It’s a grey and overcast Autumn day when I walk down Buitenkant Street in the East City, but it’s all-but-impossible to miss the storefront of Rapt, where a riot of rainbow colours beckons curious locals into a Wonka-esque fantasyland of cocoa, chocolate and happy excess.
Of course, another way to find Rapt is that it’s located right opposite TRUTH. Coffee Roasting, the iconic coffee destination created by David Donde that has gone on to be voted amongst the world’s best coffee shops. But if TRUTH. revels in its grungy steampunk aesthetic, Rapt is a rebellion in whites and rainbows. Indoors it’s brightly lit, with a multi-coloured tongue rolling out of one wall as an invitation to sit. In the pops of colour, polka-dotted décor and take-away packaging Roy Lichtenstein and Andy Warhol would feel right at home here.
‘Rapt is all about guilt-free indulgence,’ says Donde, as he walks me around the new store. ‘We created Rapt as a fun space that’s about joy and nostalgia. At TRUTH. and here, our way of thinking is around conscious consumption. It’s about real food. It is about making the healthy choices more desirable. And if you’re going to make healthier food more desirable, where else to start than a candy store?'
Donde bills Rapt as a grown-up candy store, but in truth it’s a space for all ages. And by candy, he mostly means cocoa. And by cocoa, he means high-quality imported Callebaut, or beans they import from the island of Sao Tome, roasting the beans themselves to create high-quality bean-to-bar chocolate using imported milk powder caramelised for natural sweetness.
There are four different experiences on offer within Rapt, starting with the Choc-O-Lattes just inside the door. Here an eternal fountain of Callebaut chocolate forms the base of a tempting array of hot chocolate drinks that will ward away any Cape winter’s day. Try the one with toasted Italian meringue on top, and thank me later.
Next up is the Sudden Nitrogen Ice Cream, where a row of stand-mixers are used to whip up ice cream a la minute. A cup of carefully-crafted ice cream custard is mixed with a dollop of liquid nitrogen and – hey presto – your cup or cone of ice cream is ready. It’s theatrical, and delicious all in one fell scoop.
Or step along to the Build-a-bar, where Rapt’s own bean-to-bar chocolate is used for you to create a bespoke bar of chocolate – two sizes and four flavours on offer – with a range of toppings. The bar takes about 10 minutes to harden, and while it does you’ll want to step along to the cabinet of Bon Bombs.
Crafted by talented chocolatier Kaylah Greenberg, the selection of chocolates and pralines are a playful take on adult treats, whether it’s the chocolate-coated marshmallow on a crisp biscuit base – a Chocolate Log, reinvented – or the croissant-shaped chocolate that surprises with… well, you’ll have to find out for yourself.
They’re all available in gift boxes that channel Rapt’s playful, colourful character that blends nostalgia, innovation and sustainability into one playful package. Also look out for hands-on chocolate workshops that Donde describes as ‘Build-a-bear meets Clay Cafe… but you eat what you make’. I can’t wait.
Did you know... TRUTH. tops our list of Cape Town's best coffee shops?