The 13 best chocolate shops in Los Angeles

This family-run shop and café offers new-school artisanal chocolate in the heart of Beverly Hills—and if the address looks familiar, it's because andSons is the former home of Teuscher, the beloved 90210 neighborhood coffee shop and purveyor of high-end Swiss chocolate. Now taken over by the sons of the original owner (hence the name), Marc and Phil Covitz's signature bonbons puts a global twist on traditional European ganache with flavor combinations like passion fruit caramel, double yuzu and pan de muerte. Of course, andSons still offers the old shopt's beloved truffles, as well as other familiar treats like salted caramels and chocolate-covered orange peels. Modernist gift boxes and collabs with local institutions like MOCA and the Huntington make for an elegant gift, even if it's just for yourself.

While this local chocolatier is known for its eye-catching artisanal chocolate bars at retailers like Bristol Farms and World Market, you can also pick up custom-made boxes of bonbons at its West Adams headquarters. Truffle tops are printed with colorful swirls, plaid and more, which makes each box feel like a work of art. Compartés caters to the traditionalist, too: turtles and chocolate-dipped orange peels are among Compartés’ top sellers.

Among the many perks Angelenos can brag about—perfect weather, beaches galore, quality tacos—the accessibility of See’s Candies should be near the top of the list. The L.A. institution, founded in 1921 by Charles See; his mother, Mary; and his wife, Florence, still maintains its flagship store and factory on La Cienega, where visitors come for the samples and stay for a box of hand-picked truffles and fudge. The quality of the chocolate is high here, making for craveable bites whether they come packed with almonds, coating coffee-flavored toffee, or surrounding fluffy marhmallows. No matter how you rank the best See’s candies, one thing’s for sure: This chocolatier has staying power.

With a selection of over 300 different chocolates—all of them handcrafted in Belgium and flown to this small Brentwood shop—Lady Chocolatt caters, above all else, to the diehard traditional European chocolate aficionado. Here, you’ll find dark, milk and white chocolate; classic fillings like praline, chocolate ganache and liqueur; and less conventional Western flavors like cardamom, violet, rose and chili. Customers can build their own ballotin boxes or opt for one of their pre-made assorted boxes—all of them packaged with flair. If you’ve got a bit more time on your hands, Lady Chocolatt’s café also offers decadent cups of hot chocolate and crispy Belgian waffles.

With a bean-to-bar focus that manifests in artful truffles, chocolate bars, bonbons, cacao-dipped cookies, dark chocolate cakes, chocolate-dipped strawberries and sipping chocolate—many of them vegan—South Bay’s favorite chocolate shop delivers the goods both sustainably and inclusively. They’re so dedicated to caffeinated beans, in fact, that they even roast their own coffee (though really, it’s impossible to pass up the drinking chocolate). Be on the lookout for fresh baked goods, such as croissants filled with—what else—high-quality chocolate, which are so popular that it’s best to call ahead and reserve a few on weekends.

To the chronic klutzes among us, John Kelly Chocolates may feel like a China shop: One wrong move and you could send the perfectly stacked boxes of chocolate tumbling. At both Hollywood and Santa Monica locations, a small glass display holds the confections, where sea-salt–sprinkled truffles sit triumphantly on top. While there isn't a heavy focus on design, individual pieces pack a punch; John Kelly’s claim to fame is truffle fudge, a heavenly mashup between the two sweets that seems to weigh a pound in your han—and is even more decadent once you take a bite.