See's Candies was founded in L.A. in 1921, but they've had stores here in San Francisco since 1936. While the company became part of Warren Buffet's Berkshire Hathaway empire in 1972, there's nothing about See's stores that would indicate any sort of corporate obnoxiousness or impropriety. The parent company has apparently kept its hands off, and the result is one of the best darned candy stores out there, period. While See's has shops across the nation, they are definitely California-centric.

First of four entries that look into your chocolate-related purchases for this holiday season