Haute Chocolate
Chocoholics, take note. This year, the Langham Boston
hotel’s seasonal Chocolate Bar at the sky-lit Café Fleuri is
more decadent than ever. Christened CB3 (Chocolate Bar
Three) by pastry chef Alex Luna, the desserts at this
edible attraction are divided into three categories: dark,
milk and white chocolate. Sixty new confections have
been added to the taste-all-you-can buffet, which fea-
tures the likes of freshly toasted brioche paninis with
hazelnut and chocolate spread, milk chocolate straw-
berry mousse cake, white chocolate Bailey’s macaroons
and dark chocolate and mango torte.
The more adventurous can choose from the recently
unveiled chocolate fusion add-on menu, feasting on
dishes such as sautéed shrimp Provençal with sweet
garlic and cocoa butter. It can all be washed down with
drinks and cocktails ranging from traditional chocolate
tea and wicked hot chocolate (infused with cinnamon,
nutmeg, white pepper and Ancho chili) to milk chocolati-
nis and banana split martinis.
For those seeking sweet slumber, the hotel offers the
Chocolate Experience package. Along with overnight
accommodations, guests are promised an enticing perk:
first on line for the Chocolate Bar. Doubles start at $285.
The Chocolate Bar at the Langham Boston is open
every Saturday from noon to 3 p.m. through June 23.
The cost is $28 for adults and $14 for children. Reserva-
tions are recommended. (250 Franklin St.; boston.langham
hotels.com; 617-956-8751)

AMERICA’S FAVORITE FLAVOR 5 2% of U.S. adults said they like chocolate best, according to a recent survey. The second favorite flavor was a tie (at 12% each) between berry flavors and vanilla.

It’s a Free-for-All

6 5%
of American
chocolate eaters
prefer milk
chocolate.
SOURCE: CHOCOLATE
MANUFACTURERS
ASSOCIATION

The price of culture just got cheaper in Baltimore. The Baltimore Museum of Art (BMA) and the Walters Art Museum both have eliminated their $10 admission fees for the first time in more than two decades. Art lovers can now visit the museums for free year-round, thanks to funding from local government and private and corporate donors. Plans to make free admission permanent are in the works.

Tickets are required for certain exhibitions, including the upcoming “Pissarro: Creating the Impressionist Landscape” (Feb. 11 through May 13) at the BMA. The museum is the only venue in the Northeast to host the exhibit. The BMA’s permanent collection of 19th-century modern and contemporary art includes the largest holding of works by Henri Matisse in the world, as well as masterpieces by Pablo Picasso, Paul Cézanne and Vincent van Gogh.

The Walters is renowned for its collection of world art from ancient Egypt to 20th-century Europe, and counts among its treasures Greek sculpture, Roman sar-cophagi, Asian ceramics and the largest collection of medieval ivories in the country. Currently, “Untamed: The Art of An-toine-Louis Barye,” the foremost animal sculptor of the 19th century, is on exhibit (through May 6). For more information, visit artbma.org or thewalters.org.