Cocothé: For the Chocoholic with Style
Courtney Yates came to Sewickley in 2012 with a mission. She had fallen in love with the quaint, beautifully green neighborhood—though it was missing something that every respectable community deserves.
“It needed a chocolate shop.”
The pastry chef had spent the year after completing her studies the Cambridge School of Culinary Arts looking for the perfect place to test out her delicious skillset. Now you can find the owner and executive chef of Cocothé Chocolatier and Café in her natural environment—surrounded by delicious confections.
Offering a large assortment of coffees, teas, espressos, chocolates, sandwiches, salads (with dressings made from scratch!) Cocothé has something to satisfy everyone’s sweet (or savory) tooth. You can find chocolate bars with Mayan chilies for that sugar rush with a kick, or slurp some carrot bisque with truffle oil, chives and popcorn.
If you’re a tea type of person, you’re in luck! Cocothé has more varieties than you can imagine. You have your choice of black, white, green, and herbal teas. With names like Jasmine Phoenix Pearl and Candy Apple, the tea lover in all of us can find perfect bliss.
“You can pair a lot of teas with chocolate,” Courtney tells me, “It depends on the percentage of cacao in the chocolate. Milk chocolates that are creamier tend to go better with white teas, and dark chocolates tend to pair well with black.”
Or perhaps, if you’re very literal when it comes to your chocolate and flavored water pairings, you should try the brewed chocolate. As Courtney said, ever so poetically, “It’s the essence of chocolate, lighter, more like a tea.” As for her hot chocolate? “It’s simply steamed milk with real chocolate. A very pure way to indulge.”
Although Courtney currently sells chocolate made by other companies, look out! In a few months Cocothé will have their own line of confections. Apparently, it will truly be a historical event. “I have recipes for chocolate that range from the 1600s and up!” Courtney says with excitement. “My mom gave me this book of old recipes for Christmas when I was in culinary school and it’s given me a lot of great ideas.”
Asked what her favorite chocolate is, Courtney tells a tale of a recent experiment that went gloriously right. “My favorite chocolate is an ancho chili roasted pecan truffle—I made it up the other day!”
But chocolate isn’t the only thing Cocothé has got going on. For the summer, there will be housemade sodas. Before you start thinking Coke and Pepsi, remember that the brain behind Cocothé likes to think outside the box, to the benefit of all of our taste buds. “We will offer coffee cardamom soda, fruit sodas, lemon lavender sodas, and of course chocolate soda!”
If you are looking for more savory than sweet, you’ll be able to satisfy your need for sustenance with Cocothé’s collection of gourmet sandwiches that feature The Figgy Piggy (prosciutto, goat cheese, fig spread and arugula on a baguette) and The Blue Bello (grilled portobello, honey walnut blue cheese spread, caramelized onions and arugula on a baguette).
How is all of this culinary variety possible? Cocothé brought in Chef de Cuisine Elizabeth Thompson, a San Francisco native to craft and execute the sumptuous salads and sandwiches. In addition, this May Cocothé will have an evening service comprised of small plates and European inspired dishes!
If you’re working on a novel, would like to listen to some live music, or want to read outside with a mocha espresso and sea salt peanut brittle, head over Cocothé’s beautifully modern, and luxuriously cozy space in Sewickley.
