Free Chocolate Day!

I love going to San Francisco, but frankly, it can be expensive! Even before lunch and activities, the price of gas, parking, or BART can take a significant chunk of change. So I keep my eye out for deals and fun free things to do around the city, taking out some of the expense.

It comes as no surprise--I am a huge fan of chocolate. So when I saw that the TCHO factory on the Embarcadero offered tours, I immediately looked it up. And guess what? They were free! Sitting at Pier 17, mere steps from the famous Ferry Building, the TCHO chocolate tour was impossible to resist. Paired with a wander around the farmer's market, this free activity was a wonderful way to spend an afternoon.

courtesy of the Examiner

The Ferry Building Marketplace is always an awesome place to visit (and try free samples), but on Tues, Thurs, and Saturday mornings it also hosts the The Ferry Plaza Farmer's Market. Each day hosts different vendors, so if you are looking for a prepared lunch, you do get variety! We went on a Thursday, since TCHO only offers tours on weekdays. Parking was relatively simple--there are lots for a $15 flat rate, but if you can find a meter, the price for a few hours is only around $5 (they do take cards). The Embarcadero BART station is also close. 

courtesy of Foodists

We started at the market, with a plethora of tasty treats to chose from. Permanent residents include the Acme Bread Company, Cow Girl Creamery, and the famous eatery, The Slanted Door (which now has Out the Door, a much more affordable to-go option). I opted for a delicious salted caramel vegan doughnut from Pepples, along with a coffee from Peet's (though the Ferry Building also serves Blue Bottle). Will chose "Tasty Salted Pig Parts" from Boccalone.

courtesy of Pepples

After a bit of window shopping, we strolled down to the TCHO factory for our 2pm tour. For those of you who have not tried TCHO, they are an artisan chocolate company that tastes, creates, and manufactures all of its chocolate at this one SF factory. Their products are sold locally,  as well as nationally through Whole Foods. TCHO's hook is that they are the "new American chocolate," distancing themselves from brands such as Nestle and Hershey. 

The tour was an hour long and broken in to three parts: presentation, tour, and tasting. The presentation was very informative, and I learned a lot about the science and history of chocolate making. I also learned some cool facts about the company (which help make up for the prices of the treats they offer!). They work closely with their growers around the world, and are proud to be both fair trade and slave free. The tour was a bit short (though there is less to see at the factory stage), but the tasting was really neat. They have devised a system to taste and savor chocolate, and it was pretty fun. We also had a really nice tour guide, I admit we did use our coupon a snag a few extra chocolate treats!

chocolately chocolate, my favorite! courtesy of TCHO

 So if you are feeling somewhat peckish, and want a fun, cheap way to spend an afternoon by the Embarcadero, consider these two hotspots. Definitely a place to take your out-of-town guests!

Price: Budget
TCHO factory tours are at 10:30am and 2pm Mon-Fri, and can be booked here. Reservations do need to be made online ahead of time, as there is sometimes a waiting list.