About Kakawa Chocolates

The Maker Behind Kakawa

Jin Sun grew up in South Korea in a household where food was taken seriously. Her mother cooked without recipes, experimenting with combinations, adjusting by instinct, never following instructions the same way twice. Growing up in that kitchen gave Jin Sun an early understanding that the best results usually come from curiosity rather than convention.

She came to Sydney in 2003 and completed her Diploma of Patisserie at Le Cordon Bleu. What followed was a formative stretch through some of Sydney's most respected fine dining kitchens: junior pastry chef at Flying Fish, then head pastry chef at Bilson's, Tony Bilson's flagship restaurant, one of the most exacting culinary environments in the country at the time.

In 2007, she went to London and joined Melt Chocolates as Sous Chef under head chocolatier Keith Herdman. Melt was doing something different: no excess sugar, no artificial flavour, nothing that competes with the chocolate itself. It was the same standard Jin Sun had held in every kitchen she'd worked in. She spent two years there, learning what it meant to apply that discipline specifically to chocolate.

She came back to Sydney in 2009 and started Kakawa. Every piece is still developed and designed by Jin Sun - the flavour combinations, the ingredients, the standards. A team of skilled chocolatiers makes them by hand. The knowledge and instinct behind every piece is entirely hers.

 

Awards and Recognition

Jin Sun's work has been recognised at the highest level of Australian food competition and then invited to judge it.

2001–2002: Three professional certifications, Human Resources Development Service of Korea: Cook (Korean Food), Craft Man Confectionery Making, Craft Man Breads Making

2003–2004: Diploma of Patisserie, Le Cordon Bleu, Sydney

2004: Junior Pastry Chef, Flying Fish, Sydney

2005: Head Pastry Chef, Bilson's, Sydney (Tony Bilson's flagship fine dining restaurant)

2006: Pastry Chef, Kirketon Dining Room & Bar, Sydney

2007–2008: Sous Chef (Chocolatier), Melt Chocolates, London, under head chocolatier Keith Herdman

2009: Champion, Melbourne Royal Easter Show (Gift Box Chocolate)

2010: Gold and Silver, Sydney Royal Easter Show (multiple awards across praline categories)

2011–present: Judge, Sydney Royal Easter Show (Professional Bakery category). Invited to judge the competition she had just won and has returned every year since.

2009–present: Founder and Head Chocolatier, Kakawa Chocolates, Sydney

 

The Philosophy

Chocolate is like coffee or wine. Where the cacao is grown - the soil, the climate, the conditions of that specific place - shapes the flavour completely. Most commercial chocolate blends beans from ten or more origins to produce a consistent, predictable result. The individual character of each origin disappears into a generic cacao hit.

Jin Sun uses single-origin couverture because the flavour of a specific place is worth preserving. Everything she makes is built to complement that natural ingredients chosen to work with the cacao, not overpower it. No artificial flavours. No preservatives. No compound chocolate. Nothing that compromises what ends up in the box.

Jin Sun brings seasonal ingredients in when they're at their best. It's how she's always cooked, applied to chocolate.

 

What Goes Into Every Piece

Every piece of Kakawa chocolate is handcrafted in small batches in Sydney. Jin Sun makes the pralines, the gift boxes, the seasonal bars, all of it by hand, to the same standard she held at Bilson's and at Melt. The ingredients are sourced carefully. The process is unhurried. The result is chocolate that tastes like it was made by someone who cares what it tastes like.

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