Olivier Willems Chocolatier

Olivier Willems is Ostend’s own chocolatier, with more than 30 years at the craft and a shop with an open workshop on Groentemarkt, right in the centre. In the new building you can see the team at work, and the chocolatier says new creations go straight from the workshop to the counter.

The sea runs through the range. The signature PoppoLou Rocks praline pairs the local PoppoLou beer with açaí and a pinch of sea salt; the Ensor box turns James Ensor’s masks into four pralines; and Ô Cacao is a cocoa gin made with the Ostend Distillery from Willems’s own bean-to-bar beans, with matching gin pralines. There are also praline boxes from 6 to 48 pieces, single-origin bars, marzipan sticks and chocolate shells, plus ice cream and soft serve in summer.

The shop cites Gault&Millau’s Chocolatier of the Year 2025 title and a gold Tablette d’Or from the French Croqueurs de Chocolat guide. Pick it for chocolate that genuinely comes from Ostend. The webshop pauses shipping in the warm months, but collection in the shop stays possible.

Olivier Willems took part in the 2026 edition of Ostendaise: North Sea Food Fest, the free summer food festival on the Zeeheldenplein, with its festival creation, Grand Dame à Cacao.