Tucked away behind Woodstock’s village green is a sweet little spot that should be on everyone’s list for Valentine’s Day—or really, any time of year. Owned and operated by two Michelin star restaurant-trained chefs, EJ Bonbons & Confections specializes in exquisitely crafted treats that reflect a dedication to the art and craft of gourmet chocolate and confectionery. With everything from chocolate bonbons to ice cream made in-house, a stop into the shop will get anyone into the gift-giving mood—whether it’s just a little treat for yourself or your dearest love.
Opened in 2021, EJ Bonbons & Confections is owned by chef and Woodstock native Emily Kellogg and her husband, chef Pierre Pouplard. After Per Se, the three-Michelin-starred restaurant where both chefs met and worked, shut down at the beginning of the pandemic the two decided to move upstate to Woodstock and start their own business focusing on bonbons, which Kellogg had perfected in her years as a pastry chef.
The star of the shop’s glass display case is the rows upon rows of delicate, hand-painted chocolate bonbons, which are available in dozens of flavors—two of which, salted caramel and hazelnut, just took home awards from the Academy of Chocolate this year. There are also wrapped soft caramels in flavors such as simple sea salt and tangy passion fruit; chocolate-covered almonds and hazelnuts; a traditional French fruit paste known as pâte de fruit, and chocolate bars studded with candied nuts and dried cherries.
They also offer house-made hot chocolate, and this summer they rolled out their own chocolate, strawberry, and vanilla ice cream and sorbet made with their own mango and passionfruit purées by the half-pint and pint, as well as dark chocolate-dipped ice cream bars and sorbet bars.
For chocolate’s biggest holiday, Valentine’s Day, they have been hard at work crafting new bonbon flavors, including berries and cream, cassis champagne, mixed berry, lychee rose, and honey lavender using honey from Kellogg’s mom’s beehives. Several of the flavors will be available in a nine-piece box of heart-shaped bonbons as well as single three-inch hearts.
Most of EJ Bonbons & Confections’ products are also available for shipping online, so you can deliver a joyously indulgent “I love you” direct from the Catskill Mountains any time of year.
