The first bite of a Dahlia Chocolates bonbon starts with a subtle, delicious crack. As your teeth pierce the delicate layer of expertly tempered chocolate, a velvety filling awaits. The cacao’s rich, bittersweet notes invite you to savor every flavor and hope it lingers just a little longer.
But Dahlia Chocolates brings more than decadence. It pairs fine confectionery with Filipino advocacy.
In Forrest Gump, the line goes, “Life is like a box of chocolates. You never know what you’re gonna get.” For Dahlia Chocolates, every treat tells you exactly what you’re getting. Each confection is carefully crafted, supporting local cacao farmers and proving that world-class chocolate can be made right here in the Philippines.
“At the heart of Dahlia Chocolates are two things: making world-class chocolates using Philippine cacao, and education—educating our farmers about the potential of Philippine cacao, and also our consumers,” says Grace Aquino, owner of Dahlia Chocolates.
The brand is more than a dessert destination. It is committed to mindful, locally-rooted consumption, encouraging customers to reflect on where their food comes from and who it supports. Even the name carries meaning.
“Dahlias are known to be resilient flowers, and they grow all around, in different terrain[s], different temperatures,” Grace explains. “I picked the name Dahlias because it’s kind of like my love letter from my heart to the Filipino people, because we’re known to be resilient.”
“Philippine cacao can be world-class. The problem is that many farmers aren’t trained in European standards for chocolate-making or post-harvest processes.”
The brand mirrors the experience of the communities it uplifts. Like the dahlia flower, Filipino cacao farmers adapt, endure, and produce excellent-quality beans despite the challenges they face.
Dahlia Chocolates is intentionally Filipino, but its craftsmanship draws on years of global training. Before starting the brand, Grace was a pastry chef and chocolatier in the United States, where she honed her skills and high standards for quality. Now, that knowledge is redirected toward local development.
“I knew that we had good cacao beans,” she says. “Philippine cacao can be world-class. The problem is that many farmers aren’t trained in European standards for chocolate-making or post-harvest processes.”
To close this gap, Dahlia Chocolates collaborates directly with farmers, acting as partners rather than buyers. Most of the local farmers they source from have received training in post-harvest processes according to Philippine standards.
The secret to maximizing Philippine cacao, the brand believes, is education. By teaching farmers key technical processes, they improve product quality and confidence in local beans. Grace notes that private initiatives alone cannot guarantee long-term change.
“My hopes for cacao farmers in the future [are] something similar to a lot of the countries in South America, wherein the government has fully invested in the cacao industry, and they’re standardized, and they set a fair market price for the farmers so the farmers are protected, insurances are offered,” she says.
Supporting and investing in Philippine cacao improves both the beans and the farmers. Better-quality beans produce better chocolate, challenging the assumption that imported chocolates are intrinsically superior.
Dahlia Chocolates reframes Filipino chocolate as world-class. Its assortment of handcrafted chocolates and bonbons showcases this mission, alongside French macarons that reflect Grace’s classical training. Each piece tells a story of flavor, Filipino identity, and national pride.
Beyond selling chocolate, Dahlia Chocolates hosts monthly hands-on workshops. Participants gain a deeper understanding of Philippine cacao and the labor behind each chocolate bar. Through these classes, the brand cultivates advocates rather than just customers.
The saying “Life is like a box of chocolates” suggests ambiguity. It implies a variety of flavors with no origin story, which is not at all the case for Dahlia Chocolates. For Grace, every treat has meaning and can be traced back to the Filipino identity. Every piece tells a tale of development, education, and, most importantly, national pride.
Visit Dahlia Chocolates at Copenhagen Main Residences, A.C. Cortes Avenue, open daily from 10 AM to 8:30 PM, and taste the story of Filipino cacao for yourself.
Photography Kyrra Kho