This is no ordinary chocolate shop, it’s a place where dreams are spun from sugar and cocoa.
Gary Hunter first worked with chocolate more than 30 years ago and fell in love – and from that moment on, he dreamt that one day he would have a confectionery shop of his own.
Hunters of Holt, which has just opened at 31 Market Place in the north Norfolk town, marks decades of dedication to the art of chocolate from one of the world’s most renowned chocolatiers. And it’s quite magical.
Gary and wife Nichola have had a whirlwind 18 months, opening two bed and breakfast rooms and a cookery school at their Helhoughton home, launching Hunters Chocolate in October 2023, appearing on national television with James Martin three months later and now opening their first shop.
But this is no overnight success story: passionate about chocolate since his days as a student at catering college in Norwich, Gary has refined his art and has a culinary pedigree richer than the very best dark chocolate.
He joined Westminster Kingsway College – one of the most prestigious culinary colleges in the world – 28 years ago as a lecturer in patisserie and confectionary, progressed to become head of culinary arts and hospitality and finally became principal of the college.
Gary has written nine books for students and professional chefs, is a UK Chocolate Ambassador for Barry Callebaut and has worked extensively on the UK World Chocolate Masters Competition. Now he’s making chocolates for you.
Nichola, who also has a hospitality background and is, Gary admits, the organisational powerhouse behind their sweet partnership, said that the pair had 'a moment' while they were watching a recent film release about the most famous chocolatier of them all.
'It was Christmas and we were watching Wonka when we heard the line: "you can’t sell chocolate without a shop" and we looked at each other, and…' she stops mid-sentence, laughing.
The deal was done by February and the shop refit began by Kitchens Etc in North Creake, with cocoa bean wallpaper, glass-fronted cold cabinets for the bonbons (which are made with fresh ingredients and need to be kept cool), ornate gold corbels to showcase chocolate boxes and shelves for truffles.
The result is an enchanting, bijou shop that glitters on Holt’s high street thanks to a beautiful crystal chandelier and which is filled with glossy bonbons that look like precious jewels, fruit and nut-studded chocolate mendiants, creamy caramels and nutty pralines, indulgent truffles, new versions of nostalgic chocolate bars, marzipan toadstools and dark clusters of feuilletine rochers.
Chocolate-filled glass cloches stand on what looks like the prow of a ship emerging from a wall and then there are macarons, delicate French confections as light as butterfly wings and bursting with flavour: raspberry and basil, pistachio, salted caramel, lemon, chocolate, each a tiny, edible work of art.
There’s even Hunter's own Chocolate Granola because why not start your day the chocolate way?
Additional indulgences can be found – a range of exclusive luxury treats such as citrus oil, marmalade, honey, spring truffles, biscuits…at every corner lies temptation.
'The shop is everything we dreamt it would be and we are so proud of what we have achieved,' said Gary, who teaches chocolate making, amongst other classes, at his cookery school.
'Each chocolate we make really is a labour of love; our trademark bonbons and pralines involve a four-day production process. We’re as far from a mass assembly line as you can get!'
He added: 'People can be intimidated by artisan food shops but they don’t need to be with us – we have lots to choose from, including our own version of Caramac and Marathon chocolate bars and our chocolate, biscuit and toffee Hunter’s Twin bars.'
In addition to the Hunters and Steve Rose, who runs the shop during the week, the couple said that family and friends have been vital to getting the new business up and running.
'We are so grateful to everyone who has helped us along the way,' said Nichola, 'from Gary’s brother Paul to our friends who stepped in to help after James Martin’s Saturday Morning when we were inundated with orders!'
There are delicious sounding plans for summer chocolates; bonbons with ice cream and lolly flavours such as Fab, Zoom, Red Devil, Mint Choc Chip, Solero and Twister, and later in the year there will be frightfully good Halloween treats and boxes of delight for Christmas.
In the meantime, the Hunters are getting used to adding ‘shop owner’ to their hospitality and culinary roll call and admit that despite spending endless hours crafting chocolates, they are still partial to pinching the odd treat for themselves.
'We can’t really believe that the shop is ours. We have so many plans, so many exciting things we’ll be bringing to our chocolate range,' said Gary.
'We wanted to bring our very own world of imagination to north Norfolk with our signature chocolates and now we’ve got the perfect place where we can share them with everyone. It really is a dream come true.'
For more information, visit hunterschocolate.co.uk. Hunters of Holt is open from Monday to Saturday, 10am to 4.30pm (4pm on Saturday).
