Making chocolate all day seems like the best job in the world, being surrounded by delicious smells and being able to flavour chocolate to your taste.

At Melt, I met Chika Watanabe, who gave up her job as a banker to follow her dream and become a master chocolatier.

This time of year is busiest for Chika and her team, having just finished the Christmas rush, but with Valentine's Day, Mother's Day and Easter Sunday still to come in the next few weeks.

To make the chocolate, bags of cacao are melted overnight - as much as 50kg is needed each week - to exactly the right temperature.

Chika explained: "The biggest part of the job is tempering chocolate, to make sure it appears shiny when it's sold.

"The chocolate must be heated between 27 and 31 degrees, depending on the type of chocolate, until it's just right. But I don't use a thermometer, I just know when it's ready."

From here, the cacao is mixed with different amounts of cream and butter, before it is piped into moulds.

A thin shell is formed to make the outside of the chocolate, before it is given a filling.

Bars of chocolate are made similarly,by pouring the mix into trays, but this time the moulds have to be hit against a hard surface to ensure no air bubbles are created.

As Chika originally comes from Japan, she told me she tries to use the influences of her native cuisine, such as green tea, when making chocolate.

The shop's best-seller is the sea salt caramels which, after initial hesitation, I tried and found to be much more delicious than they sound.

Other unusual creations include popcorn, pink peppercorn and sea salt, and olive flavours. When the chocolates are finished, they are wrapped by shop staff and can be bought by customers, as little as a day after the chocolatier started making them.

A common perception, Chika told me, is that the staff must be overweight because they are surrounded by delicious chocolate all day, but this is certainly not the case at Melt.

To become a master chocolatier takes seven years, due to the skill and creativity needed.

The best part of the job, according to Chika, is being able to see the reaction on customers faces as they come in, and knowing instantly whether a flavour has gone down well.

The downsides seem to be the long hours - she works from 8am to 5pm, but can stay as late as 8pm.

Also, the shop must be kept to a strict 14 degrees centigrade to ensure the chocolate doesn't melt, so all the staff have to wear several layers of clothing to work.

As tempting as it was to stay, I left the staff to carry on with their busy Valentine's Day preparations.

Melt also offers CHOCOLATE TASTING SESSIONS. The evening is limited to 12 people, andthe cost is £35 per person, which includes wine, chocolate and a present to take home.

For more information visit Melt, at 59 Ledbury Road, Notting Hill, see www.melt chocolates.com or call 020 7727 5030.