Bayard’s Chocolate House

Thought it was a cute little place with upscale chocolate, so stopped in for a Christmas present. The «get a ticket to be helped» is cute, but j stand with everyone grossed out by chocolates standing around. And what, no free samples?
Also, word to the wise — try before you buy! Bought a family favorite, raspberry creams, for the present… It was gelatinous and the dark chocolate itself was overly sweet and tasted commercial. Oh boy, was that a let-​down. Wish you could return candy that’s opened and found to be gross — it’s probably no more germy than the myriad of chocolates left out all day.

Mike and I were in town for a convention and this cute little chocolate shop was a stone’s throw away from the hotel, so we figured we’d pick up a few sweets!
We got one piece each of: Peanut Butter Milk Chocolate, Vanilla Buttercream, Chocolate Buttercream, Sea Salt Milk Chocolate Caramel, Maple Cream and Raspberry Cream. Mike also got a mixed box of liquor-​filled chocolate cordials of various flavors (Brandy, Irish Cream, etc.) including some non-​liquor options like Cherry and Crème Brulee.
On the whole, their chocolate is not special, but tasty. By far my favorite flavor was the Vanilla Buttercream — it reminded me a smoother, less gritty Cadbury Cream Egg. Surprisingly the Chocolate Buttercream was very different from its Vanilla counterpart and had a grainy consistency — I wasn’t a fan. The Maple Cream tasted like Maple extract (as opposed to the real syrup) and was very smokey and liquid-​y. The Raspberry Cream fared better — sweet and fruity with a consistency matching the Vanilla Buttercream. The Peanut Butter Milk Chocolate was average, and Sea Salt Milk Chocolate Caramel was hard, chewy and not very salty. Mike has had the cordials before and was a big fan — I thought most of them were okay, but nothing to write home about.
Note that they do keep all of the chocolate hanging out (uncovered!) — so if that sketches you out, be aware. The staff is very friendly and they will let you sample pretty much anything you want. We were offered samples of the Mint Discs (mint extract-​based candies resembling Andes mints) which I felt were very basic.
I don’t intentionally purchase chocolate much, but this was a case where I do feel like I almost would have rather gotten my monthly free chocolate from Godiva. I was only visiting NJ, but if I lived there, I was return almost exclusively for the Vanilla Buttercreams and pass on everything else.

You walked in, be sure to grab a ticket from a machine before u get yelled at. Once inside, I noticed a portion of store has chocolate exposed in the open and people are allowed to see but not touch. I am not a fan of buying anything not sealed especially the products were exposed on the counters. People can easily mess with them while there no staff members around to watching. Lastly, we got ripped off by buying 6 chocolate covered strawberries for 10.00. This place should be reviewed by health department. Do not go there and waste you $.

I went in here really quickly to buy some chocolates for a client meeting, having no idea what to expect. The only chocolate I bought for myself were the sea salt milk chocolate vanilla caramels. I don’t even really like chocolates all too much but MAN OH MAN these were bloody fantastic! They had just the right touch of sea salt, caramel, and vanilla. They weren’t too sweet and left me so sad that I only bought a small pack of 6 (I’m from California). I didn’t get to try the chocolates I bought for the client but they seemed to really enjoy them as well. Next time I come here, I’m bring boxes home!

How have I not yet written a review? This place is wonderful. You walk in and immediately want to buy everything in the store. The layout is beautiful and easy to browse. I love their chocolate covered pretzels — perfectly salty and sweet, I have yet to find a better chocolate covered pretzel. Their dark chocolate is rich without being too bitter, and their milk chocolate is delightful. They have very good hours, which is great when you are a busy person!
The service is wonderful. If you are caught wandering for a bit too long, someone will be by to help you out. The staff is very knowledgeable of their product and great at helping you out.
PS their Christmas decorations are so fun!

The chocolate is good BUT the service is AWFUL. They also close early and refuse to help customers who show up 15 minutes before the closing time of 9pm posted on the front door. I called the manager to report this incident and she basically accused me of lying saying there’s no way this could have happened and then hung up on me. I WILL NEVER GO BACK and I will be telling all my friends and family to never go there again. Plus you can get much better chocolate at Aunt Charlotte’s in Merchantville. You have been warned!

With Easter coming up, I was disappointed to see that the smaller Bayard’s Chocolate in Marlton had closed, only about a year after it opened, as that one was perfect for me to run a lunch time errand. Not to fret, however, because I could still check out the Cherry Hill location, which I had actually never been to.
I suppose I arrived at an off time, which is lucky for me, because I know how busy the shop in Cinnaminson can get just before the holidays. I took my time browsing around the shop. When we would get things for Easter at the Cinnaminson location, we would only ever go for very specific things, and I never actually realized how much they have hear. Chocolate covered nuts, mints, fruits, … well, chocolate covered EVERYTHING. Everything looked so good, and I had to refrain from overdoing it. I was pretty good and kept my eye on the ball.
I ended up with exactly what I went in for: a box of buttercreams for my mom (her fav) and 2 hollow milk chocolate eggs for my Godchildren, as well as only a couple of extras — some gummy bunnies and other fillers to put inside the eggs, and a bag of fancy roasted nuts for my hubby (hubby doesn’t eat sweets, so creating his Easter basket this year was an interesting project). The gentleman who was helping me did a very nice job printing the kids’ names on the eggs.
I really need to keep Bayard’s in mind for more than just Easter gifts. They have so much in the store and really, regardless of the time of year, what hostess wouldn’t appreciate a box of fresh chocolates from a local chocolate house?

Bayard’s has four locations offering a unique, nostalgic experience particularly around the Holidays to Southern NJ residents and the greater Philadelphia area.
Bayard’s chocolate houses date to the late 1930s but in recent years the company was sold to James Candy Company of Atlantic City, NJ. James itself dates back to the late 1800s as a taffy maker. Based on recent trips to the Cherry Hill store, not much has changed to the time-​proven formula despite the change of ownership. Bayard’s four locations comprise roughly $ 2 million+ of annual revenue, that’s a lot of candy and for good reason.
Bayard’s prides itself on its long-​standing traditions of fresh fine ingredients, hand-​made chocolates and build-​your-​own hand picked assortments — gift-​wrapped or not. Some other traditions are more unique — Santa and/​or his helpers can sometimes be seen waving on the front lawn of the Cherry Hill store as they greet drivers on busy Rt 70 around Christmas. Some of my earliest memories of Christmas are associated with Bayards as my family tradition involved a trip for several pounds of chocolate for gifts and family treats on Christmas Eve.
Known especially for chocolate covered pretzels, my favorite is their non-​pareils, both dark and milk chocolate. The store, a stately converted house, is superbly decorated around the Holidays. The floors creak when you walk, the chocolate is displayed with great care. Bayard’s has also kept up with the times offering sugar free chocolates and other non-​chocolate hard candies. Bring your sweet tooth but be sure not to forget your wallet. That one pound box could run you $ 20+. Highly recommended especially around Christmas.