China has its own day for lovers, Qi Qiao Jie (sometimes called the Double Seven Festival because it falls on the seventh day of the seventh month of the Chinese lunar calendar), which is on Aug 6 this year. But the Western St. Valentine's Day, on Feb 14, has found a following. And that means chocolate, often in heart-shaped boxes with the words "I love you." It is a sweet time for people who work with one of the most romantic foods on earth.

An employee displays boxes of chocolates sold in her shop in Beijing's Xidan shopping area on Friday. (Photo: China Daily)
It started a few weeks ago for Jean-Luc Vasseur, executive pastry chef at the Kempinski Hotel in Beijing's Lufthansa Center. In search of special treats for his customers, he rose at 6 each morning, said goodbye to his wife and worked almost 16 hours with chocolate powders, molds, thermometers, ovens and colorful candy tins.

He has prepared two events for Valentine's Day - a sweet feast for lovers, including silky chocolate fondues and fountains, and a chocolate-making session to teach romantics how to create desserts for their dearest.

At the hotel's Kempi Deli, which some local websites rank as one of the most popular bakeries in Beijing, Vasseur and his team members created a chocolate tree adorned with heart-shaped macaroons and chocolate pralines.

"Chinese customers especially love chocolate with peanuts, mangoes, raspberries and strawberries," Vasseur said. "But they have become more adventurous and are trying new flavors, so innovation is very crucial for attracting them."

Customers pick up chocolates at a supermarket in Xuchang, Henan province, over the weekend. The cost of chocolate candy is likely to rise soon. Wholesale prices of cocoa have increased due to political unrest in Cote d'Ivoire, the small West African country that is the world's largest exporter of cocoa beans. (Photo: China Daily)
After his first taste of Chinese hot pot with sesame paste as seasoning, Vasseur created Sesame Bitter Chocolate Gateau, which is a French bitter chocolate mousse combined with roasted sesame. Life Week Magazine ranked it among the 100 most creative dishes of 2009.

Louis Liu, assistant general manager of Hotel Kunlun in central Beijing, is courting his customers with a chocolate-themed afternoon tea through Feb 28. Hundreds of chocolate pastries and pralines as well as French chocolate are available for tasting.

"Chocolate is a gift you can give anyone at any time and never make a mistake or be inappropriate," Liu said. It's also a marketing essential, he said. "Just like a superior cocktail lounge or a cigar bar, chocolate has become another selling point as well as a compulsory segment for a world-class hotel."

And not just any chocolate. Liu said the most popular type among Chinese gourmets is called 72 percent chocolate, meaning it is 72 percent cocoa. Chocolates from France, Switzerland, Belgium and Germany are also high on the shopping list, he said.

VietNamNet/Xinhuanet