Featured Retailer of the Month
Bavarian Chocolate Haus is an "Old Fashioned" candy store where all of the chocolate confections there are made by hand, and the owner is usually in the kitchen, making new creations.
The Bavarian Chocolate Haus was created in 1991 by Ed and Doris Gazda, whose love for chocolate and people quickly made them a favorite destination for chocolate confections by both tourists and locals alike.
Current owner and chocolatier, Scott Ferrari, has continued this tradition, purchasing the business in 2008 and expanding the confectionary offerings, adding on-line access and opening a second store in Bridgton Maine in 2017.
The adage that you “Never work a day in your life if you love what you do” could be Scott’s moto - he loves chocolate, and the many visitors that come to the store every year. If you’ve never tried their delicious chocolates, you’ll be sold after the first bite! If you are a regular, seasonal or yearly visitor, you are a friend who Scott appreciates and thanks for your ongoing support and business!
Ferrari noted that when he and his husband (and co-owner) David Hallett were buying the shop 16 years ago, they spent the summer learning how to make everything from store founders Doris and Ed Gazda, who were originally from Vermont and started the business in North Conway 33 years ago.
“David and I would come up every weekend for five months to learn how to make everything in the shop,” said Ferrari, who admits he has been a chocoholic since he was a kid so it was an easy apprenticeship.
Although David is renowned as the chocolate truffle maker in the family, Ferrari is the principal chocolatier for the business. Asked about his second vocation of making chocolate, Ferrari grinned and said, “I loved what I did as a cardiac perfusionist for 20 years — I was the person who ran the heart-lung machine that kept the patient alive while the surgeon did his or her specialty.
“But then I retired seven years ago to make chocolate full time. ... I love this, too — I like doing something that’s purely about making people happy with chocolate — including myself!” Ferrari said.
