Inside Choco Town, a sweet interactive experience that opens on Thursday
Chocolate lovers, pack your bags and head to Choco Town, a colorful and interactive new attraction that has popped up in the Oakland Mall in Troy.
Open Thursday, the family-friendly Choco Town is open until the end of April in the space formerly occupied by Sears. Inside, energetic employees guide your experience, which promotes mindful tasting, chocolate appreciation, and overall positivity. The whole visit takes about an hour.
Organizers gave some members of the media a preview of the 15,000-square-foot attraction on Wednesday. Here’s what we learned.
What does Choco Town look like inside?
It’s a somewhat guided tour through a world of chocolate lovers. It’s brilliantly lit with lots of colors, sounds, textures, and even smells. One of the main features is to mark each location on a paper map with a rubber stamp. If you do, you’ll get an extra chocolate at the end. (Most of the things you do in the experience are rewarded with a piece of chocolate.)
There are many exciting nooks and crannies for all ages, but especially for the little ones. Older kids and adults alike will have a blast with the many perfectly positioned thumbnails for photo ops, selfies, and TikToks shooting. Kiss a giant gummy bear, dance in the disco or climb inside the mirrored kaleidoscope.
Think of it as the Candyland board game, Candy Crush app, and Willy Wonka’s Chocolate Factory all rolled into one.
How much chocolate do you get?
You’ll get plenty of it, but you won’t binge on it. Most of what is distributed are one-bite pieces used for tasting and sensory experiences across the country. You can get a dozen sample bites from all six sensory experiences, but there are more opportunities to get wrapped gold coins.
Get your card stamped and you’ll have another chocolate to take home, and guests who meet their “taste personality profile” will receive a few pieces based on their personal preferences.
At the sensory stations, there are ingredient lists for those who need to be careful due to allergies.
Where does chocolate come from?
Most of the attraction’s chocolate comes from Belgian luxury brand Callebaut. There is a retail store at the end of Choco Town that sells bars from Dwaar, a Michigan company that makes handmade, ethically sourced artisanal chocolate. The commercial part of Choco Town also has a cafe and sells some of the things you tasted during the experience and other goodies like chocolate covered bacon and hot chocolate dips.
Who can enter?
All ages are welcome, but everyone 3 or older needs a ticket. Guests must be at least 16 years old to attend without a parent or guardian.
Tickets are $25 for adults, $20 for seniors and students, and $18 for ages 4-12. Group discounts and private bookings are also available.
When is it open?
Hours of operation are 11am-6pm Thursday, 11am-8pm Friday, 11am-7pm Sat and 11am-2pm Sun. Enter from inside Oakland Mall, 412 W. 14 Mile in Troy, using the mall entrance near Hobby Lobby.
Learn more and buy tickets at thechocotown.com/detroit.
Twitter: @melodybaetens