Originally published on metropolis.co.jp on October 2013

Sometimes mini candy bars just don’t cut it in terms of Halloween treats. For something more authentic, try some rustic sweets from the new Caffarel shop in Mark IS (5-3-1 Minato Mirai, Nishi-ku, Yokohama. Tel: 045-319-6667. Nearest stn: Minato Mirai). The Turin-based confectioner is from of a long tradition of Italian chocolatiers that started when Columbus brought cacao beans back from the New World. Chocolates in a mushroom shaped jar (¥1,575) make for a quaint gift and cute bite-sized sweets shaped like ladybugs and bees (¥210) are sure to bring a smile to the face of trick-or-treaters. For a more mature sweet tooth, try the campana (¥1,575), a chocolate pound cake filled with hazelnut infused Gianduja ganache that melts into a rich sauce when warmed.

Caffarel Mark IS is open 10am-8pm Mon-Thur, and 10am-9pm Fri-Sun.