Northampton man set for 'Willy Wonka' chocolate tour of Belgium after winning golden ticket

Chocolate lover Shanom Ali from St James has won a national prize that will see him travel to Belgium.

Heavenly Desserts, which has an outlet on Wellingborough Road, has named 36-year-old Shanom Ali from St James as the winner of it's Golden Ticket prize.

Shanom, who was picked from hundreds of customers of the confectionary outlet across the UK, will now embark on a taste-filled adventure to Brussels.

There he will stay at the Hotel Le Plaza and take part in a Belgian chocolate workshop, where he will discover new flavour combinations and chocolate making techniques.

"I still can’t really believe that I’d been chosen to be honest," said Shanom.

"But as it starts to sink in I’m getting really excited about experiencing Brussels and getting stuck into creating my own chocolate recipes.

“I really do feel like I have won a Willy Wonka golden ticket.”

As a clinical microbiologist, Shanom says he is well placed to not only bring the art to his chocolate making, with a little bit of science as well.

Although he has visited the new Heavenly Desserts on Wellingborough Road a number of times before, it was during a visit with friends on February 21 where he entered his nomination to win the chance to create new chocolate combinations in Brussels.

Yousif Aslam, managing director of Heavenly Desserts, said: “We cannot think of a more passionate and deserving winner to represent Heavenly Desserts on this dream chocoholic trip to Brussels. We can’t wait to see what treats he is able to create and bring back for us to try.”

To find out more about Heavenly Desserts visit www.heavenlydesserts.co.uk, or visit the Northampton Heavenly Desserts store in Wellingborough Road.