The graceful white lettering on the glass door of a store on King Street in Old Town Alexandria says Kingsbury Chocolates, Made Fresh Right Here. That's where Rob Kingsbury, 39, has turned the second floor into a welcoming chocolate shop where he makes the sweets that have gripped his imagination since he was a boy.
And what an imagination it is. Chocolate truffles with names like honey ginger, black forest, mimosa and champagne (priced from as few as two for $3.75 to 24 for $39.50); sugar creams flavored with tangerine, pistachio and mint (18 pieces for $12); layered bars of white chocolate with toffee, milk chocolate fruit and nut and dark chocolate studded with cacao nibs (three for $11).
Customers can select their own assortments from two temperature-controlled display cases, and Kingsbury will package his chocolates in red or gold-foil boxes trimmed with satin ribbon. Or they can sit at a couple of small tables to enjoy his chocolates and other offerings: hot chocolate, iced tea and lemonade; in summer, a variety of ice creams; or even a maple popcorn ball like the ones his grandparents used to make.
The one-time engineering student, waiter and bartender comes by his passion naturally. His grandparents had a 10-acre maple syrup farm in New Hampshire, where those popcorn balls were always for sale on the side porch. Desserts at his grandmother's cafe and sweets made from recipes from his Great-Aunt Dot's college-level home economics classes were everyday temptations. And trips to chocolate shops were a family affair.
But his mother, father and stepfather, who all worked for IBM, gave him a more contemporary career model. After graduating from the University of Florida, he followed their lead by taking a job in the corporate world. Four and a half years at AT&T as an internal quality consultant didn't take. Dreams of owning his own chocolate shop did.
Moving to Atlanta, he waited tables and tended bar by night and researched and tested chocolate recipes during the day, eventually selling his own product line to local shops. He relished the work. "I love melting the chocolate, whipping in butter and sugar, scooping up the truffles by hand and rolling them into balls, he says. " It's pretty detail-oriented, but it's soothing."
He's been in the Washington area for more than three years now. Atlanta was too warm for a year-round chocolate business, he says. In December, he celebrated the shop's second anniversary.
"The first year was extremely hard, but we're doing well now," says Kingsbury. "This store embodies my family. My grandmother showed her love by making great food. Now I'm making these products and getting a great response. I'm glad I can make a living at it."
Kingsbury Chocolates is at 1017 King St. in Old Town Alexandria. Call 703-548-2800 or go to www.KingsburyChocolates.com.
-- Judith Weinraub
