Our Story

Lola Marie, owner of Chocolate and the Chip

 

Hi there, I'm Lola, the founder and baker of Chocolate and the Chip. Let me take you on a journey through my world of irresistible chocolate chip cookies, where in 2023, we embarked on a mission to create a more mindful indulgence by transitioning our entire product line to plant-based and organic core ingredients.

My passion for chocolate chip cookies has been a long-standing obsession, and it brings me immense joy to share them with others. Amidst the challenging times of 2020, I am grateful for the opportunity to provide comfort through my cookies.

Chocolate and the Chip was born out of my insatiable sweet tooth. It took me eight years to perfect the recipe for these soft and chewy cookies, which strike the perfect balance between sweet and savory. I wanted to create a cookie that would make people pause and savor every bite, and I believe that's exactly what I've accomplished.

My inspiration for starting this business came from a trip to Napoli, where I observed vendors serving delicious pizzas and treats through tiny windows on the street. Seeing the joy on the faces of both the customers and the vendors sparked something within me. I wanted to replicate that special feeling of knowing that the person who made my food was an expert in their craft and loved what they were doing.

Initially, I started selling my cookies on Etsy, and within a few months, I became the "bestseller" in the cookie category, with an overwhelming number of orders. I expanded my business by selling locally in Los Angeles via Instagram and hosting pop-ups around town. As the pandemic changed the world, I felt it was essential to bring back joy and nostalgia through my cookies.

With recognition from prestigious publications like Eater, NBC, and The Daily Beast, I am now baking in my commercial kitchen in Redondo Beach with a dedicated team working tirelessly to bring our edible and ready to bake cookie dough to the masses locally and nationwide.

Thank you for supporting my woman-owned small business. Indulge and enjoy!

Meet the team!

Jensen Blaznik of Chocolate and the Chip

Jensen, Head Baker 

Hi there, I’m Jensen! I was born and raised in the swamps of central Florida but have had the pleasure of calling LA my home now for several years. On my resume is at least a few thousand hours eating sweets. More importantly, I learned the basics in baking from my mom and grandma and turned that foundation into a lifetime love of sugar. Like many people in the culinary industry, I changed careers from a 9-5 office job and chose to pursue my passion for dessert wholly by attending a pastry program to further my homegrown skills. When I’m not baking with Lola I spend most of my free time in the kitchen lab at home, experimenting with fun flavors and trying my hands at new bakes. I’ve always found such peace and happiness in the kitchen, embracing both the science of baking and the unmatched fun of winging it just to see what happens! When the lab apron comes off, I’m galavanting around with my husband to find the BEST eats and small businesses in LA, smothering my dog Buoy and cat Daisy with too much love, playing video games, and obsessing over all things horror.
Lisa
Lisa, Baker
My name is Lisa and I'm the bakery assistant aka kitchen wench sprinkling a little extra love in all parts of production for Chocolate and the Chip! I joined this power house team in April 2022 after a long hiatus from work due to a broken leg & pandemic.

I've worked in hospitality and foods for many moons. Baking has always been that one thorn in my professional kitchen experience that I wasn't really great at. During my broken leg era, I started baking birthday cakes with For Goodness Cakes for youth in foster care, which kept me sane and really sparked joy in me. When I was looking for jobs again, Chocolate and the Chip was one of the first ones I applied to. It was truly serendipitous because I am a certified cookie monster and l love working for women-owned small businesses! Being in the kitchen also revitalizes my soul and so everything was really meant to be ♡

I like to eat, cook, and feed people. Food is why I'm poor and fat but very happy. I love traveling to eat. I lived in Japan for two years and ate too much. I love animals but all my pets are dead. I enjoy film photography but don't do it as much as I would like because technology has made it so easy to snap a 4k quality pic on your phone. Which worked out for me because even though my forever pets, Mochi & Cream, are playing together in the spiritual plane - I laugh at the thousands of videos and pictures I have of them every day. I'm just trying to be grateful and appreciate the small joys in this little life of mine ♡

Eat our cookies. Order them every day! It is worth it.