Here are some good reasons to go to Diane Pinder’s brand new chocolate salon in Cranford, Donna & Company.

First, it may be the best chocolate you’ve ever sampled. Recipes from Tuscany combining unusual flavors (pistachio, sea salt, olive oil) with the best chocolate from South America — some  of the richest, most intense chocolate around. And Diane makes everything fresh right in the back of the store.

Pinder’s amazing chocolatiering skills have been noticed by one of New Jersey’s star chefs. Craig Shelton, owner of the Ryland Inn in Whitehouse, one of the nation’s top restaurants before a flood in February 2007 closed it, now owns a line of gourmet coffees, and he’s teamed up with Diane to promote coffee-based chocolates (he also blogs at our partners New Jersey Monthly).

Second, Pinder is making and selling some of her fine chocolate bars for Fisher House, the nationwide network of homes near military hospitals that provide free residences for military families with wounded loved ones undergoing medical treatment. She charges $1.50 per bar, and donates two thirds of the profits to the charity. 

The war hit close to home for Pinder, whose son served in Iraq and is now posted at Fort Dix, training soldiers for deployment. She understands the anxiety of military families (while her son was overseas, she slept in his bed every night) and as a retired nurse, she knows all too well the toll that terrible war injuries can exact on everyone involved.

Pinder’s shop — located a stone’s throw from the Cranford train station, will officially open for business in a few weeks. But if you stop by you can buy a sampler box, and a Fisher House bar.

We salute Diane Pinder  for a great product, and for the way she’s used her skills to help heroic families. Extraordinary chocolate, helping those in need of our support and admiration.