Artisan wants to tell the world Pinoys are great choco makers

CEBU, Philippines – Chocolate artisan Raquel Choa, the president and founder of Cebu-based chocolate firm Ralfe Gourmet, wants Filipinos to be known as great chocolate makers globally.

Now that her company is supplying "tablea" to the Manila Hotel where some of the economic leaders attending this week's Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Economic Leaders Meeting in Manila, Choa wants to tell foreigners that Filipinos have a place in the chocolate-making industry.

This week Choa's tableas will be used to make chocolate drinks at the said hotel, where some attending APEC leaders officially reside.

Tablea is a Filipino chocolate made from dried, cleaned and roasted cacao beans.

Choa started to participate in the APEC 2015 in Cebu last October when some of the APEC meetings were held here.

She personally welcomed the spouses of APEC ministers who attended the meetings here at her novelty restaurant, The Chocolate Chamber, which serve artisanal chocolate creations.

The Cebuana entrepreneur was also tapped by the government for her company to supply the giveaways for the participants of APEC's regional activities in Cebu, Iloilo and Bataan.

Serving APEC, she said, has in a way increased the awareness of foreigners on the ability of Filipinos of making chocolates.

And the "Chocolate Queen of Cebu" wants to sustain that by starting to export her products overseas.

She said she's already in talks with the Consul General of Guam for the possibility of putting up shop there. (FREEMAN)