At Concept Chocolate, we have always known that making chocolate in Brussels was not just any profession. It is now official: the tradition and savoir-faire of chocolate in Brussels have just been inscribed on the intangible cultural heritage list of the Brussels Region. Brussels thus becomes the first region in the country to formalize this recognition, a key step towards recognition by other Belgian regions and, ultimately, towards a national candidacy for UNESCO.
And we are proud to uphold this tradition, as a member of the I Love Belgian Chocolate initiative.
A history spanning almost four centuries
Chocolate arrived in Europe at the beginning of the 16th century, imported from Mexico and Central America. Its trace in Belgium dates back to 1635, the first documented mention at the Baudeloo Abbey in Ghent. It was truly with the arrival of the first steam engine in Brussels, in 1835, that production became industrialized and the number of artisan chocolatiers multiplied.
The early 20th century marked the golden age of great Brussels inventions: the praline, created by Jean Neuhaus Jr. in 1912 in the Galeries royales Saint-Hubert, followed by the ballotin imagined by his wife Louise Agostini in 1915. Houses like Côte d'Or, Neuhaus, Leonidas, Godiva, and Corné, all born in Brussels, built the global reputation of Belgian chocolate.
Today, Brussels has over 200 chocolate shops and continues to attract chocolatiers from all over the world.
Two expertises, one excellence
Belgian expertise is based on two complementary approaches. The first, and most widespread, involves working with couverture chocolate: a chocolate rich in cocoa butter, produced by industrial specialists, which the artisan transforms, fills, and enhances to create pralines, truffles, and bars, bringing their own identity to them.
The second, more recent, is bean-to-bar: the artisan produces their own chocolate from raw beans, mastering the entire chain, from roasting to tempering. This approach focuses on traceability and direct connection with cocoa producers.
These two models coexist today and together enrich the identity of Belgian chocolate.
Why this recognition matters
Being inscribed on the intangible cultural heritage list is the official recognition of a living tradition, based on quality, taste, sustainability, and ethics—values that we uphold daily in our workshop in Schaerbeek for nearly 40 years. It is also an encouragement for transmission: every year, more and more young people enroll in Brussels chocolate schools, ensuring the future of a profession facing very real challenges—international competition, rising cocoa prices—but which continues to reinvent itself without losing its soul.
I Love Belgian Chocolate: a collective voice
I Love Belgian Chocolate is a non-profit association that brings together Belgian chocolatiers around common values: craftsmanship, innovation, and sustainability. It is this association that now carries the recognition of Brussels chocolate savoir-faire.
For us, joining this initiative was a clear choice. Since taking over the workshop in 2011, we have been committed to perpetuating demanding artisanal expertise while remaining attuned to current expectations: transparency regarding the origin of cocoa, sustainability initiatives, and creativity in recipes. Being part of a collective that champions these commitments at the Brussels and Belgian level gives greater weight to a voice that many artisan chocolatiers have individually carried for decades.
And for us, specifically?
Every praline, every bar, every chocolate piece that leaves our workshop on Rue des Chardons is part of this long Brussels tradition—meticulous craftsmanship, passionately transmitted, and forward-looking. We will continue to represent this tradition with pride, remaining true to what has always been the strength of Belgian chocolate: quality above all, and a savoir-faire that cannot be improvised.
To learn more about the I Love Belgian Chocolate initiative, visit ilovebelgianchocolate.be. The official recognition sheet can be viewed on the patrimoine.brussels website.
