Šiauliai City Municipality
Samogitia
company chocolate museum with educational workshops
Tilžės g. 133, Šiauliai
55.92970, 23.31160
1 hour for the exhibition; about 2 hours with an educational workshop
year-round, indoors
Chocolate Museum in Šiauliai, Rūta Chocolate Museum
Rūta Chocolate Museum: 4,000 Years of Chocolate History
Rūta Chocolate Museum in Šiauliai tells the story of chocolate from ancient times to the present. The company describes it as the only chocolate museum in Lithuania, set in a historic interwar factory building where sweets are still produced today.
It is an inviting place for families and children: visitors do not only view the exhibition, but can also join chocolate-making workshops and tastings. The museum also tells the story of Rūta, Lithuania's oldest operating confectionery company.
Rūta Factory: Lithuania's Oldest Confectionery Company
Rūta was founded in Šiauliai in 1913 by confectioner Antanas Gricevičius, who installed a caramel-boiling kettle in his small house. He named the company after rūta, the rue plant used as a Lithuanian national symbol, to stress its Lithuanian character. The present main factory building was built in 1928-1929 to a design by architect Karolis Reisonas.
During the interwar period, Rūta sweets won gold medals at exhibitions, a Grand Prix in Italy, and a gold medal in Great Britain. The company was nationalized in 1940 and returned to Gricevičius's descendants in 1993; today it is again a family business, run by the founder's great-granddaughters.
Exhibition and Educational Activities
The exhibition shows how chocolate travelled across several thousand years from the Aztecs and Maya to Lithuania. Among the exhibits are a large cacao tree, cacao-harvesting tools, and an almost thousand-year-old Maya cup for a chocolate drink, as well as material on the Rūta factory itself.
After the exhibition, visitors can become chocolate makers: in the chocolate workshop they watch the production process and make and taste their own sweets. Tastings, the Rūta shop, and a cafe also operate here. All activities must be booked in advance.
Visiting
The museum was established in 2012. At the time of research it was open Tuesday to Friday from 10:00 to 19:00 and Saturday from 10:00 to 17:00, closed on Sunday and Monday; visitors were admitted until one hour before closing.
At the time of research, the exhibition ticket cost about 6 EUR for adults and 4 EUR reduced, while a chocolate workshop cost about 20 EUR. Check the official page for exact current prices and hours. The visit combines well with other Šiauliai sights or the Hill of Crosses.
