Michael & Jacky Recchiuti — Recchiuti Confections
“There's something very communal about opening up a big box of chocolates...”

Episode 42 of Menu Stories is our last of the year! Since we are just days away from Christmas and Hanukkah at the release of this story, we’re naturally focusing on chocolate. Michael and Jacky Recchiuti, who hail from West Philadelphia and Hawaii, respectively, met in San Francisco in the '80s and have now been making chocolates together for over 20 years. The result is local favorite Recchiuti Confections.

We've seen a number of husband-and-wife teams on Menu Stories, which makes us think it helps to have a strong bond between business partners. This duo complements each other perfectly and take us through a tour around the world as they teach us about the intricate differences between the flavors of chocolates from different regions and terrains.

Listen to the episode to hear the full story and be sure to subscribe to Menu Stories to get more episodes like this one delivered to your inbox.

Chocolates wait to cool Fruit jellies dusted in sugar crystals One of Recchiuti's cats lounges in the office. The Recchiutis in their kitchen in the Dogpatch The chocolate factory is at work in the Dogpatch
A chocolate factory worker monitors the forming chocolates at Recchiuti Confections Melted chocolate pours onto shaped pieces to start the process
Chocolate pours out of the fountain Chocolate balls are cooled by a fan in a copper spinner
Michael Recchiuti shows a portrait that was created of him and Jacky Recchiuti pulls out a tray of chocolates
Dark chocolate, sliced into thin squares
Each chocolate is carefully styled A chocolate worker places chocolates carefully
Trays of chocolates cool and wait to be packaged A tray of chocolates with orange rind Recchiuti workers garnish chocolate pieces Recchiuti truffles Thin chocolate crisps cool on wax paper before they're bagged Orange and chocolate combines to create a perfect burst of flavor
A girl lays the classic Recchiuti truffle onto a tray Caramels twisted up and ready to be boxed
White patterns are painted with sugar onto the tops of the chocolates Geometric shaped chocolate truffles shine in the light Recchiuti chocolate and burnt flavor caramels The white chocolate, gold-flecked hearts of Recchiuti Confections are a holiday favorite Michael Recchiuti in the cold temperature storage of Recchiuti's confection shop The lead confectionary chef at Recchiuti works with Michael on a daily basis Chocolate making is a team effort at Recchiuti.

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