Robert Steinberg

Robert Wayne Steinberg (March 4, 1947 – September 17, 2008) was an American physician who co-founded Scharffen Berger Chocolate Maker in 1996 with John Scharffenberger, his friend and former patient.

Early life Robert Steinberg was born on March 4, 1947, in Boston, to parents Arthur and Selma Levinson Steinberg. They employed several antique German chocolate machines to make their products in small batches The new small business was called Scharffen Berger Chocolate Maker, which took advantage of John Scharffenberger's name recognition in the San Francisco Bay Area.

Scharffen Berger Chocolate hit the San Francisco Bay Area markets at a time when Americans were becoming interested in consuming higher quality, speciality foods such as wine, coffee and chocolate. Scharffen Berger chocolate bars, which were known for a bittersweet chocolate with intense fruity notes, quickly gained a following as their products became available in supermarkets and specialty stores in the Bay Area.

Consumer demand led Scharffen Berger Chocolate Maker to relocate to a larger factory in 2001, complete with a cafe and gift shop, in Berkeley, California. The company also expanded its product portfolio from chocolate bars to include ganache, caramel, mints, hot cocoa and chocolate-dipped fruit.

Scharffen Berger was acquired by The Hershey Company in 2005. Hershey's began marketing and distributing Scharffen Berger Chocolate as its high end product line.

Death Robert Steinberg died on September 17, 2008, of lymphatic cancer at the age of 61. He was survived by his mother, Selma Levinson Steinberg, sister, Nancy Steinberg, and stepsister, Judith Margolin.