interesting options to choose from and the flavors were not good at all in some of the offerings. It was difficult to get a cup of coffee and even more difficult to get a refill. The best thing was the beignets that weren’t even chocolate! This is very expensive for what you get. I do not recommend.

This isn’t exactly a fair review, so let me state up front that I’m a chick who’s not a chocolate fan. Finished with the disbelieving gasp? Good. Let’s move on. I’ve visited the Peninsula for other dining, and the space itself is very lovely and posh, great to hang out.
Inwardly groaning loudly when the girlfriend wanted to celebrate her birthday here, but I gamely worked my way through the chocolate and the few non-​chocolate offerings. Hubby and I split everything, since we only took a bite of each thing. How much chocolate could one possibly eat? (Don’t answer that.) My feedback isn’t as pertinent, but the chocoholics at our table of 14 weren’t really impressed with the sweets, so that says a lot to me. Service was on point as expected. The live jazz was quite nice. The price was seriously steep for just dessert, even for the lovely surroundings.

At $ 40 a pop, you’re definitely paying for the experience and the ambiance. The chocolate was take-​it-​or-​leave-​it. It sounds heavenly — a buffet of chocolate at the lobby of the Peninsula hotel? And it’s presented beautifully. But that’s where it ends.
I tasted just about every dessert, and this really consisted of me taking one bite, not thinking it was that good, and moving onto the next dessert. Everything tasted very processed and mass-​produced. I could make my own chocolate bar, and it’d be much better. I was hoping for desserts that tasted homemade, with maybe some sort of chocolate fondue. None of that was there. There were some small cakes and tarts and cookies. There were also some little chocolate covered nuts. None of it was bad, but if I’m paying $ 40 for dessert, I’m expecting to actually like something enough to finish it. And I didn’t. And I went away with a stomach-​ache, that’s for sure!
The one thing that I did really like was the hot chocolate. It was excellent, but so rich that I couldn’t have more than one cup. The beignets were also excellent, but they weren’t even chocolate!
If you’re willing to pay for a couple hours of a pleasant ambiance (jazz music playing, beautiful lobby, open space), go for it, but don’t expect to love the desserts! If you just want something chocolate and super tasty, skip this, and head to Sprinkles cupcakes or get yourself a skillet cookie at Kirkwood or Lou Malnati’s!

I noticed all the good reviews for The Lobby, so I figured Chocolate at the Pen would be just as good. I came here with high expectations, especially since its at the Peninsula. The Peninsula is so often associated with luxury, opulence and great service. I’ve been to a couple of their hotels in Asia, so I was looking forward checking this location out.
I guess I was expecting a younger crowd on a Saturday night. Oh boy, was I wrong. Very wrong. We were a handful of twenty-​somethings surrounded by couples in mid life crisis age and older. The soft lighting and the jazz music (which sounded more like lullaby/​put you to sleep music) made the atmosphere worse. Our food took a little long, and the music didn’t help.
Overall the Cuisine de Chocolat tasting menu was pretty good. Nothing inspiring or memorable, but pretty good for what it was. If come back, I’m just going to order from the Lobby’s regular a la carte menu.
So the main reason we chose to eat here was for the desserts and chocolates (what can you expect from pastry students?) Nice selection of chocolates and beautifully presented– but lacked in taste and creativity. I was expecting more variety in chocolate, but it was very simple and ordinary. I’ve been to better chocolate buffets (like at the Langham in Pasadena, CA). I enjoyed the chocolate fountain with homemade marshmallows and ripe strawberries. I wasn’t too fond of much of the chocolate cakes, except for the decadent mini fudge bundt cake. The chocolate dipped macarons were also notable.
I’d much rather come back and try their afternoon tea or eat at the Lobby. We did cap off the night at The Bar on the same floor– but thats another review.

I ate here with a large group of relatives while I was in town just before Thanksgiving. It was pretty good, I was expecting to be more impressed than the reality I found. The chocolate was good, the ambiance was nice, and the service was wonderful. However, for the price, I was expecting a bit more selection and a chocolate fountain. The closest thing they had was a very subdued fondue fountain in the back.
The jazz band was a nice touch, but honestly, it was really, really loud. I had a pounding headache from it — although I admit that may have been exacerbated by getting off a plane just a few hours before we met up. It was nice music and all, bu-​ut… I thought jazz was supposed to be quiet and relaxing!
If you want a swanky place to make a grand impression, The Penninsula is definitely the place to go. I filled up so much here I was definitely able to get by without any sort of dinner that night. Had I been choosing a dessert place, though, I probably would’ve picked something a little more underground with more for your money.

Have to go with Andrew B on this one and provide the second dissenting opinion. Great, wow, fine, it’s the Peninsula. The desserts are an absolute letdown. Absolutely nothing was appealing. Pathetic chalky bonbons and dry brownie approximations. The coconut hot chocolate was the only thing that I found to like, and I could only have so much before the richness got to me.
There’s so much promise, too. I mean, for $ 38 a head, I kind of want to see a chocolate fountain, right? And dammit, at the Peninsula, it should be fountain 10 feet high cascading down a mountain carved out of dark chocolate, with Oompa-​Loompas refreshing the plates.

What a disappointment. The buffet does indeed look incredible with a huge variety of different chocolate dessert items. However, everything tasted bland and boring and four of us tasted EVERYTHING.
Out of the entire 15+ items we sampled, 2 were «good» and the rest were totally totally forgettable. There were definitely no standouts.
Two of us really preferred over-​the-​top rich chocolate items and there wasn’t one that fit the bill. The brownie was in the ballpark but sitting the nosebleed seats.
At $ 36 a person, it wasn’t close to worth it. I’ve had more delicious chocolate desserts at diners.

If you’re a lover of chocolate then look no further. The table in the middle of the room was a like a miniature, more elegant version of Willy Wonka’s chocolate factory. That might sound silly but there were just so many unique, fun, beautiful and tasty treats to be had one would say it was like being in a candy store or say a chocolate factory. You must go up to the table at least 4 times before you can say that you’ve tried absolutely every concoction. By then it’s all a blur because let’s face it, your ingesting large amount of caffeine and sugar and you are completely wound up, i.e. drunk on chocolate. I went there for my birthday last week and it was a really nice way to cap off a busy afternoon of activities. The jazz band in the corner added a little something extra to the whole experience. Its definitely something you’d want to do for a special occasion or to just treat yourself after a not so great week.

Chocolate at the Pen, or the Chocolate Bar at the Peninsula Hotel, is a divine experience. I’ve been there three times, and all three have been wonderful. Service is always excellent, the waiters refilling your glass and promptly taking away dirty plates.
Okay, for those of you in the know, great. But for those who are new to this, consider this: a buffet of wonderfully delicious chocolate! In the center off The Lobby, there is a a circular table stacked with all sorts of chocolate goodies ranging from small morsels of chocolate cakes (my fave was banana chocolate) to crème brûlée. They usually have two types of hot chocolates available: dark and white infused with lavender. Also, I noticed that the treats sort of change with every visit, so you might not eat the same things twice!
They have a live jazz band playing, adding to the wonderful ambience. Low lit lights, spacious clearings, and great music make for a romantic or relaxing evening. I went with my best friends as a girl’s night out… and it was awesome!
This is def an experience that is not to be missed. From excellent, courteous service to great dessert treats! Granted, for five people, the total came up to be $ 185. But staying there for about 3 hours and eating our fill of chocolate goodies… it was most def worth it.