Tarts & Truffles is an independent culinary consulting company owned and operated by Lisa Arielle Allen, based out of Paris, France, since 2017.
SIRET : 84442937300013
This website has been co-created using Squarespace by Lisa Allen and Rhodri Jones of The Ink Collective, c.2020.
Direct email : lisa@tartsntruffles.com
All images are the property of the owner and are the work of either Lisa Allen, Andrea Sunderland, or Maundy Mitchell.
No personal data of users is collected or stored, except in the case of purchases made using this website. Data is used for transactional purposes only and will never be shared or sold to any third party.
For a long time, chocolate occupied a strange place in professional kitchens. Even chefs who sourced their flour, butter, and other ingredients with care often relied on commercial couverture designed to be neutral, consistent, cost-effective and easy to work with. Chocolate was expected to behave, not speak.
Over the past several years, I have been refining and developing my knowledge, expertise and involvement in the craft chocolate world.
Since 2023 I have earned my level 2 certification from the International Institute of Chocolate and Cacao Tasting, trained with Chloe Doutre-Roussel and many others, have been attending cacao and chocolate trade festivals all over Europe and connecting directly with as many artisans, farmers, traders, educators, chocolate makers and chocolatiers, and many others within the community and among the supply chain whenever possible.
I’ve become very active with the Women of Cacao network and the IICCT Alumni France chapter, and have been judging for the Academy of Chocolate since 2019 and the International Chocolate Awards since 2025. The journey has been incredibly enriching and invigorating, and my head just bursts daily with chocolate knowledge and insights I need to share! I’ve even begun making my own micro lot craft chocolate to share with clients and friends.
As many of you know, most of my business thrives in the luxury travel & tourism industry here in Paris. Hundreds of visitors, tour and workshop clients and families have been experiencing this passion and fervor for the last several years. I love sharing these insights into the real world of chocolate and cacao, to help inform better consumer choices for personal health as well as supporting a more sustainable industry.
However, this spring I am delighted to begin a new partnership that allows me to host chocolate tasting workshops and seminars for locals as well! These workshops are meant to be affordable and accessible, in order to open the tasting of these incredible award winning craft chocolates from around the world to our Parisian community.
Please join me May 6th at 10:30am, or May 22nd at 4pm at 48 rue Greneta for these fun and informative (and delicious) chocolate workshops. Tickets can be purchased on the Tarts & Truffles website (see comments for mink.)
You can also reach out to me directly or via the website for private or corporate bookings.
A warm thank you to Andrea Sunderland for many of these wonderful recent photos.
Check out this chocolate-focused article
by Katy Salter in Preferred Travel magazine, featuring some quotes and tips from Lisa about Paris’s chocolate scene and highlighting our exclusive chocolate tours and workshops.
And if you’re planning a trip to London, don’t hesitate to contact Lisa’s friend, colleague and fellow international chocolate judge & taster Jen Earle. She offers several delicious tours and chocolate experiences in London. www.jenniferearle.com
« Embarking on a passion-driven journey can lead to wonderfully unanticipated destinations, as is the case with Lisa Allen, an inspiring chocolatier whose pathway to the lush streets of Paris is as rich and layered as the chocolate she creates. »
« Lisa’s journey into the pastry and chocolate world began after leaving her long-standing career as a visual and performing arts teacher. Following a period of teaching in Venezuela amidst its socio-political turbulence, she paused her educational profession to study at the renowned Ferrandi school of culinary and pastry arts, pursuing her passion for pastry and chocolate in Paris. «
Read the article
In late February, pastry chef Lisa Allen was invited by the Villa Albertine San Francisco cultural inititative of the French Consul General to host workshops and conferences in California as part of an educational intervention, combining language and gastronomy.
The classes were held from February 24 to 28, in partnership with the École Bilingue de Berkeley and the Lycée Français de San Francisco.Trained at the Ferrandi school in Paris, Lisa Allen is a recognized chocolate specialist and member of the Grand Jury of the Academy of Chocolate. Founder of Tarts & Truffles Paris, she shares her expertise by organizing workshops and tastings to promote French pastry and gastronomy. Her international career and her commitment to education make her an ideal ambassador for the French language and culture.
During her stay in California, she led hands-on chocolate making workshops for elementary school students, highlighting her expertise while illustrating the richness of the French language. She also used this time to teach the young students about how chocolate is made, some of the secrets of the rainforest and lead them in an introductory tasting of fine flavor craft chocolate. These sessions were made possible thanks to a collaboration with Dandelion Chocolate, who kindly lent her some necessary equipment. A conference for parents of students was also held at the École Bilingue de Berkeley, in partnership with the Alliance Française de Berkeley and the French department of the University of California at Berkeley.When she wasn't leading workshops with the elementary children, Lisa Allen spoke to groups of sudents at Cupertino High School and The Harker School in San Jose to introduce them to the importance of French in an international career path. These presentations were punctuated by chocolate tastings as well, offering students a unique sensory experience combining language and gastronomy.
This initiative is part of the "French for All" programs, which aim to make the French language more visible and accessible through educational and cultural activities. The Cheffe en Residence initiative falls squarely within the program's objectives, encouraging linguistic and cultural exchanges between the United States and France through educational and cultural activities, scholarships and training for French teachers.Read article in french on the Consulate General of France in San Francisco
