Recommendations

Chocolates made with exotic ingredients from all over the world - and a little bit of love.

Guide: SoHo Mom (Grace)
Location: SoHo

Strengths

• Take a break from your Soho shopping spree at their store on Spring Street, and sample their divine truffles.
• Founder Katrina Markoff trained at Le Cordon Bleu, and then traveled around the world to learn about the cuisines of France, Italy, Thailand, Korea, Vietnam, Singapore, China, Australia and Hawaii.
• Her truffles make great gifts. They come in signature purple boxes, and contain exotic ingredients from across the globe. The results are innovative, delectable and practically poetic.

Shortcomings

• The range of choices can be daunting
• Some of the truffle ingredients are a bit bizarre - like taleggio cheese, kalamata olives and balsamic vinegar. But give them a try - you'll probably be pleasantly surprised.

Insider tips

• For gifts, pick a truffle box with a theme or flavor that's pertinent to the recipient. Are they into eastern philosophy? Send the Green Collection, with truffles made with indian cardamom, thai kaffir lime, cherry blossom petals, and malaysian pandan leaves. The box even includes an Ayurveda quiz.
• They'll messenger gifts within the city same day for $15
• Check out the gift boxes on their website. They've got some pretty clever combinations and themes.

Anecdotes

• I had the blues this morning, and got a surprise delivery containing a purple box of truffles. The combination of the thought behind the gift and the intense richness of the chocolate (and lets be honest, a bit of sugar and caffeine) really perked me up. I especially liked the truffles with spicy ancho chillies, but we all have our own faves.

Perfect for

• Ideal gifts for friends, family, clients, and loved ones.