“It must have been fate”

Some boys want to be fireman, others astronauts, but for Daniel it was always to work with food. I still remember the moment a career with food occurred to me, says Daniel. I don’t remember how old I was but I remember standing about 3 feet tall, it was one of those hot and humid days of a summer on Long Island. I was with my Mother on a trip to the local delicatessen, the cool air hit me in the face and the icy linoleum flooring was biting at my feet from under a slipping pair of flip flops. Smells of dill and fresh coffee were in the air. There was a deli cook in a white apron tied at the midsection pouring fresh brewed ice tea, and slicing cucumbers for the day. I still remember thinking “that’s got to be the coolest job in the world”. Growing up, he recalls grating cheese for lasagna with his mother, and pulling carrots out of his father’s garden after the first frost of the season “I remember the smell of the earth, and the thin layer of frozen soil we had to go through to free them from the ground.” Emotional memories like this have guided Daniel on his journey through four star restaurants, award winning resorts and the Co-Founding of Chokola’j LLC.

“The lure of chocolate”

There’s no denying it, great chocolate is seductive. The aroma of a well crafted cup of hot chocolate is enough to get anyone to take notice. But for a young accomplished Chef with tremendous ambition, it was more. “Preparing food for someone in the right environment can be like an intimate conversation”, says Daniel, “statements are made, points of view exposed, and then a level of understanding is reached. Chocolate is one of the best mediums I have found for this conversation because it’s not limited by the space between four walls. It’s only limited by the acceptance of an idea and that’s a powerful thing.” With a focus on showcasing local and sustainably harvested ingredients, produced by real people in real communities, with real needs, indeed these chocolates say a lot.