World's Best Chocolate Makers Lure Valentine Shoppers With a Romantic Display of Sweets and Chocolates

Belgian chocolate is a year-round star favorite, and may be a stereotype but is always in fashion as a Valentine's Day treat. Brussels' central square Sablon is lined with the country's most famous chocolates makers. On Tuesday chocolate makers were busy preparing heart-shaped cakes and chocolate boxes to lure lovers into their shops. Carefully crafted red heart-shaped chocolates, pink cakes adorned with litchi and raspberry and cakes with sugar leaf roses were some of the products on sale.

Chocolate maker Wittamer, established by the Wittamer family in 1910, produced the 'Forever cake' -- a chocolate cake that combines raspberry chocolate leaves with chocolate mousse and a light cream. The cake, described by the shop as "dynamic and intoxicating" is spiced with Sichuan pepper to "guarantees lovers a spicy evening".

"Valentine Day is about showing your love and sharing your heart, so you give a heart!," customer Meliheh Mousavizadeh said. For many chocolate is a safe bet, with no risk of getting it wrong. "You really can't go wrong giving a woman chocolate, most of the time, unless she's maybe allergic to chocolate," U.S. tourist Ken Sickles said.

And for some, Valentine Day is just the perfect occasion to give yourself a present. "It's a long story, in fact, chocolate and me. Just for the taste of it. It makes you dream sometimes just having the chocolate in your mouth. You can just make it last and then you are away and you can escape a bit," Jonathan Bloch said.

According to the Museum of Cocoa and Chocolate in Brussels, the Mayans first cultivated cocoa beans in 2000 B.C. and used them to produce chocolate in the form of a bitter drink. Chocolate first came to Belgium in 1635 when members of the Belgian royal family began purchasing it. Belgium's global chocolate reputation is because Belgian chocolate makers were one of the the first to use 100% cocoa butter to make chocolate.