A World of Chocolate in Beattyville

By Ann Curtis | April 22, 2022

Sometimes the greatest escape is just around the corner. Introducing The Chocolat Inn & Café, a charming bed-and-breakfast in Beattyville, Kentucky, that offers worldly accommodations with European pastries, homemade artisan chocolates and roasted coffees, yet is grounded in a traditional Kentucky confection.

After traveling the world and finding love while living in Japan, Beattyville native Dustin Cornett returned to Kentucky with his wife, Mai, in 2014 for what they thought would be a short visit. For Mai, it felt like home. Soon, the couple was finding their future with his Grandmother Rosemary’s decades-old butter cream candy recipe, which she would make for family and friends at Christmas.

“Only part of the recipe was written down, and because my grandmother had dementia we had to fill in the gaps with a lot of trial and error,” says Dustin. Over the next three years, Dustin started experimenting with making his own chocolate confections under the name Purple Lady Confections, a nod to his mom—who loved purple and was known locally as the Purple Lady. The logo was designed with small roses in honor of his grandmother, Rosemary.

Worrying that a niche chocolate shop might not fare well in a rural community, the couple decided to expand their offerings to include specialty roasted coffee and European- style pastries. Without any prior experience in baking or roasting, the couple dedicated themselves to perfecting both.

Soon, an unexpected opportunity arose to renovate a rundown 1960s motel, and after two years, in 2017, the eight-room Chocolat Inn & Café opened. Each suite or room is themed after a favorite city Dustin has explored: New York, London, Rome, Paris, Mumbai, East and West Berlin (adjoining rooms), and Osaka, to honor Mai’s Japanese homeland. The inn is a favorite not only among locals, but for tourists visiting Red River Gorge and Natural Bridge State Resort Park, which is located about 20 minutes away.

“We offer a truly unique and unexpected experience,” Dustin says. “We take care to offer a gourmet menu with ethically sourced ingredients. We are one of the only bean-to-bar chocolate makers in the state and we only use ethically sourced cacao beans.”

The café is open to the public and serves specialty coffees including espressos, lattes, frappes and more. Occasionally, a light lunch menu is offered. Guests are welcome to relax with their coffee on the inn’s back patio.

As restrictions are lifted and people feel more comfortable traveling, the Cornetts look forward to scheduling more events like specialty dinner, wine and chocolate pairings and classes.

In January 2022, Dustin hosted the first Craft Chocolat Challenge at the inn. Entries included 33 chocolate bars from four different continents representing 18 regional cacao farms spanning 11 different countries of origin. A panel of 14 judges from around the country (including this writer) ranked the entries in the following categories: taste, texture temper, mold design and packaging.