In 1999, Oberweis was named “Fournisseur de la Cour” (royal warrant of appointment), a title that requires the collection of receipts of orders by the royal family for ten years. Jan Hanrion/Maison Moderne

In 1999, Oberweis was named “Fournisseur de la Cour” (royal warrant of appointment), a title that requires the collection of receipts of orders by the royal family for ten years. Jan Hanrion/Maison Moderne

The couple met during Pit’s apprenticeship at Namur, where Monique worked as a shop assistant. Their first shop in Luxembourg City was small, but their sweet delights quickly gain popularity and soon Oberweis was delivering them all across the country by moped.

The shop in the Grand-Rue opened in 1970 and was for a long time the most iconic address for tea time in Luxembourg. In 2013, the historic branch closed, replaced by a striking new flagship store nearby. In 1989, Pit and Monqiue were succeeded by their sons Tom and Jeff, who opened more shops throughout the country.

Nowadays Oberweis has five standalone shops, plus concessions at Findel airport and Kirchberg hospital. Of Oberweis’ roughly 400 employees, one hundred work in the sweet production and another hundred in the savoury production.

Only ten employees work in administration, which is remarkable given the size of the business. Communications officer Anne-Sophie Valentin told Delano in an interview on 10 January that there are no branches in neighbouring countries yet, because centralised production allows Oberweis to control the quality of their products which are all manufactured at the firm’s Cloche d’Or kitchen. The firm does deliver some pastry products across Europe.

Bastien Waldt, a chocolatier at Oberweis, holds moulds that are decorated by hand with dyed white chocolate and then filled with milk chocolate, 10 January 2019. Photo: Jan Hanrion/Maison Moderne
Bastien Waldt, a chocolatier at Oberweis, holds moulds that are decorated by hand with dyed white chocolate and then filled with milk chocolate, 10 January 2019. Photo: Jan Hanrion/Maison Moderne

A new production site is to open in Munsbach in 2023 that will enable them to better supply the needs of the different shops.

Creating chocolates

Oberweis does not have the facilities to transform beans into chocolate, which is why they entrust this job to the French chocolatemakers ValRhona. Oberweis chooses their own beans and provides their distinctive recipes to the French company.

Chocolate beans are carefully chosen by Jeff Oberweis himself according to variety and country of origin, factors that greatly influence the taste of the final product, the company said. Oberweis’s chocolate bars alone come in 26 different flavours.