The chocolate shop that was born in an apartment in Pétange

At the age of 24, Gabriel created his own chocolate shop, RG Chocolaterie.

Gastronomy

As soon as we enter Gabriel Mjahed’s apartment in Pétange, a delicate smell of chocolate comes to our nostrils. The chocolatier, who has just launched his own business, has a lot to do. “The days are intense. I work between 14 and 15 hours a day, but I don’t complain. My life goal has finally become a reality”, he smiles, while removing the molds of the last products manufactured, bars with 68% dark chocolate from Bolivia.

Hence the name of his chocolate shop, baptized “RG” for “Les Rêves de Gabriel” (“Gabriel’s Dreams”, in Portuguese). “My family always told me that I dreamed a lot. Here, my dream came true”, he continues. To make it happen, the 24-year-old, a true lover of the art of chocolate, made an admirable journey to gather all the necessary means.

Originally from the Paris region, more precisely from Nogent-sur-Marne, Gabriel confesses that he was a “very complicated” child. “I’m definitely not cut out for studies. That’s why I made the decision to stop studying after secondary school,” he recalls. At the time, three things animated his life: sport, cars and pastry. “So I got a CAP (certificate of professional aptitude) in pastry. But when I started working in a high-quality neighborhood bakery, I was a little surprised at how difficult this job was.”

As a teenager, Gabriel could not imagine earning a living in a sector that requires so much energy and consumes so much time. However, his overwhelming passion for chocolate led him down this path. “The Easter season arrived and that’s when I started creating chocolates. I gained a taste for it very quickly and strangely, those were the only moments when I didn’t neglect the task. I loved working with chocolate, making beautiful compositions, adding colors, do something personalized and unique”.

The young man, who was still a minor at the time, finally found his calling and went to get a new CAP, this time as a chocolatier. Gabriel was received and trained in Brittany, at Maison Henri Le Roux. The illustrious chocolatier master who gives the institution its name is none other than the inventor of salted butter caramel. A valuable opportunity for Gabriel who, every month, traveled between his home in Paris and Brittany. “I was lucky to be trained by very good people like Julien Gouzien who, unlike many others, was very pedagogical.”

After learning, he went to work at the no less famous Sève chocolate factory in Lyon. Afterwards, he landed at the prestigious Maison du Chocolat in Paris, quite an achievement for the young man. “It was an incredible experience where I learned a lot professionally, but also about myself. Working with Nicolas Cloiseau, voted Best Worker in France, was a truly formative experience.”

Gabriel stayed there for two and a half years. He was convinced that he wanted to open his own establishment. Using the contacts he made during his training, in particular Christophe Berthelot-Sampic, founder of Atelier C in Paris, he made his first trip to Mexico in order to get to know the backstage of cocoa farms.

Six months later, he returned to France and found a job at the home of Olivier Bajard, World Champion of Desserts and also named Best Worker in France, in Perpignan.

But it was 2020 and the health crisis forced Gabriel to resort to partial unemployment. Back in Paris, the young man lived on odd jobs, including a job as a courier for Uber Eats, to put some money aside.

And then, finally, there was light at the end of the tunnel. “I came across a job offer in Genaveh, Luxembourg, they were looking for a chocolate maker. I worked at Oberweis, as sous chef chocolatier. And then I realized that for a young person in this area, the Grand Duchy represented a real land of opportunities, that there was a place to occupy in the chocolate market.”

Alongside his professional experiences in Luxembourgish establishments, Gabriel took the first steps towards founding his own company, bought the first machines and started to create his first recipes. In December 2022, the Frenchman resigned from Oberweis and officially launched his company in early February.

“Chocolaterie RG” is surprising in many ways. Gabriel produces his chocolates in his own apartment in Pétange. “We had to rethink everything to have the right to manufacture at home, because the health regulations are very strict.”

Geometric shapes are Gabriel’s trademark, who already prepares Easter bunnies

Photo: Guy Jallay

Dark, milk and white chocolate bars, beggars (French sweet with chocolate, nuts and dried fruit), marshmallows… the young man can already boast of having a particularly complete range. Gabriel only works with the noblest cocoa beans, as he particularly wants to invest in aromatic notes. “I have chocolates from nine different origins. And chocolate is a bit like wine, it has different notes depending on where the cocoa was grown.”

“For example, I offer two chocolates created from fava beans from Madagascar.” One will have an aromatic banana note, while the other leans more towards red fruits. I also work with a supplier in Cuba. Its cocoa plantation has replaced an old tobacco plantation, so the chocolate will have an aromatic note of tobacco. It’s very good, I guarantee it “, he says.

Naturally, quality also means higher prices. The Frenchman is aware of this and explains that he sells his creations at 100 euros per kilo. Therefore, you can expect to pay around ten euros for each tablet. “Of course, it’s expensive, but you pay for quality. I already pay a lot for my cocoa and, to be honest, I don’t accept more margin than other chocolatiers. Besides, I don’t have the income of a big production lab.”

The signature of Chocolaterie RG is undoubtedly the geometric shape of Gabriel’s creations, including the Easter bunnies. “I also like to personalize tablets with, for example, a company name or logo,” he explains.

Photo: Guy Jallay/Luxemburger Wort

More than a simple chocolate shop, Gabriel is interested in sharing his knowledge with others. For this, he organizes workshops in his studio, where children and adults can learn to create chocolates. “I don’t just want to sell my products, I also want to help people discover them”, he assures.

The workshops will also be held on Saturdays at its pop-up shop in Esch-sur-Alzette (at 121 rue de l’Alzette), which opened on March 14th and will remain there until June 3rd.

In addition to the temporary establishment, Gabriel’s creations are for sale on the official Chocolaterie RG website. Bookings for the workshops can also be made online.

(Article originally published in Virgule and adapted for Contacto by Maria Monteiro.)

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