Frances and Ginger’s father was a World Bank economist, and they grew up in Northern Virginia. (They still live in the same area.) They’ve been business partners since 1984, when at ages 29 and 22, they opened their chocolate shop. When not slinging sweets, each has a side gig penning books, including the 2011 memoir Chocolate Chocolate, which they cowrote about their experience building the business.
The Shop
Located in an office building on Connecticut Avenue near M Street, Chocolate Chocolate is a local sugar-fix institution. You can buy both novelties (chocolate models of the White House and Capitol) and serious confections (high-end assortments from Belgium).
The New Books
Frances’s That Lonely Spell is a collection of 26 essays about her family, her childhood, her Korean American identity, and other aspects of her life. Ginger has written a kids’ book, The Hundred Choices Department Store, inspired by their mother’s tales of struggle in North Korea before the Korean War. Each, in its way, explores how life can be bitter and, yes, sweet.
This article appears in the March 2022 issue of Washingtonian.
These Sisters Hawk Chocolate and Write Books
Frances and Ginger Park treat us to both confections and compositions.
The Sisters
Frances and Ginger’s father was a World Bank economist, and they grew up in Northern Virginia. (They still live in the same area.) They’ve been business partners since 1984, when at ages 29 and 22, they opened their chocolate shop. When not slinging sweets, each has a side gig penning books, including the 2011 memoir Chocolate Chocolate, which they cowrote about their experience building the business.
The Shop
Located in an office building on Connecticut Avenue near M Street, Chocolate Chocolate is a local sugar-fix institution. You can buy both novelties (chocolate models of the White House and Capitol) and serious confections (high-end assortments from Belgium).
The New Books
Frances’s That Lonely Spell is a collection of 26 essays about her family, her childhood, her Korean American identity, and other aspects of her life. Ginger has written a kids’ book, The Hundred Choices Department Store, inspired by their mother’s tales of struggle in North Korea before the Korean War. Each, in its way, explores how life can be bitter and, yes, sweet.
This article appears in the March 2022 issue of Washingtonian.
Most Popular in News & Politics
What It Felt Like for a Virginia Marching Band to Win Metallica’s Contest
Meet the 2023 Washingtonians of the Year
What’s IN and OUT in DC Restaurant Trends for 2024
Introducing 8 of DC’s Most Stylish
Washingtonian Magazine
May 2024: Great Getaways
View IssueSubscribe
Follow Us on Social
Follow Us on Social
Related
13 Major Concerts and Music Festivals in the DC Area This Spring
Mary Timony on Her Emotional New Album, “Untame the Tiger”
The Beatles in DC: A New Exhibit in Maryland Looks Back on Early Beatlemania
Northern Virginia High School Wins Metallica’s Marching Band Competition
More from News & Politics
Former Fiola GM Convicted of Murder Is Now in a Netflix Docuseries
These 5 DC Traffic Cams Are Issuing the Most Tickets Right Now
Farewell to Crystal City Underground, the DC Area’s Strangest Mall
Washington DC’s 500 Most Influential People of 2024
Inside the Urgent Effort to Preserve Black Newspapers
Maryland Has Renamed an Invasive Fish. Will It Matter?
Meet the 2024 Washington Women in Journalism Award Winners
In the Doghouse: Kristi Noem and 5 Other Canine Political Scandals