SAID chocolate shop

Soho is an incredibly cool part of London – I always love those little neighborhoods that are off the main path a little bit. Many a lunch break I spent wandering around this area alone, and the very next block over from my office at Hearst I noticed a small chocolate shop with the Italian slogan “FATTO A MANO IN ITALIA DAL 1923.”

SAID, an Italian chocolaterie of Roman roots, has all the rustic chicness I crave in a tiny corner to duck into for a quiet moment – and a delightful sugar rush. Industrial lighting, a divine array of textures (copper, iron, wood, porcelain), small space that makes for intimate seating. But the black wrought iron metalwork and machinery (for making the chocolate, I suppose) brings an entire new masculine edginess to an otherwise warm and inviting hole in the wall.

And what’s more inviting than the yummiest way to consume mouthwatering italian chocolate – drizzled all over the inside and outside of your coffee cup? All three – white, milk, and dark – are poured meticulously into thirds around the cup, with just enough room left alone for the SAID logo to remain visible.

Don’t sell yourself short here, so order something to eat and drink – either a chocolate-covered coffee or hot chocolate, with chocolate-covered strawberries. I’d make other recommendations but there is no wrong way to do this. The only way you can cock this up is by uttering that dirty word “diet,” or by not walking in at all.p