This artisanal chocolate shop has the best brownies in the world. And maybe that's because there is love in every step. Sustainably sourced from Ecuador, the cacao beans are fermented and ground locally in Dexter, then processed into the cocoa that is used to make the delicious brownies. But brownies aren't this store's main deal: the chocolate is center. Mendo's sells a variety of delicious dark and milk chocolates, as well as honey of the chocolate, which is the byproduct of processing the cacao into cocoa. It tastes like a delicious balsamic vinaigrette. The Dexter factory also offers tours and truffle and chocolate bar making classes. I have a friend whose birthday is coming up and I am going to take her to one of those classes. read more

77% hot chocolate with their homemade marshmallow? Chef's kiss! They have 77% or 100% so if you don't like bitter chocolate it make not be for you, but I loved the 77% I ordered with the marshmallow. They also have oat and almond milk in addition to whole milk. read more

Absolutely one of my favorite places in Ann Arbor! We did a truffle making class at their factory in Dextor and loved all their samples and of course the delicious truffles we made! Thus their Kerrytown shop has become a go-to for chocolate and gifts! Their 70% vanilla rustic is my all time favorite!! I love sending their box bundles as gifts! I also really love their drinking chocolate! Their shop is small but super cute with all their chocolates and products on display and so many seasonal treats. Their customer service has always been super friendly and helpful. Mindo is definitely a must for anyone in the area! read more

From Mindo (Ecuador) to (Dexter/Ann Arbor) Michigan! I first heard about Mindo Chocolate Makers from the Blom Meadworks Galentine's Truffle and Mead pairing workshop. It was during that session that I found out that Mindo was opening a retail location nearby in Ann Arbor. The truffles at the workshop were fantastic, so I knew I had to drop in. I picked up the following! They have ample single serve samples in the store, so it's totally worth a drop-in even though they have an online store! *Drinking Chocolate (8oz - $4.50) - They also have alt milks available (almond and oat!). This was satisfyingly rich, but not too thick and sweet like some drinking chocolates I've had. *Hot Chocolate Stick ($3.99) - bought these as a gift so didn't get to try it but super cute! *Luna The Bunny!!! - SO adorable; I love me some chocolate bunnies so I had to get some. It only comes out in March for Easter! I also love that Luna is a family name! *El Quetzal Brownie - apparently this the brownie that started it all! I didn't realize it was made with gluten-free flour (rice and oat) because it was so fudgy and delicious!! Love the pop of sea salt on top! Definitely hit the spot with some espresso! read more

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I've had many friends tell me to try Mindo but this was my first time giving them a try. I went to the Ann Arbor shop on my birthday. Btw your birthday is a great day to stop in because they give you a free brownie on your birthday! They also have fudge sickles which are perfect for this Summer Heat. They do chocolate making classes and tours although I have never been to one, but I would like to go. Definitely stop in and give them a try! read more

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Mindo Chocolate Makers soft opened a retail location in Kerrytown recently, right next to TeaHaus. They're a Dexter-based artisanal chocolate producer that sources their cacao from Mindo, Ecuador. I'd had their chocolate from farmers markets and in products from local bakeries before, so I was very excited to hear that they opened an Ann Arbor location. The products they have for sale include chocolate bars (in many flavors), baking chocolate, and brownies, as well as coffee and hot chocolate. They're super super friendly and have lots of samples throughout the store, and they're very happy to talk and explain things. I sampled their drinking chocolate, which was very fresh and tasted of high quality chocolate--it wasn't very sweet (which I liked), and the consistency prevented it from being too rich. Their Salt & Pepper 67% chocolate bar ($8.95) was delicious, and I highly recommend using their baking chocolates to elevate your baked goods (I love their 77% dark chocolate chunks). I've also tried their gluten-free El Quetzal Brownies ($5.25), which were very rich and had a fudgy consistency. I preferred the original brownie to the coffee toffee, but they also had other flavors like gingerbread. I definitely plan to be back for more of their products, and I'm looking forward to their official grand opening event. read more

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Wanted to leave feedback without leaving lower rating -- brownie tastes like a stick of chocolate butter. Can obviously taste the high quality chocolate and see all natural ingredients, but maybe dial it back and add some more flour instead?? read more

Mindo is a cute chocolate shop that's relatively new to the Kerrytown area. I'm glad they are selling some of their artisanal chocolate here in Ann Arbor! I found this shop while browsing on Yelp and learned that they are originally based in Dexter, MI. While they also sell coffee products, I'd definitely come here for their chocolates and that only. There's so many unique chocolate bar and baking chocolate offerings they have here that are available year round or seasonal. My friend and I were able to try some samples - definitely stop by to try out some delicious and high quality chocolates! SEA SALT & SESAME GARLIC DARK CHOCOLATE | SPECIAL EDITION - 13.99 This is the first of two samples we tried. My friend didn't really like this because he found the savory flavors too overwhelming and overly salty but I really, really loved it. I really appreciate the creativity and boldness when creating this chocolate bar. I'm sure there were risks of combining garlic with chocolate together, but this unique combination worked with my taste buds. Sadly, it's only available from April to July, so definitely grab it quickly if you can! APRICOT CARDAMOM MILK CHOCOLATE [LIMITED EDITION] - 13.99 This is the second of two samples we tried. The apricot taste is bold and evident upon initial bite and the cardamom trickles in after with a lasting after taste. I don't prefer milk chocolate since it's pretty sweet but it worked well with the apricot. Maybe I'm just biased because I prefer dark chocolate with everything. COFFEE TOFFEE | SPECIAL EDITION - 13.99 I bought this as a Mother's Day gift for my mom because she loves dark chocolate, coffee and toffee. This was perfect and she loved the crunch with every bite - the toffee is a mix of sweet and savory. She also doesn't love super sweet chocolates, so this subtly sweet chocolate bar was perfect for her. The chocolate is high quality and definitely worth it to treat yourself (or your mom)! POUR OVER - 4 Seems like they use their own medium roast blend (not sure if it's a single origin) here for the coffee. I thought it was just OK. Nothing spectacular about the tasting notes and it was pretty expensive since it was 8 oz. I would not get this again. When I come back, I want to give their "Drinking Chocolate" a try since I hear it's rich and flavorful, yet not too sweet. Their signature chocolate collection also looks very good - either a classic like the sea salt or something a bit more fruity like the blueberry! read more

Very delicious and healthy chocolates! Love the drinking chocolate! Coffee is delicious, the decaf is a wonderful dark roast. I recently discovered this place and I'm a huge fan! Highly recommended! read more

Fantastic responsibly sourced chocolate. I was delighted to find this store in Ann Arbor after my two visits to Mindo, Ecuador. I am also pleased to hear how they are contributing to the conservation of the biologically diverse choco rainforest as well as supporting local farmers. This place is worth visiting and supporting! read more

i dont know where to start! it feels like home soon as i walked in the door. the worker was helping me above and beyond. they have so many different chocolates to pick from, and not the varieties, the health benefits from some of these had me sold and i instantly felt the affects. ended my shopping spree with what he called his favorite latte. ended up being the best coffee I ever drank and I was euphoric and ready for the dayafter drinking it in nearly 30 seconds lol this will be a weekly stop for me from now on read more

The chocolate is good but it's pretty obvious good help is hard to find these days - either that or management instills a lot of pretension on employees. It's one thing to ask a premium for your product it's another thing to act like your customers are beneath you for expressing interest in it. You're supposed to have better, not worse, than average service when you're selling superfluous luxury stuff no one needs. Money spent elsewhere! read more

Fabulous and local. Delicious vegan options too! Highly recommend the vegan brownies!

Went in while exploring Kerrytown and now a must stop! Pleasantly surprised their entire store is gluten free, what a find for the gluten free! I got my coffee connoisseur Father the Coffee Toffee bar which he loved, plus a turtle brownie as he is gluten free. Said it was one of the best gluten free brownies he ever had. My gluten eating son loved it from the samples they have. read more

It is nice that there is an option for good quality chocolate in Ann Arbor. With that said, the service and the quality of the experience is definitely lacking. I was helped - for a lack of a better word - by 2 different employees. One captain looking at her laptop the entire time we interacted - less than 5 minutes. The other one was glued to her phone during the checkout process. I was a little bit surprised by that, so I paused until she have the time to give me her attention. Without missing a beat, while continuing to look at her phone, she told me - I am just copying and pasting something, but I'm listening to you. I'm not talking here about expecting any kind of special treatment, but I thought that looking at the person you're talking to is the very least one could do in any situation, especially in the customer-oriented industry. I purchased some treats and also a gift card. The gift card was literally a little paper receipt, that can be easily misplaced or crumpled. To say it was lacking in presentation and would be certainly not the most presentable (visually appealing) gift is an understatement. I understand that there might not be other options around, in which case, do go ahead and check them out, but comparing it to the chocolate places in Europe or Latin America, it's like heaven and earth. I do genuinely hope they will get better--Ann Arbor stands to gain a lot from a tasteful (pun intended) chocolate place. read more