When a company as large as Starbucks makes a bet on “Capturing the spirit of ancient drinking chocolate and the European chocolate house tradition” you can be sure they’ve done their marketing homework. Cast as a “drinkable dessert,” how does Chantico stand up to the competition?

Katrina Markoff, founder of Vosges, is in tune with the times. Perhaps best among her peers, Katrina has learned the lesson taught by Howard Schultz and Starbucks: She’s not just selling chocolate, she’s selling lifestyle—chocolate as a fashion accessory. You go into a Vosges boutique and you get a lesson in flavor as well as the option to buy apparel, handbags, and videos. Oh, and chocolate, too.

There is a danger in this, especially if the chocolate does not live up to the expectations that are set. Virtually without exception, the chocolate challenges most people’s conceptions of what flavors chocolate can be paired with; sadly, the execution is not always up to the idea.

A little bit of France in a cup in this shore community in Westchester County, NY. Owned and run by Angela Ingrao, Cocoa is a small and very cute shop that serves up childhood favorites such as housemade turtles with confections from Fritz Knipschildt. Also on the menu: Some of the best hot chocolate you can find on this side of the Atlantic.