Max Brenner started with one shop in Israel and a second in Sydney, opening the year I arrived in Australia. Now they’ve expanded to 50 shops around the world. I’m impressed with the way they moved on from the idea of selling high-quality interesting pralines, which would work in Brussels or Paris, but not really in Australia. They still sell chocolates but their main trade is the experience of chocolate, mainly in drinks which you can use to wash down other assorted chocolate treats.
I indulge occasionally so I know what I’m getting: a really high-quality and decadent chocolate drink, somewhat pricey, in an amusing mug: their marketing is really great. At this location, before seeing the movie Call Me By Your Name upstairs (which I liked a lot and my husband not so much), I had a cookie dough chocolate milkshake and my better half had a salted caramel hot chocolate.
Delicious. So, solid and strong marks for those… but I’m subtracting stars for the deteriorating round banquette. Yipes.
