Ghirardelli Chocolate Company facts for kids
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| Subsidiary | |
| Founded | 1852 San Francisco, California, US |
| Founder | Domenico "Domingo" Ghirardelli |
| Headquarters | San Leandro, California, US |
| Products | Chocolate products |
| Parent | Lindt & Sprüngli |
The Ghirardelli Chocolate Company is a famous American company known for its delicious chocolate. People often just call it Ghirardelli. It's owned by a Swiss chocolate company called Lindt & Sprüngli.
The company was started by an Italian chocolatier (someone who makes chocolate) named Domenico Ghirardelli. He moved to California after working in South America. Ghirardelli Chocolate Company officially began in 1852. It is the third-oldest chocolate company in the United States!
Contents
History of Ghirardelli Chocolate
How it All Started
Domenico Ghirardelli was born in Italy in 1817. His father imported interesting foods. Domenico learned how to make candy and chocolate when he was a child.
When he was 20, Domenico moved to Uruguay with his wife. There, he worked in a chocolate and coffee business. A year later, he moved to Lima, Peru, and opened his own candy store.
In 1847, Domenico's neighbor, James Lick, moved to San Francisco, California. He brought about 600 pounds of Ghirardelli's chocolate with him! Domenico stayed in Peru and kept running his store.
Moving to California
In 1849, Domenico heard exciting news about the California Gold Rush. People were finding gold in California! He decided to sail there to try his luck.
After looking for gold for a bit, Domenico opened a general store in Stockton, California. He sold supplies and sweets to other miners. His tent-based store was one of the first shops in that area.
A few months later, Domenico opened a second store in San Francisco. This store, opened in 1850, was his first business in that city. He also had a general store in Hornitos, California, from 1856 to 1859. This was another gold rush town where he made his chocolate recipes even better. You can still see what's left of that old store today!
Early Days in San Francisco
In 1851, a big fire in San Francisco destroyed Ghirardelli's business. Just a few days later, his store in Stockton also burned down. But Domenico didn't give up!
In September of that same year, he used what he had left to open the Cairo Coffee House in San Francisco. This business didn't do very well. So, Domenico opened a new store called Ghirardely & Girard.
Soon, he was making enough money to bring his family from Peru to California. He changed the company's name to D. Ghirardelli & Co. In 1852, he brought in 200 pounds of cocoa beans. The company officially became a business in 1852 and has been making chocolate ever since!
In 1853, the business moved to a new spot. By 1855, they needed an even bigger place to make chocolate. So, the factory moved to a new location, but the office stayed where it was.
By 1866, the company was bringing in 1,000 pounds of cocoa seeds each year. They sold chocolate, coffee, and spices to places like the United States, China, Japan, and Mexico. By 1885, they were importing a huge 450,000 pounds of cocoa seeds!
In 1892, Domenico Ghirardelli retired from leading the company. His three sons took over. Two years later, on January 17, 1894, Domenico Ghirardelli passed away in Italy at 77 years old.
Ghirardelli from 1900 to Today
By 1900, Ghirardelli's company was only selling chocolate and mustard. They had sold their coffee and spice businesses. Over the years, the company grew and moved into different buildings. This helped them sell their products in new places and make more money.
In 1965, San Francisco named Ghirardelli Square an official city landmark. Many of the old Ghirardelli buildings are there. Two years later, the chocolate production moved to San Leandro, California.
Since the 1960s, Ghirardelli has also focused on its restaurant side. They sell delicious ice cream sundaes with their famous hot fudge chocolate sauce. In their early menus from the 1960s, they had five "Nob Hill Sundaes." These sundaes were named after famous places or people in San Francisco. Today, they offer 11 different sundaes!
In 1963, the Ghirardelli Chocolate Company was bought by another company. Later, in 1986, Quaker Oats bought that company, which meant they also owned Ghirardelli. In 1992, Quaker Oats sold the Ghirardelli Chocolate part of the business to a group of investors. Then, in 1998, Lindt and Sprüngli from Switzerland bought Ghirardelli Chocolate Company. It became a part of their larger company.
How Ghirardelli Makes Chocolate
Ghirardelli says it's one of the few chocolate companies in the United States that controls every step of making its chocolate. They are very picky about their cocoa seeds! They might reject up to 40% of the seeds they receive to make sure they only use the "highest quality" ones.
First, they roast the cocoa seeds themselves. They remove the outer shell and roast the inside part, which are called nibs. Then, they grind and refine the chocolate until it's super smooth. The particles are made to be tiny, about 19 micrometers in size!
Ghirardelli Products
Ghirardelli makes many different flavors of chocolate. You can buy their chocolate in bars or in small, square-shaped pieces.
Ghirardelli also sells chocolate products to other businesses, like chocolate drinks and flavored sauces.
See also
In Spanish: Ghirardelli Chocolate Company para niños
- Abuelita, a brand of Mexican hot chocolate
- Ibarra, another brand of Mexican hot chocolate
- List of bean-to-bar chocolate manufacturers
