Sweet! Calgary's charity hot chocolate festival returns in February
Dozens of vendors will be selling specialty hot chocolates for charity for the month of February during Calgary's annual YYC Hot Chocolate Fest.
The charitable competition sees cafés and restaurants sell creative and specially-crafted hot chocolates, some boozy and some not, with a portion of the sales going to Calgary Meals on Wheels.
Last year was the event's biggest year yet, with more than 60,000 hot chocolates sold and over $79,000 raised for the charity.
This year, there are just under 100 vendors signed up to participate, according to the website.
If you have dietary restrictions, don't fret – there are dairy-free, gluten-free and vegan hot chocolates available.
After the event wraps up at the end of February, awards will be handed out for the city's best hot chocolates.
Last year, the winners were:
- Cornerstone Music Café, which had the top rated hot chocolate.
- Hexagon Café, which had the best selling hot chocolate; and
- Kristi YYC, which had the top rated spirited hot chocolate.
Participating vendors include:
- Black Sheep
- Vendome Cafe
- Rosso
- Holy Cow
- Calgary Heritage Roasting Co.
- The Bullet Coffee House
- Abbey's Creations
- V Burger
- Fringe Coffee
- Chocolate Lab
- Mr Sun Tea
- Stable
- D6 Tabletop Cafe
- Canyon Meadows Cinemas
- Light Cellar
- Heritage Park Historical Village
- Shoe & Canoe Public House
- Distilled Beauty Bar & Social House
- Community Natural Foods
- Good Trade Coffee Company
- Calgary Climbing Centre
- Bragg Creek Bakery & Cafe
- The Pharm Drugstore
- Regal Cat Cafe
- 8 Cakes
- 723 World Bier Haus
- Pocket Coffee
- Kaffeeklatsch
- Odyssey Coffeehouse
- Kristi YYC
- Deane House
- 1600 World Bier Haus
- Master Chocolat
- Cacao 70
- The Cheesecake Cafe
- Paradigm Spark
- Caffe Beano
- Bono Coffee
- Milano Coffee
- Hexagon Cafe
- Oolong Tea House
- Alforno Bakery
- Canela Vegan Bakery & Cafe
- Euphoria Cafe
- brühe
- Sucre
- JusFruit Canada
- Pablo Cheese Tart Calgary
- For Goodness Bake
- Bike and Brew
- Analog Coffee
- Lina's Italian Market
- River Cafe
- Fonda Fora
- Cravings Market Restaurant
- Eighth Avenue Trattoria
- Sauce Italian Market
- Good News Coffee
- Mini MRKT
- AGGÜDO
- Boogie's Burgers
- Holy Cannoli Coffee Company
- Amato Gelato
- Seasons of Bowness
- Monogram Coffee
- Peanuts Public House
- Cafe Jindo
- Aroma Cafe Bar
- Higher Ground
- Cornerstone Music Cafe
- Neighbour Coffee
- Element Cafe
- Amaido Cafe
- Prairie Grounds Coffee House
- Yann Haute Patisserie Ltd.
- Monki Breakfast Club & Bistro
- Velvet Cafe
- Caffe Artigiano
- Hutch Cafe
- Sips Avenida and Sips at the Market
- Ollia Macarons & Tea
- Popping Dragon Tea House
- Lazy Loaf and Kettle
- Socality House
- Flower & Wolf
- Ladybug Bakery and Cafe
- Good Bread
- Made by AKB Bakeshop & Cafe
- Inner City Brewing Company
- T2722 Luxury Barista Experience
- TELUS Spark
- The Inn on Officers' Garden
- Prologue Cafe | Cocktail
- Our Daily Brett Market & Cafe
- Schwarzwälder Cherry Bomb
- Love sugar and dough
- Pixie's Candy Parlour
For more information you can visit the YYC Hot Chocolate Fest website.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Which Canadian cities have the highest and lowest grocery prices?
Where you live plays a big factor in what you pay at the grocery store. And while it's no secret the same item may have a different price depending on the store, city or province, we wanted to see just how big the differences are, and why.
U.S. says Israel's use of U.S. arms likely violated international law, but evidence is incomplete
The Biden administration said Friday that Israel's use of U.S.-provided weapons in Gaza likely violated international humanitarian law but wartime conditions prevented U.S. officials from determining that for certain in specific airstrikes.
Swarm of 20,000 bees gather around woman’s car west of Toronto
A swarm of roughly 20,000 bees gathered around a woman’s car in the parking lot of Burlington Centre.
'State or state-sponsored actor' believed to be behind B.C. government hacks
The head of British Columbia’s civil service has revealed that a “state or state-sponsored actor” is behind multiple cyber-security incidents against provincial government networks.
Mother assaulted by stranger while breastfeeding baby in her car: Vancouver police
A person was arrested in East Vancouver Thursday after allegedly entering a car while a mother was breastfeeding her four-month-old boy.
More than half the Canadians once detained in Syrian camps for suspected ISIS family members have returned home
A total of 29 Canadians have been freed from detention camps in northeast Syria and brought back to Canada since human rights advocates began lobbying for their release years ago.
Rare severe solar storm Friday could bring spectacular aurora light show across Canada
A rare and severe solar storm is expected to bring spectacular displays of the northern lights, also known as aurora borealis, across much of Canada and parts of the United States on Friday night.
Canada abstains from Palestinian UN membership vote but supports two-state solution
Canada was one of 25 countries that abstained from a United Nations vote on Palestinian membership that passed with overwhelming support on Friday.
Amish youth experience a rite of passage called Rumspringa. It’s not what you might think
The idea of “Rumspringa” has a specific spot in the American imagination. A rite of passage for young people in some Amish communities, Rumspringa is seen by most outsiders as a wild time away from strict Amish rules, when teenagers can experiment with the modern vices of the world.