"You don't look like a chocolatier. Usually, a chocolatier is plump, with a big belly," a reporter says when she meets Philippe Daue, chef chocolatier for the Pacific Rim and China at Godiva, the Belgian luxury chocolate brand.

Slim, tall and speaking in a soft voice, the native Belgian is a fourth-generation chef, and his father is a famous bearer of two Michelin stars. Appearing at a recent exhibition about chocolate truffles in Beijing's APM Shopping Mall, the master confectioner comes to demonstrate the making of a box of chocolates.

"If you enjoy high-quality chocolates, you will not become fat. Actually, dark chocolates are good for your body and mind," he says. He's referring to chocolates with a high percentage of cocoa and a correspondingly low level of milk and sugar.