Lucullus Hong Kong - SAR's No. 1 Gourmet Chocolate Shop?

Lucullus is a high-end gourmet chocolate brand in Hong Kong.
In addition to chocolate, Lucullus Hong Kong offers cakes , confectioneries, and snacks as well as premium coffees and teas.
The first Lucullus shop opened more than four decades ago in The Peninsula Hotel in Tsim Sha Tsui.
There are currently more than 20 Lucullus shops scattered around Hong Kong Island, the Kowloon Peninsula, and the New Territories.

In This Post

The Back Story

I was going to have dinner with a friend at a Japanese restaurant, but i wasn’t sure of the location. So we agreed to meet at Exit D2 of the nearest MTR Station.

But I arrived about 40 minutes early. So when I spotted a Lucullus Hong Kong outlet across the street from the exit, I thought, “What a perfect spot to wait.”

I texted my friend and told him there was no need to rush. I would be sitting in the Lucullus Hong Kong outlet on the ground floor of D2 Place One, the building where the restaurant we were going to have dinner at was located.

I knew I was gonna have dinner, so I exercised excruciating self control and admired but didn’t order any of the assorted cakes and confectioneries on display. Instead, I restricted myself to an iced latte (HK$35, US$4.50).

After ordering, I discovered that if you ordered a “set”, which could include a beverage and a pastry, the pastry cost just a little bit more than if you ordered just the beverage.

OMG!!! I didn’t need to eat it now. I could save it for breakfast the next day. Oh, well. Too late now . . .

Dining In vs. Taking Out at Lucullus Hong Kong

The shop had a clean and welcoming environment. There were a few stools at the window and two small tables to the side. I enjoyed my iced latte while I waited for my friend to arrive. When he did, he took a seat, and we chatted for awhile. As I said earlier, there was no need to rush.

On our way out, I stopped to admire the pastries, and I saw there were scones – including Earl Grey Scones – MY FAVORITE!!!

I decided to buy one to take home for breakfast, assuming I would pay full price for the scone. After all, I had already paid for the latte. These were two entirely separate transactions!

And this is when the unexpected happened

As I was reaching for my wallet, the very delightful young lady at the cash register informed me that I didn’t need to pay full price for the scone, I needed only to pay the difference in the price between a latte and a set.

The difference was HK$13 (US$1.70), if I remember correctly, which was about one-half the price of the scone.

This was totally unexpected, and my friend was amazed. I mean, seriously!

Plastic vs. Glass

And then there was that other issue – when I said I was dining in, my beverage was served in a glass rather in a plastic cup. I didn’t have to ask.

Not only that. Although it was fully 40 minutes before closing, I was politely informed that they closed at 7.30 pm. In other words, if you’re planning on spending more than 40 minutes here, you might want to get that to go.

Coffee House Duopoly

When it comes to coffee houses, Hong Kong is a duopoly of Starbucks and Pacific Coffee. According to the Lucullus website, there are more than 20 Lucullus outlets scattered across Hong Kong Island, the Kowloon Peninsula, and the New Territories.

To put that in context, there are more than 160 Starbucks outlets and more than 100 Pacific Coffee outlets in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region.

Lucullus is a time-honored local brand. Its first outlet was opened in the venerable Peninsula Hotel more than 40 years ago. So sad that there are so few outlets.

The Verdict

Is Lucullus Hong Kong’s best chocolate shop? That’s a tough call. But I must say, I was impressed with the cleanliness and the comfort of the surroundings, the professionalism of the staff, and the quality of the product.

If only there were more outlets scattered about town, I would be a regular customer.

I give Lucullus Hong Kong an enthusiastic thumbs up!