Toque Blanche sells quality cookware including black clay Chamba cookware from Colombia. Toque Blanche was created in 2006 to serve the needs of the home chef who is serious about preparing food using quality cooking tools. The store location at La Piazza on Main Street in Half Moon Bay is convenient for locals and visitors, and a perfect compliment to adjacent shops including Moonside Bakery and HMB Wine & Cheese.

Our mission is to stock a wide variety of the best cookware, bakeware, cutlery, cooks' tools and accessories. In addition, we have carefully selected gourmet food items, many of them sourced locally and regionally. Our staff members are accomplished home chefs who can make helpful suggestions about recipes, gifts, and more. Locally grown cut flowers and fresh herbs create an inviting and beautiful entryway to the store.

charles owner

Charles Nelson - Owner

Charles enjoys cooking at home and has fond memories of cooking in restaurants as a high school and college student. He has many years of business experience and this is his second retail store in Half Moon Bay.

stuart manager

Stuart Cristol-Deman - Manager

Stuart Cristol-Deman has been an avid cook for over 30 years. One of the things he loves most about cooking is that there is always more to learn. Stuart has worked in some of the Bay Area's top culinary markets, including Draeger's, Andronico's, Domus, and most recently A.G. Ferrari Foods. Stuart is thrilled to be working "back home" on the coast, and loves seeing familiar faces from his Cooking Sensation days, as well as meeting new customers to share his passion for cooking with.
pauline sales

Pauline Picchi - Artistry and Sales

Pauline Lo Giudice Picchi and her brother Joe owned and operated a restaurant for 20 years in the Bay Area. She acquired her passion for food and cooking at a young age from her immigrant parents who came from Sicily. Her mother was a cooking instructor for 23 years, and her father owned several restaurants throughout the Penninsula. Cooking and preparing good food with quality cookware is a priority. She enjoys sharing her cooking skills and kitchen techniques with her Toque Blanche customers!

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Max Nelson - Sales Associate

Max Nelson is a High School Student in Half Moon Bay who enjoys eating, learning more about cooking, and his job at Toque Blanche.