Who is Otto?

If you're a WA local you've probably already met.

Otto is the blue whale that resides at the WA Museum.

He was found stranded on a Busselton beach in 1897 by a local girl named Daisy. At the time whale blubber was worth a bundle so Daisy initially staked him out to, uh, harvest... until the museum got wind of the discovery.

The museum taxidermist, Otto Lipfert, and a team of helpers stripped his blubber and flesh over three months of spring and summer – you can imagine the scene. His skeleton was taken to Perth by train and painstakingly re-assembled and displayed for generations of West Australians to admire.

In our version of events, Little Otto shoots the most delicious chocolate in the world from his blowhole. He and Daisy become best friends, open a chocolate shop together and adopt the mission of saving the world from boring choc, with the most fun, delicious and delightful chocolate and gelato you have ever eaten.

We think our story is way more fun…

  • Our Mostly True Story Starts Back in 1897

    Yes, the story of Busso’s big choc shop starts a little while ago when Daisy, a local Busso girl, entrepreneur, equestrian Champ, and mining manual enthusiast, met Otto, a colossal blue whale who didn’t say much that day and didn’t move much either, come to think of it. The unexpected encounter of the two became one of the most well-known friendships in the history of Busso and the rest of the west.

  • There was something about this big fella that made Daisy stop in her tracks that day. Well, she had to anyway because he was blocking the entire beach. She had a good look at him before she decided to carefully move closer to give him a firm kick in the butt and said, "Hey you, wake up, I’m Daisy, what’s your name?" The friendly giant, who looked more dead than alive a minute ago, opened one of his big blue eyes and stared at the feisty-looking girl with wild, bright orange, curly hair. With the deepest of voices, he slowly responded, "Hey. it’s me. Otto." They looked one another in the eye and both had a little chuckle.

  • It was love at first sight followed by a more appropriate moment of absolute silence and seriousness. Then Daisy said while mimicking Otto’s deep voice, "Tell me little Otto. What are you doing on my beach and what is your superpower?" Otto had to be honest, hand on heart, he didn’t know what he was doing on Daisy’s beach and how he got there. He sure did have a superpower. One that almost literally blew her away.

  • "Look up," Little Otto said. Daisy took a few quick steps back to see beyond Otto’s towering forehead. And there it was. A miracle. Don’t ask how, true or almost true, and believe it or not, but Otto was blowing chocolate instead of water. Daisy surely couldn’t believe her eyes when she saw the fountain of melted chocolate erupting from Little Otto’s blowhole. Gallons of silky smooth chocolate were dripping down Little Otto’s face. Daisy poked her tongue out to have a cheeky taste. "Oh… My… Word. Damn, this is awesome. This is deliciously awesome." Little Otto giggled while blowing more and more chocolate.

  • She leaned over to Little Otto and whispered, "This is our lucky day little Otto." "I’ve got a plan. And it’s Big. Why don’t you and I become best mates and…", Well…the rest is history, as they say. However, It took a little while to figure it all out but finally here it is. Basically, Daisy had the brilliant idea and Little Otto indeed had the superpower. The gold. Well, the choc in his case. But surely all ingredients between them to open the most epic, exciting, fun, and memorable, no carrots no cabbages choc shop in the southern, western, eastern, and northern hemisphere. So they did. Right here, where they met for the very first time a little while ago. Smack bang in the middle of Busso’s foreshore.

Hello Otto

More or less 150,000 kg and 24 meters long. Yep, Little Otto is a BIG FELLA and the most friendly blue whale you’ll ever meet. He’s got a soft deep voice, lovely blue eyes, and a heart of pure chocolate. It’s fair to say that little Otto isn’t very little. Never has been. Even when he was still little, he wasn’t really. He sure does take up a lot of space and some say not always the sharpest tool in the shed. Which makes him perhaps a touch clumsy and slow at times. But he’s calm, kind, humble, loyal, and generous and too west to be stressed.

He’s a softy and that’s why Daisy likes to call him Little Otto. He’s good mates with all the Busso locals and visitors of the foreshore. What’s not to love about little Otto? A friendly giant with puppy dog eyes and an infinite stream of silky CHOCOLATE erupting from his blowhole. Yes, that’s his superpower and there’s enough for everyone. Little Otto keeps on giving big. He’s the BEST of the WEST and the REST.

As Busselton as it gets

Our uniquely South West adventure was started by a blue whale who came to Busselton almost 130 years ago, who didn’t get too far lives in the Perth Museum to this day.

Today Otto’s story is revived by two local families who have called Busselton and the South West home for a long, long time (although not as long as Otto).

The Credaro and Packard-Hair families have been in Busso for over 100 years. Between the six of them running the show at Otto’s there’s about 78 kids, so we’re looking at at least another 100 more years.