Sweet bunnies abound at Chocolate Parfait

By Laurie Gordon
NEWTON — Nestled in the middle of the plaza at 227 Newton-Sparta Road, in Newton, is the go-to place for exquisite Easter chocolates and sweets, and some amazing bunnies.
What makes Chocolate Parfait so unique is that the owner, Tracey Williams, is extremely discerning about the quality of chocolate she sells.
“The quality is that it's homemade right here on the premises and that every single bunny is made by hand,” Williams said. “We pour the chocolate into the mold, hand decorate them and package them right here on the premises. We use a fine Belgian chocolate. It's European chocolate imported from Belgium which has a richer, smoother, creamier texture. It's not your grocery store bought chocolate - there's just something special about them all being handmade locally right here in the shop.”
Williams has been in business for nine years. “We were at the Olde Lafayette Village for five years and have been in our current location now for four years,” she said. “Most of our customers have been coming to us for many years - even before I purchased the business nine years ago (some came when the previous owner had the store and have shopped with the store for over 20 years and say they'd never go anywhere else).” Williams loves her customers both old and new. “Every year I get to meet some great new customers especially as Easter draws near,” she said.
“We've always had a large selection of bunnies but now we added a lot more new molds this year since we picked up a lot more customers last year due to Nagels candy barn closing,” Williams said. “Therefore we now have over 20 different types of bunnies to choose from - in both hollow and solid chocolate.” Williams added, “Our bunnies come in all different sizes, ranging from 3" high up to our giant bunny which stands 16" high. As well as the bunnies we also make edible Easter baskets that you can either purchase pre-filled or un-filled so that you can choose your own contents.Of course other than the bunnies and baskets we have things like peanut butter filled eggs, nutella stuffed bunnies, bunny Oreos and other fun things to add to your Easter basket.”
Williams said the pre-orders are a good idea, so head to Chocolate Parfait sooner than later. “We always recommend that people shop as early as they possibly can because towards the end of the holiday the choices get much slimmer. I always say 'If you see something you like then pick it up. Don't wait as chances are it'll be gone closer to the holiday and then it's too late for us to make more.'"
Easter specials include so many different choices. There are homemade Belgian chocolate crosses available in varying sizes. They are made in milk, dark and white chocolate. Chocolate Parfaits homemade Belgian chocolate coconut nests are delectable and when it comes to the bunnies, the choices are incredible. All are homemade with their Belgian chocolate.
Williams said that she's had to increase her product line tremendously each year as her business has grown exponentially over the years. “We have customers travel from Bergen County, Essex County, Pennsylvania and even have customers come from Brooklyn at Christmas and Easter time,” she said. “In addition to all the bunnies that we carry, we also offer a wide variety of chocolate novelties such as alligators, dogs, sports themed chocolates, ballerinas, cars, tractors, trains, video game controllers, pigs, cell phones, laptops and so much more.There's also 120 bins filled with candy that you scoop yourself into a bag We carry a lot of the old fashioned, nostalgic candies such as candy cigarettes, candy buttons, mary janes, satalite wafers etc.”
The Chocolate Parfait knows everyone loves sweets.
“It's hard to pin point a certain demographic because we cater to all age groups,” Williams said, “From a young family that comes in for ice cream and sits outside in their outdoor seating area under the umbrellas to middle aged women tha tcomes in for chocolate to elderly who come in for their fudge to teenagers who will choose from the 120 candy bins.”
Though she now lives in Andover, Williams was born and raised in England. Of this she said, “Because of this, I am accustomed to good quality European chocolate. Therefore it was extremely important to me to only provide top quality chocolate.”
Having a degree in business administration has given Williams the tools on how to become a successful entrepreneur, along with the essentials needed to market her business.
“My passion for chocolate confectionery coupled with a fascination of inventing new recipes and designs is extremely exciting to me,” she said, “I am truly infatuated with the art of chocolate making and being a self-taught chocolatier has given me the freedom to explore various recipes and creations that I have the pleasure in sharing with my customers.”
“As you enter our beautiful store you'll step back in time and feel like a kid in a candy store,” Williams said. “Not only will you be greeted by the sensational aromas, but you'll relive those sweet memories with our huge selection of nostalgic candy.”
Chocolate Parfait is located at 227 Newton-Sparta Road between Newton and Sparta. It's in the middle of the plaza that also contains H&R Block, a pizzeria and a nail salon so don't miss it if you want to have amazing sweets this Easter. For information, call (973) 579-2203 or visit: <URL destination="http://www.chocolateparfaitnj.com ">www.chocolateparfaitnj.com
</URL>Find Chocolate Parfait on Facebook, as well.