This place has the 3 Cs: Cute, Charming, and a whole lot o' CHOCOLATE!!!!!…read more Chocolate pies, cakes, gelato, sundaes, cocoas, cocktails, cafes, pastries... Chocolate in downtown Santa Cruz is the place to go. There is a charming outdoor patio with flower beds and striped awnings, reminiscent of old Paris. Or you can opt to sit indoors for a moody, romantic vibe. Since I was there for a dessert date with my little one, we chose to sit outside. Water was served in a wine bottle (cute detail) and little shapely glasses. The Parisian feel continued with the round tables and small chairs as well as the neon-lit signs. The menu was vast with savory dinner and lunch items, wines, cocktails, an entire page of hot cocoas and mochas.... and of course an entire section dedicated to chocolate desserts! My daughter and I shared 2 desserts: a chocolate soufflé layered with chocolate cake and cherries and dulce de leche cake. The service was swift and friendly, and most importantly, the cakes were decadent! They were perfectly moist and weren't too sweet. We both thought the Dulce de Leche cake was our favorite because we could taste the cake more and the subtle vanilla hints were nice. It paired well with my tea. What a great addition to Downtown Santa Cruz! [Beware: I noticed only one of our two menus denoted food allergens! So if you have food allergies, make sure you ask before you order.]

Pros: Service was friendly, the setting was very romantic…read more Cons: I don't mind paying for a nice dinner, but (and I really hate to say this) the food was quite disappointing. We ordered: - pasta pork bolognese: Large portion but it was just ok. - miso salmon fillet: my SO enjoyed this. Wasn't overcooked so still nice and buttery. Nice flavor. Might just be me but rather small portion for around $30? With sides come out to about $40. I may be unfair to the here given the outrageous rent they most likely pay here. - broccoli entree: regular broccoli, no char (streamed?) and sauce was meh and didn't come with the fried garlic topping as mentioned. Honestly came off as (some) sauce and frozen broccoli for $13. Again, maybe it's the rent driving the prices up but I truly think they could do at least a bit better. - chocolate orange tequila, glass of wine: admittedly we are out of our depth to comment on these. Overall, we enjoyed ourselves and I don't regret going, but unfortunately most likely won't be returning. We've been so excited to go too :/

I recently heard this business was popping up and as I was a big fan of mutari chocolate a few…read moreyears back I knew I had to stop in immediately. This is the place to satisfy your sweet sweet chocolate cravings. Be it sipping chocolate or truffles or croissants or mochas! This is an indulgence you don't want to miss. Highly recommend the mocha and love the comfy couches. Would probably benefit from more seating but it is a pretty small space so I'm not sure how that would work. Apparently beer and wine to come! Sweet!

This place is awesome! The owner is super fun and chatty. The chocolate bars are top notch! (I'm a…read morehuge single origin chocolate nerd). The European sipping chocolate is thick and delicious. And the salads are delightful!

This review needs updating. I am now confident in saying that these ice cream bars ARE the best in…read morethe world and would love to be proven wrong (hey, IF a better ice cream bar exists it would have to be mind-blowingly good). It starts by them using quality ingredients. They use Marianne's vanilla ice cream, and Valrhona chocolate (a French chocolate used by gourmet chefs). You can choose milk chocolate or dark. They have a bunch of options for what you can include in your bar, including chopped almonds, caramel, and marshmallow. My favorite is #4: dark chocolate with caramel and marshmallow. It is insanely good. After each bite I am thinking "oh my god this is good." Frankly I am glad it is in Santa Cruz (and not in my town) or I might be 50 lbs heavier. I just had one yesterday and the experience is still vivid. Oh, and their chocolates (which also use Valrhona chocolate) are also damn good. And if you like brownies they've got you covered too. The guys running this place could not be nicer, which makes this place a joy to visit. This is really an exceptional place to come to and we are lucky to have it in our area. I am now a regular almost every time I am in Santa Cruz (and I come here often).

This place is amazing, which is a family owned business and amazing different chocolate experience…read more Freshly made chocolates. Very down to earth family. They also started selling Dubai Chocolate, which I felt amazing because they are all out. Have to comeback again to try that. The brownie and Milk chocolate ice-creams are must try (#9 and #10). Dark Chocolate must try are #1 and #2. Parking is behind the chocolate store and is easy to park. The service is quick and very helpful with the suggestions.

Cute lil shop In downtown. I got a large cone with bitter Carmel and dark chocolate with…read moremarshmallow fluff. Yummm very rich the Carmel was super good though still thinking about it ha. The fluff is worth it cause you know vacation! The service was fast and they were very kind. A must stop if in town yum Can't wait to go back I wish I got a picture sadly I didn't

I got mint chocolate chip mini scoop in a cup. It was definitely more minty than i expected. Strong…read moremint flavor and not much chocolate chip. Still worth it. Such a good vibe in there. Staff were friendly. They have various flavors/special flavors each day.

I had an amazing experience and wanted to give a special shoutout to Van! He consistently provides…read moreoutstanding customer service and always goes above and beyond to make customers feel welcome. Van is friendly, professional, attentive, and genuinely cares about making sure everyone has a great experience. Not only is the service excellent, but the food is fantastic as well. My personal favorite is the raspberry cheesecake, it is absolutely delicious and something I look forward to every visit. The combination of great food and exceptional service keeps me coming back. Highly recommend!

I've come here multiple times to get ice cream, which is absolutely delicious. This time I decided…read moreto try the peanut butter chip cookie and was a little disappointed. The cookie was pretty dry and crumbly, which I think is their style, but I personally didn't really like it too much. It also didn't have too much peanut butter flavor. Good amount of chocolate chips though.

Standard, busy store, friendly staff in Capitola with challenging parking. Unfortunately this…read morestore DOES NOT honor veterans...what a shame!!.

Ordered chocolates for my sister's birthday. She loved them! Cute packaging, easy ordering, and…read moredelicious.

Found Marianne's by accident. It reminded me of Bud's Ice Cream and Mitchell's Ice Cream in San…read moreFrancisco. Very crowded...packed parking lot...long line outside the door that moves very quickly. We grabbed a number and waited our turn...just a few minutes. Looked over the menu of flavors while we waited. So many flavors to choose from...the flavors we choose were very tasty. By the time we ordered, got, and paid for our ice cream, seats had opened up. Everything you want in an ice cream...rich, creamy, flavorful. We enjoyed every bit our scoops.

Love Marianne's from the grocery store, an even better experience is visiting their brick & mortar…read moreshop. My visit took place on a warm and sunny afternoon, lots of guests waiting to taste delicious ice cream. Lines moved fairly quickly. Remember to grab a number upon entering. Shoutout to Sophia (in training according to her name tag). She provided the best service I've had in a long time as she patiently explained their vast menu selection and exchanged genuine interactions. The double junior was the perfect size with 2 different flavors. I opted for the pistachio cardimon and the Oregon blackberry. I had a few bites of caramel/mocha flavors, which were slightly too sweet for me. Regardless, I feel you can't go wrong with any of their flavors and they provide samples. The inside is pretty cute with its retro flooring and wall decor. Plenty of tables to sit and enjoy. Small parking lot, but ample street parking around the shop. Looking forward to visiting Marianne's again next time I'm in Santa Cruz. #12/2026

Food was great , servers were great , very friendly and fast service . Loved the tram down to…read morerestaurant. Very festive

Beautiful environment and excellent food. The trolley to get up and down to the dining area is…read moresuch a fun experience. I always have a magical feeling when I dine there. 5 stars

We drove an hour to try this Pasticceria and we are glad we did and will be back. We felt like we…read morewere in Italy enjoying the best pastries, pizza and cafe late ever. The owners, two brothers from Italy are professional trained chefs. It is definitely a must visit cafe.

5/5: The rhum baba is excellent 2/5: The pistachio gelato is…read moreway too sweet. All I can taste is sugar. This might be ok for little kids who like super-sweet stuff, but it's cloyinging sweet for anyone over the age of 18. 2/5: The chocolate bomb uses very mild milk chocolate mousse. It is lacking the intense bitter chocolate flavor and complexity that I'm looking for.

Okay, I broke down and had to try the viral crunchy desserts. I went around 12:30 and there were…read moreonly 4 people ahead of me. They had all of the normal sized selection but had ran out of the minis. They said they made 75 mini cups and they all sold out in the first hour!! I didn't really know what to expect but they were really good. Pleasing to the eye, nice crunch and yummy inside sort of like mouse and jam. Definitely high quality and such a neat treat.

I like this little business in Capitol. The bakery looks cute. we try to support the small…read morebusinesses in Santa Cruz. I am a regular customer who buys macarons, honey cake, cookies. They no longer bake custom cakes. This surprised me just Well, since they state on their page that they make cakes for birthdays, weddings, and other celebrations... They took orders for cakes--or rather, you could place an order in advance. The service has become very meager. Prices High--above the level But the taste of the cake isn't the same anymore--it's not what it used to be. I am disappointed in this bakery.