AUGUST 2007: HOT CHOCOLATE. It’s double the decadence. Shoppers at New York’s Henri Bendel can now cap off a day of splurging on fashion with a peanut butter and chocolate bar sandwich, a batch of popcorn with chocolate dipping sauce and a warm spicy chocolate brownie topped with gelato. Rather than creating a typical ladies-who-lunch café, the department store has opened a spin-off of the popular West Village cocoa emporium Chocolate Bar on its third floor. “I’d like to bridge the gap between fashion and chocolate,” said Chocolate Bar founder Alison Nelson, who enlisted Alice + Olivia’s Stacey Bender to design the staff uniforms – cap-sleeve minidresses in brown, white and pale blue. For those seeking yet another form of indulgence, there will be wine and champagne. The more disciplined can opt for the chocolate-free Bendel’s salad.