Regent Street Hot Chocolate, Open Sundays: Pierre Marcolini

Pierre Marcolini's London flagship at 56 Regent Street opened on Friday 27 March 2026 and is open from 11am to 8pm Monday to Saturday and from 12pm to 6pm on Sunday. Time Out reported before the opening that the shop would have a dedicated hot chocolate counter serving the Brussels chocolatier's signature grand cru drinks, hot and cold. As the cold sets in at the end of October, it is the most central of the brand's London addresses for a cup.

Maison Pierre Marcolini was founded in Brussels in 1995 by the chocolatier of the same name, according to the brand's UK website. The house says it follows the bean-to-bar approach, controlling every stage of turning cocoa into chocolate, using beans from independent producers around the world. It has more than 40 boutiques worldwide, and Time Out noted that it celebrated its 30th birthday in 2025.

The Regent Street shop is the brand's flagship in Britain, and the company calls its opening part of its UK expansion plans. It joins a shop in Marylebone and counters at Harrods and Selfridges. The flagship is the place to see the whole range at once, from pralines and truffles to macarons and the marshmallow pandas, with the hot chocolate counter as the reason to stay a little longer.

The house describes its pralines as combining Belgian chocolate with ingredients such as Piedmont hazelnuts and Moroccan pink berries, and it also makes truffles and macarons. That breadth is the advantage of the flagship over a department-store counter: you can try the hot chocolate, then choose bonbons to take home, all in one visit. The shop is also the brand's most visible address in London, on one of the city's main shopping streets.

According to Time Out, the counter serves the house's signature grand cru drinks, both hot and cold. During the launch weekend, a Pierre Marcolini Loves London kit included a cup of what the shop called grand cru nectar, its name for the hot chocolate. That launch offer has ended, but the counter remains the centre of the shop for anyone who wants to drink chocolate rather than only buy it.

Order the hot version on a cold day and take it slowly: a single-origin hot chocolate is about the chocolate's own flavour rather than sugar or toppings. If you are new to dark chocolate, ask the staff which drink is the mildest before you order. And if the weather is mild, the cold version keeps the chocolate's flavour without the weight of a hot cup, which suits an afternoon of shopping on Regent Street.

At launch, Time Out reported a macaron carousel circling the shop with lemon tea and pistachio macarons, and London-exclusive flavours such as strawberries and cream. On the UK website, a four-piece macaron box from the My journey through Japan collection costs £14.50 and a twelve-piece box £32.00. The Malline Moon Festival box is £29.00, and a pistachio praline tablet is £12.90.

Smaller gifts are easy to pick up with a cup: a single Dark, Milk or White Marshmallow Panda costs £4.90, a trio £13.90, and a five-piece Petits Bonheurs hazelnut box £9.00. For a serious gift, the 3-Drawer Signature box is £140.00 and the 4-Drawer Collection box £180.00. The 2026 advent calendar is on pre-order on the website, so ask at the shop if you want one before December.

For making chocolate drinks at home, the brand sells cooking chocolate boxes at £8.75 each, with names such as Peru Whisper, Silk Reverie and Intense Ember. The website calls Intense Ember the all-rounder of the range and suggests Peru Whisper for a light mousse or a molten-centre fondant. Melting a few pastilles into hot milk is an easy way to take the shop's chocolate home for a winter evening, even if it will not match the counter's cup.

Regent Street is busiest on Saturday afternoons and in the weeks before Christmas, when its lights are up. For a quieter cup, come at 11am on a weekday, when the shop opens, or on a Sunday at 12pm. Note that Sunday closing is at 6pm, two hours earlier than on other days. If you only want to buy chocolate for home, the Marylebone shop and the counters at Harrods and Selfridges are alternatives with their own opening hours.

An honest view: this is a boutique with a drinks counter, not a café with a long menu, so do not plan a full afternoon tea here. Come for a cup, a box of macarons and a look at the range. If you want a sit-down hot chocolate with cake, pair your visit with a café elsewhere in Soho or Mayfair after shopping. With a cup in hand, the walk down to Piccadilly Circus or up to Oxford Circus takes only a few minutes, and the curve of the street is at its most handsome at dusk.

From Piccadilly Circus, walk north along the curve of Regent Street, the Nash-era street lined with Portland stone terraces, and the shop is a few minutes along. Regent Street divides Soho from Mayfair, and a few minutes into Soho is Golden Square, a quiet Georgian square that is a good place to sit with a takeaway cup. On the Mayfair side, the streets lead toward Savile Row and Bond Street.

From November, Regent Street's Christmas lights stretch over the road, and evening walks between Piccadilly Circus and Oxford Circus are at their most festive. The shop's 8pm weekday closing leaves time for an after-work visit. Piccadilly Circus station on the Bakerloo and Piccadilly lines is the nearest Tube.

Address: Pierre Marcolini, 56 Regent Street, London W1B 4DY. Hours: Monday to Saturday 11am to 8pm, Sunday 12pm to 6pm. Opened 27 March 2026. Hot chocolate: grand cru drinks, hot and cold, at a dedicated counter; no drink price is published on the website. Prices from the UK online shop: four-piece macaron box £14.50; twelve-piece box £32.00; Malline Moon Festival £29.00; pistachio praline tablet £12.90; Marshmallow Panda £4.90; Petits Bonheurs five-piece £9.00. No phone number is listed for this shop. Nearest Tube: Piccadilly Circus. The Karpo APP can find a Soho dinner after your cup.