Just over a month ago Emily and Brandon Burry opened the doors of Burry Chocolates, a Hampstead-based chocolate shop specializing in handmade sweets crafted from family recipes. 

Brandon’s grandfather, Al Burry, started The Fudge Shoppe in Flemington, New Jersey, in 1961, and he grew up around the shop, working there with his grandfather on weekends throughout high school.

“My grandparents lived above the shop so we were there all the time,” Brandon Burry said.

The Fudge Shoppe has had a very loyal following over the last several decades and has been featured on The Food Network and in numerous publications according to the Burrys.

He would eventually join the Marine Corps, but always had in the back of his mind the idea to one day own a chocolate shop of his own.

The Burrys credit the support of their family with their ability to open the shop. Brandon’s parents are co-owners and his aunts and uncles who still run The Fudge Shoppe have mentored them through the process of getting the business up and running.

Many of the specialty chocolates they carry are currently made at The Fudge Shoppe, including salted caramels, PB meltaways and PB crisps, buttercreams, cherry cordials and hazelnut truffles.

“They have the manpower and equipment which we, as a small start-up, don’t have just yet,” Brandon Burry said.

Many of the shop’s other sweets are made on-site however, including chocolate-covered Oreos, espresso beans and graham crackers, ABC (almond butter crunch), toffee and fudge. They also hand-dip fresh fruit each morning, including blueberries, blackberries, raspberries and strawberries.

“We love to give out samples and it puts such a smile on people’s faces,” Emily Burry said. “We’re really fortunate to have such a great local support system already.”

The shop was originally scheduled to open last spring, but with the onset of COVID-19, everything was delayed and the Burry’s decided to wait until mid-August to open their doors.

The Burrys said they were fortunate to receive a lot of business from tourists over the last few weeks of summer, which really helped to kick start the business.

“Many of them asked us about online ordering, hoping to be able to place orders once they returned home,” Emily Burry said. “So that’s something we’re working on putting in place currently.”

Brandon Burry said he is proud to be carrying on his family’s business, a business he said is built around happiness.

“People come in happy and leave happier, is what my grandfather used to say. That’s why we’re doing this.”

Burry Chocolates is located at 21572 U.S. 17 N. in Hampstead and is open Tuesday through Saturday from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m.

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