The Toothsome Chocolate Emporium Is Like Willy Wonka Gone Steampunk, And The Milkshakes Are W-I-L-D
Hello, friends! Crystal here, your resident theme park–loving nerd. Today, I come bearing some exciting, and very delicious, news: The Toothsome Chocolate Emporium & Savory Feast Kitchen has finally opened at Universal Studios Hollywood's CityWalk!
FYI, there are now THREE Toothsome Chocolate Emporiums in existence, the first one being in Florida at Universal Orlando and the second in Beijing, China.
For those who don't know, the Toothsome Chocolate Emporium is an original concept restaurant that features a kind of Willy Wonka–inspired Victorian steampunk design.
Crystal Ro / BuzzFeed
And while chocolate is obviously in the name, they actually serve plenty of non-chocolate dishes during brunch, lunch, and dinner. There are also many, many wonderful milkshakes (more on that in a second), desserts, and confectionaries, too.
Heck, there's even magical-looking cocktails.
Now, at the Universal Studios Hollywood location, there are actually three main areas you can check out at this dining experience:
First, there's the full-service restaurant, where you can get everything from salads, burgers, and steaks to more ~adventerous~ dishes like chocolate almond bread or coffee and chocolate s'mores brioche French toast.
Next, there's a Candy Smith that features a counter full of beautiful sweet treats like macarons (they have 30 different flavors!), truffles, and more.
This is also where you can buy nifty souvenirs, like elixir-like sweet syrups and even bowler hats, LOL.
Finally, there's the pièce de résistance, the Dessert Foundry, where you can get grab-n-go, over-the-top milkshakes that will make your jaw drop to the floor. I mean, just look at these:
Crystal Ro / BuzzFeed
Here's the entire milkshakes menu, BTW:
The flavors include:
Red Velvet
Brownie
Cookie Jar
Espresso Buzzzz
Key Lime Pie
Heavenly Hazelnut
Marshmallow Crisp
Strawberry Cheesecake
That's Mint
Pineapple Upside Down (which is vegan btw!)
As you can see, the milkshakes are quite pricey — ranging from $14.50 to $16 a pop. However, they are REALLY big (and each one comes with a huge topper, like cake, pie, or some other dessert). So, it's a lot of bang for your buck and you could easily share these milkshakes between two or three people.
Now, on to the taste test!!
Crystal Ro / BuzzFeed
Here are all the milkshakes I tried:
Brownie
What's in it: This milkshake features Dutch chocolate ice cream, milk chocolate swirl, and a whole brownie on top.
What I thought: As a lifelong brownie fan, this was the first milkshake I gravitated toward. To my surprise, the milkshake itself was actually very light and airy. I feel like most milkshakes are super dense and sometimes overly sweet. But this was so good! The brownie on top was massive and a little difficult to eat, so it's prob best to just pull this off and eat it with a fork if you try it.
Key Lime Pie
What's in it: This milkshake includes sour cream ice cream, sweetened condensed milk, lime juice, lime garnish, and a slice of key lime pie on top.
What I thought: This was REALLY good, and the slice of key lime pie on top was LEGIT. Honestly, SO GOOD. I really liked this shake, it wasn't too sweet (but not tart either, like you might think it would be). 10/10 would recommend.
That's Mint
What's in it: This milkshake features minty chocolate chip ice cream, Andes mints, and a mint chocolate chip ice cream sandwich on top.
What I thought: First of all, the fact that this comes with a HUGE ice cream sandwich is ridiculous (in a good way). Like, this really felt like two desserts in one! If you're a fan of mint chocolate chip anything, you will loooooove this. It's super refreshing, and just like the others, not overly sweet! It's just right.
Pineapple Upside Down
What's in it: This milkshake features brown sugar, caramel, pineapples, oat milk whipped topping, and a slice of pineapple upside down cake on top.
What I thought: I was really interested in trying this because I've never had a vegan milkshake before. And honestly, I wouldn't have ever guessed it was vegan if I didn't know beforehand. I love anything with pineapple, and this was so, so, so good. From the slice of cake to the milkshake itself, this struck the absolute perfect balance and felt like a really unique shake!
And which one was my favorite? It's a tough call, because I actually thought ALL of them were delicious, BUT if I had to choose only one to go back for, it would be the Pineapple Upside Down. I'm still thinking about it days later. But let's be real, I'd go back for all of these (and the others I didn't get to try!).
For more info about The Toothsome Chocolate Emporium & Savory Feast Kitchen, Universal City Walk, and Universal Studios Hollywood, visit www.universalstudioshollywood.com!
And to see even more, check out my BTS preview here:
@crystalrodraws Toothsome Chocolate Emporium at Universal Studios Hollywood has opened! 🍭🍫🍰 . . . #toothsomechocolateemporium #toothsomechocolatefactory #milkshake #willywonka #universalstudios #universalstudioshollywood #citywalk #foodie
♬ Pure Imagination - Kathleen
Note: BuzzFeed was provided the opportunity to try these treats for free, but was under no obligation to give a positive review.
