As we reflect back on 10+ years of Zak’s Chocolate, we are so grateful for all of you who have tried, shared & loved our style of craft chocolate, and who have become our chocolate friends & family. We are also amazed that our chocolate has been shipped, or hand-carried, to all 50 States, DC, Puerto Rico, + 30 other Countires (that we know of). And, we have been fortunate to be able to collaborate with other local craftspeople & to receive recognition for our craft in local & national publications. 

During our initial years in business, we entered some award competitions to see how our creations compared with others & to obtain Judges’ feedback. We were fortunate to have received award recognition for almost every item we entered, including dark, milk & white chocolate bars, bars made with locally roasted coffee, our signature "Simply Chocolate" truffle and our Cacao Nib Caramel. This helped us to feel comfortable with our own taste instincts. That, plus the cost of entering & shipping product, led to not entering any more competitions. Wealso figured we didn’t need award stickers on our chocolate bars since we don’t compete for shelf space in someone else’s store. Some of these recognitions & awards are listed as separate entries with links in our News & Video Section.

With so much appreciation,

Maureen & Jim

We pride ourselves on using only ethically, and transparantly-sourced cacao to craft our chocolate. 

Ethical, transparant sourcing encompasses many things, including certain environmental, economic and social standards relating to the farming activities and the people we buy cocoa beans from and through. 

But basically, it is about knowing where your food (in this case, chocolate) comes from, how it's made, how the land is treated and how all the people involved in the process handle mutual responsibilities.

Click the heading above to read more and to access the Transparency Report published annually by our primary sourcing partner.

EVERY BOX (except 1-piece and 2-piece favor boxes) WILL HAVE A FLAVOR LABEL INSIDE. 

THIS MENU CAN BE USED AS A GUIDE TO MORE INFO ABOUT THE FLAVORS IN YOUR BOX.

Our small batches come & go, so if we are out of any requested flavors we will substitute for something we hope you will enjoy trying.

Please note that almost all of our assorted chocolates and caramels are made with our House Blend dark chocolate..

Why dark chocolate? Well, because we roast our own cocoa beans we control the level of bitterness, astringency and acidity in our chocolate. Our chocolate making style results in a chocolate that is creamy and smooth, but not bitter. So, we don't need milk to offset bitterness or to add creaminess. We do make a small number of flavors with milk or white chocolate when we feel that a flavor combination benefits from that additional touch. Whether or not you are a lover of dark chocolate, we hope you'll come along for the ride with us.

CLICK HERE FOR OUR ONLINE STORE

If you have any other questions, just email or call us.

Click HERE to sign up for our not-too-frequent newsletter to learn about all things chocolate and new offerings!

This is a subscriber-only list so we have taken some screenshots for you. 

Click the heading above to see them

Like coffee and wine, each cocoa bean comes from a unique terroir that impacts its flavor. Zak's Chocolate is giving patrons a taste of true chocolate.

DESIGNED FOR COFFEE (BUT AWESOME IN SO MUCH MORE)

A local collaboration with Iconic Cocktail of Phoenix, Salted Cocoa Nib Mixer is made with Zak's custom roasted cocoa nibs.

"This is a serious chocolate pastry that will make you rethink all previous brownie experiences."

​CLICK THE ARTICLE HEADING ABOVE TO LEARN MORE

Zak’s Chocolate was named a 2017 Good Food Awards Winner in the Confections Category for its Cacao Nib Caramel!

We are proud and honored to be the first Arizona winner in the Confections Category and only the second winner ever from Arizona. 
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We are thrilled to be included in Frommer's 2025 Edition of their Guide to Arizona.

And...we received a 3-Star recommendation, which according to Frommer's, means "A must! Don't miss!"

Click the heading aboce to see the little write-up about us

Besides dealing with a third consecutive year of a global cacao shortage (due to supply issues driven by weather, disease and a historical lack of investment) that has driven up prices to 3X the price from two years ago, what is the impact of tariffs on America’s artisan chocolate businesses when huge duties raise the cost of cacao, an ingredient that only grows some 20 degrees above and below the equator?

Cacao CANNOT be sourced from the United States in the quantities needed. There are ~5.0 million MT of cacao produced globally, and less than 100 tons of production in Hawaii and Puerto Rico combined - a tiny, tiny fraction of global production. There is no domestic production that is being protected by the tariffs. Refusing to exempt raw materials that cannot be grown in the US makes absolutely no sense for the chocolate industry.

CLICK THE HEADING ABOVE TO LEARN MORE

Ckick the Heading Above to see the Story 

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We took local reporter Cory McCloskey behind the scenes of our (slightly expanded) micro chocolate factory this past summer.

Click the Heading above to see the 5 short video segments shot live on International Chocolate Day, July 7, 2022 (hence the super high temps on Cory's weather charts!).

The Food Network included some of our thoughts about what to look for when buying chocolate to eat or cook with.

Click the heading above to read the review...

"Nine out of ten people like chocolate. The tenth person always lies." - John Q. Tullius

"Make a list of important things to do today. At the top of your list, put ‘eat chocolate’. Now, you'll get at least one thing done today." - Gina Hayes

"Chocolate is nature’s way of making up for Mondays." – Anonymous

These videos are a great introduction to all the magic and really, really hard work done by so many amazing people in the tropics.

Learn what has to happen before cocoa beans arrive at Zak's so we can turn them into chocolate for you to enjoy.

These awesome, short videos were produced by our primary partner in transparent trade, Uncommon Cacao

"Zak’s is just one of a growing number of chocolate shops across the U.S. that both make 100 percent of their own chocolate and all of the cocoa beans used are ethically sourced.

Its products range from vegan, gluten-free, and dairy-free single-origin dark chocolate bars to bonbons, truffles, and even a cocoa grilling rub." 

           Zak's Chocolate featured on the Fox10 Made in Arizona series.

We took the Golf Chanel behind-the-scenes in  a feature that originally aired in the Fall of 2018.

  We are excited to announce that we took home THREE Awards this year, and that our Belize 70% Dark Chocolate was named a finalist.

 *Silver for our Coffee Break Bar, a dark chocolate bar with milk & locally roasted coffee, blended together for the perfect Coffee Break

 *Silver for our Belize Single-Origin White Chocolate Bar

 *Bronze for our Peru Maranon Single-Origin White Chocolate Bar

  Yes, two different White Chocolates!

  White Chocoolate IS REAL Chocolate AND each origin offers different natural flavor profiles. Our Belize White is slightly fruity and our Peru is mild and soooo creamy

We are proud to represent craft chocolate in Trip Savvy's list of best shopping experiences across the Country. Click HERE to see the full list.

Join us January 29, 2020 for a Local Spirits & Craft Chocolate Pairing Evening with our good friends at 

Adventurous Stills in Tempe. Click HERE for details and to grab your tickets.

MAGES AZ Magazine captures the uniqueness of Zak's Chocolate.

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​​​​​​​OUR STORY...ON THE COVER of Chocolate Connoisseur Magazine.

"Embracing old methods and new flavors to go beyond commercial chocolate."

We are honored to be featured in Edible Phoenix, Summer 2017 edition. Click here for full article 

We are so very proud of this award. It is very exciting that more and more people are discovering and recognizing what real chocolate is all about. And, that real chocolate is a real food

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100 Tastemakers — 

members of our local culinary community who help shape the way we eat, drink, and think about food in Phoenix.

Some you'll know, and for others, it'll be a first introduction, but each person on our list deserves a nod for helping make our city so delicious.

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“We pay a lot more for the beans, but there are fine flavors and there’s a relationship and sustainability factor,” says Jim Elitzak, co-owner with wife Maureen of Zak’s Chocolate in Scottsdale.

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