Melted-chocolate fountains are making a splash in Seattle
It's the chocolate fountain — a cascading stream of pure decadence in the form of smooth, melted chocolate. Into it, frequently ecstatic guests dip assorted tidbits, such as strawberries, banana slices, pineapple, pretzels, cookies or cubes of cake.
"It's definitely hot right now," said Seattle social-events planner Stephanie Solomon, who has used rented chocolate fountains at weddings, bar mitzvahs and corporate parties.
Though not cheap, the chocolate fountain has replaced ice sculptures and champagne fountains at some events as a way to boost the buzz factor and set guests to talking and laughing.
"People love it. They get all excited. It turns every adult into a child," Solomon said. "People approach it, they walk around it and ask what it is." When they figure it out, "there's chatter in the room."
Initial reactions range from delight to apprehension, as when one well-dressed woman nervously approached her first dipping experience at a wedding-planning event in Woodinville on Sunday. She quickly caught on, however, and came away with a chocolate-covered strawberry and a smile on her face.
"I like this," said another beaming sampler, Sheila Manuguid, who had come to the Bear Creek Country Club to try out food options for her upcoming wedding reception. She put a chocolate fountain on her list of possibilities.
The chocolate fountain is a device that warms and melts the chocolate and pumps it upward through a vertical cylinder. Spilling over at the top, the chocolate descends smoothly over tiered, stainless steel forms, somewhat resembling a wedding cake. Collected at the bottom, the chocolate is recycled through the fountain. Good-quality chocolate is essential, say operators, but it can be semi-sweet, dark, milk chocolate or even white chocolate.
Until you look closely and see that the chocolate is moving, it appears solid, confusing some partygoers, who don't know where to dip. Once they get the hang of it, there's lots of smiling.
Kim and Mark Wilenski started Seattle's first chocolate-fountain rental business, Just Dip It, about two years ago, after seeing one of the devices in a bridal magazine.
"We wanted one for our wedding," Kim recalls. Finding none in Seattle, they sent away for one and bought it outright. After the wedding, they began renting it out.
More recently, another local rental company, Sweet Fountains, has sprung up. Based in Federal Way, it has fountains and employees in both the Seattle and Portland areas.
Though popular on the East Coast, chocolate fountains have been making a big splash in Seattle only in the past six months or so. Just Dip It has fielded fountains for about 20 events so far this year, and has another 40 lined up through the end of 2004, said Kim Wilenski. Sweet Fountains has been doing about two events per week each in Seattle and Portland, said Rick Smith, co-owner with his wife, Zeena Smith.
The companies supply the chocolate as well as the fountain, while a caterer usually provides items for dipping.
Both rental companies send attendants with the fountains to set them up, monitor dipping and clean up afterwards — a challenging task, given the 10 pounds or so of leftover melted chocolate that must be removed from the machine and disposed of.
"The cleanup can be very interesting if you don't know how to do it," said Rick Smith. "That is the absolute worst thing about it."
Rental costs range from about $400 to $475 for a couple hours' use, depending on the company and the size of the fountain, which can range from 29 inches to 44 inches tall.
Not everybody is in love with chocolate fountain. One Seattle caterer said he would avoid using one, thinking they sound unappealing. A key concern is "double dipping," the unsanitary practice of dipping a strawberry or other item into the chocolate a second time, after already taking a bite.
The rental companies said their attendants watch to make sure that doesn't happen. They said most party guests put their dipped foods on a plate and eat them elsewhere, away from the fountain. Still, at least one guest was observed double-dipping at Sunday's sampling event, though that was the exception.
Judith Blake: 206-464-2349 or jblake@seattletimes.com