Dilettante Chocolates served quality chocolates for over forty-five years. The flavor profiles of Dilettante’s confections are a part of an ongoing process. Dilettante's recipes received iterations from four generations of confectioners to create true chocolate craftsmanship. The word Dilettante was specifically chosen to represent these many chocolates and confections. To fully understand the meaning of Dilettante, its history must be traced back to before Dilettante opened its doors in the year 1976.
Before becoming the founder of Dilettante Chocolates, Dana Davenport was described as a Dilettante. After working for years in French restaurants, his peers used the word to dissuade him from pursuing his endeavor to become a chocolatier. Dana did not feel discouraged, however. To him, Dilettante was a beautiful Italian word, one he would try to reclaim as his own.
The word Dilettante is most commonly used to describe a dabbler or an amateur, but Dilettante Chocolates embraces its original definition. In the third edition of Webster’s Dictionary, a dilettante is defined as “An admirer or lover of the arts.” This definition was used in the mid to late 1700s before the French Revolution, when the meaning began to change. People created a negative connotation around dilettantes, viewing them as incapable of working in the arts professionally.
Regardless, Dana and his successors admired the defining quality of dilettantes: the love for their craft. Dilettante Chocolates honors the passion and the liveliness of people described as dilettantes.
The first Dilettante Chocolates location opened in Seattle’s Capitol Hill Neighborhood in 1976 and started to change people’s idea of what a
Dilettante was. The company committed to its chocolate craftsmanship by using the highest quality cacao possible, pairing it with all-natural ingredients, and finally creating each chocolate by hand.
For decades, Dilettante has been proud to share its craft with people from around the world. The care for its work led to countless memories shared by Dilettante’s supporters and their loved ones. Looking forward, Dilettante Chocolates seeks to continue to give new meaning to its name.
Those curious to experience Dilettante’s renowned chocolates can do so by exploring its most popular confections. Below are Dilettante’s hand-dipped chocolate truffle assortments, vibrant chocolate-covered fruit, and bite-sized TruffleCremes. Try any of these unique creations and taste Dilettante’s unmatched quality.
