Great Ocean Road Chocolaterie & Ice-Creamery: Ian and Leanne Neeland
“ We have been inspired by the loyal customers that have continued to visit us or order for local delivery and many sending chocolates to their loved ones around Victoria and Australia.”
Creating the most popular sweet destinations in Victoria has been the vision of husband and wife team, Ian & Leanne Neeland. Together they’ve built and created Chocolateries in the Yarra Valley, Mornington Peninsula and, in 2016, on the Great Ocean Road.
Ian & Leanne lead a talented team of European Chocolatiers and Pastry Chefs, together with passionate local staff to create sweet wonderlands the whole family can enjoy.
Visitors to the Great Ocean Road Chocolaterie can indulge in Ian & Leanne’s love of chocolate and passion for creating memorable experiences.
In fact, a memorable experience is a driving force for founder Ian. He says, “you need to focus on your customer first and foremost when running a business.”
Are you still open during Covid-19 restrictions?
Yes! We have made serious adjustments to our business operations to ensure the comfort and safety of our staff and visitors during Covid restrictions.
Our striking showroom is open full of Chocolaterie treats made with love by our passionate team of locals and talented European Chocolatiers. Social distancing in store. Payment by ‘tap only’ card. All staff are wearing face masks as required by current restrictions. Our cleaning and in-service hygiene regimes will continue to go above and beyond to ensure the utmost caution is taken during these times.
The cafe is open for takeaway coffees, hot chocolates, milkshakes, our famous extensive range of desserts, traditional French croissants, take home lasagnes and 16 flavours of freshly churned ice creams.
We’ve opened an online store and we’re even in the car doing deliveries.
We truly hope we make it to the ‘other side’ of COVID and we can continue to excite and delight the 500,000 visitors from around Victoria, Australia and the world each year….and grow this number so we can employ more staff, buy more local produce and contribute in any way possible to the local economy.
Like so many other businesses in tourism and hospitality, COVID has had a major impact on our business and seen a major drop in visitor numbers. Even though the financial consequences are immense and we have considered giving up, the passion and hard work each and every day by our local team keeps us going.
One thing that might surprise you…
Most of the world’s cocoa comes from West Africa, an area that faces the industry’s most vital sustainability challenges.
The chocolaterie is a proud part of the Cocoa Horizons program supporting farmers and their local communities.
Being a part of the program ensures the raw cocoa for the chocolaterie is sourced in a sustainable manner. Ian and Leanne believe sustainable practices create better lives and better chocolate – ensuring we can enjoy chocolate forever! 😊
Shop the Great Ocean Road Chocolaterie and Ice-Creamery
We continue to be so grateful for your support of our family business at this time and can’t wait to welcome you all back again soon. But in the meantime, our e-store is here for you – our team are thrilled each time we receive an order to carefully pack and prepare!
Stay safe and be kind, Ian & Leanne Neeland
Online store - www.gorci.com.au/shop - click & collect : shop online : local deliveries + post Aus wide.
Delivery is available locally to postcode areas of 3228, 3231, 3217 and 3230 for $5.
In Store - 1200 Great Ocean Road, (cnr Elkington Road) Bellbrae VIC 3228 OPEN! 9am to 5pm. Takeaway from the outdoor kiosk and the store is open for retail purchases.
Listen to Episode #9, Season 1: A Chocolate Powerhouse in a Paddock
Listen to some Chocolate Wisdom: Surf Coast Creatives Podcast
The Great Ocean Road Chocolaterie featured recently on the Surf Coast Creatives podcast. Tune in to Episode #9 of Season 1 to hear Leanne’s no.1 piece of advice for getting through tough business conditions, how she secured funding from private investors to get her first chocolaterie in Victoria up and going and the challenges of running some of the largest edible attractions in Victoria.
It’s an episode not to be missed if you’re in the business of retail, distribution, tourism or a self-confessed chocoholic!