BEST BUYS -- Greer Wylder

Chocolate lovers should love the exclusive Zurich-based Hesti Chocolates

that are available at Neiman Marcus. Since 1925, Hesti Chocolates has

been providing chocolate connoisseurs with the finest truffles, pralines

and mixed assortments. It’s one of the few chocolates made with fresh

ingredients, including dark, white and milk chocolate; full fat creams;

rich creamy, grated or finely powdered chocolate coatings. Many are

flavored with champagne or flavored liquors and embellished with

hand-selected nuts and natural fruit flavors. Hesti Chocolates come in

variety packs that weigh approximately a quarter-pound at $20, half a

pound at $36 and a full pound at $52. Each select piece is hand-packed in

the United States. Neiman Marcus is at Fashion Island in Newport Beach.

Call (949) 759-1900.

Parents who want to avoid a lull in the upcoming vacation can sign kids

up for the Orange County Museum of Art’s programs for children. There are

all kinds of winter break art days ideal for kids ages 6 to 12. There are

“art breaks” offered Dec. 20-22 and Dec. 28-30, which meet from 10 a.m.

to noon and cost $15. Topics include kaleidoscopes, creative collages,

Mylar madness, butterfly faces, city slices and trains, planes and

automobiles. There are also classes that run from four to six weeks and

meet once a week, or workshops that meet once and last from 10 a.m. to 2

p.m. The classes offered include topics such as printmaking for kids,

ceramics for kids, papier-mache mask magic and a creative shoe project.

The workshops available include linocuts, self-portraits and silk-screen

prints. Parents and kids can meet for classes geared for kids ages 2 1/2

to 5. The classes meet on four consecutive Wednesdays from 10 a.m. to 11

a.m. There are two sessions available -- one that involves printmaking,

collage, painting and clay projects, and the another that involves making

projects for winter holidays, including Valentine’s Day and the Asian New

Year. For more information on classes and programs, call (949) 759-1122.

The Orange County Museum of Art is at 850 San Clemente Drive in Newport

Beach.

Mrs. Beasley’s is an easy place to find holiday gifts. The bakery goods

store carries gift baskets that are filled with award-winning

mini-muffins, brownie bars, cookies and a baby chocolate pizza. The

baskets are available in six-serving to 80-serving sizes and range from

$29.95 to $250. One of Mrs. Beasley’s most popular bakery items is the

Miss Grace Lemon Cakes that are available in mini-cake four- and

eight-packs, for $34.95 to $67.95, and a citrus trio available in classic

Lemon Cake, California Orange and Key Lime for $27.95. Other gift items

include cookie baskets, cookie jars and tins, fudge cakes, a millennium

basket, sleigh baskets, Christmas tins, and bakery-filled gift boxes. All

items that are not in the store can be mail-ordered and delivered.

Kinko’s has good holiday gift ideas. Kinko’s offers services for creating

custom greeting cards, photo calendars, photo gift-wrap, photo place mat,

photo memo pad, and custom scrapbooks. It’s also a good place to print

event fliers, recipe cards, thank-you notes, gift cards and holiday

songbooks. Kinko’s has several locations in the Newport Beach and Costa

Mesa area: at 1706 Newport Blvd., Costa Mesa, at Fashion Island at 240

Newport Center Drive, and Kinko’s Digital Publishing at 3636 Birch St. in

Newport Beach.

Plums Cafe & Catering is gearing up to open soon after the first of the

year. It’s been closed for some time now, while expanding and remodeling.

The new Plums will offer more -- a new bakery and cappuccino bar,

breakfast, lunch, and it will serve dinner. A new executive chef, Matthew

Fitzgibbons, has created a new menu. Some old favorites will remain, like

the shirred eggs, hazelnut pancakes, salmon hash and winter spinach

salad. There will be a great selection of beers and Northwestern wines.

For the holidays there are dessert gift trays that can be ordered. The

smallest tray has 35 pieces and sells for $50, the medium tray has 55

pieces for $75, and large has 100 pieces for $105. Plums Cafe & Catering

is at 369 E. 17th St., Costa Mesa. Call (949) 548-7586.

Armoire, one of the popular ladies clothing and gifts stores at Corona

del Mar Plaza, has a special offer for customers who would like to help

out underprivileged children at Christmas. If you bring an unwrapped toy

to be donated to Toys for Tots, Armoire will give you a free gift. Call

(949) 644-9888.

At Nick-Nack Gifts, kids can buy their parents a Christmas present for

under $5. The store is at 191 E. 16th St. in Costa Mesa. Call (949)

515-0353.

* BEST BUYS is published Thursdays and Saturdays. If you know of a good

buy, send a fax to (949) 646-4170 or write to Daily Pilot, Best Buys, 330

W. Bay St., Costa Mesa, CA 92627.