Carlos Galarza is like the Ecuadorian Willy Wonka. On any given day, customers can walk into Ecuadorian Chocolate Factory on North Bell Boulevard to find him grinding and refining cocoa beans in his stainless steel machines or drizzling hot, liquefied chocolate into bonbon molds. He urges customers to try samples and explains his chocolate-making process with enthusiasm.
He even grows his own cocoa beans. Galarza and his wife, Isabel Rizzo, own a plantation in Ecuador, where they cultivate cacao trees on 200 acres of land. Workers harvest cocoa beans that are shipped to Cedar Park so Galarza can use them in a number of treats, such as chocolate bars and fruit-filled bonbons.
“The idea is to use the least amount of ingredients,” Galarza said in Spanish. “It is a very responsible job, from the plantation to delivering the products.”Galarza also aims to be organic. As of two years ago, the plantation’s workers no longer use pesticides on their products, said Stefanie Palomino, who does marketing for the store.“His goal is to be organic, and not just for the certification so that we can have organic chocolate, but also [to offer] something that is a lot safer and more sanitary and good for us to eat,” Palomino said.
Galarza, Rizzo and their three daughters moved from Ecuador to Cedar Park a year and a half ago. By selling chocolate made from products in Ecuador, Galarza said he gets to show people in Cedar Park what Ecuador has to offer and support his home country.“I love [the U.S.], but I want to do a lot of things for my country,” Galarza said in Spanish.
Aside from selling chocolate, Ecuadorian Chocolate Factory offers wine-pairing events and kids’ workshops.
Since opening his store a year ago, Galarza said he has received an excellent response from the community. Galarza is still working to learn English, but he serves both English-speaking and Spanish-speaking customers. He said despite sometimes encountering a language barrier, he does his best to make a personal connection with customers. They appreciate that, he said.“I cannot ask for more,” Galarza said in Spanish.
Ecuadorian Chocolate Factory
251 N. Bell Blvd., Ste. 110, Cedar Park
737-802-9651 I ecuadorianchocolatefactory.com
Hours: 10 a.m.-8 p.m. daily
