Who doesn’t love a bit of chocolate every now and again? Here’s a few ideas of how to mark Chocolate Week (16th to the 22nd October).
Chocolate Unwrapped: An Immersive Exploration of Chocolate: chocolate lovers will not want to miss out on this experience taking place on the 19th October at 19 Greek Street as it is a multi-sensory journey of indulgence. As one of the events for Chocolate Week, visitors will be shown around all four floors and be taken literally, from bean to the bar starting with cocoa beans and finishing with chocolate cocktails. With brands such as Pump Street, Knoops, Melt Chocolates, Bare Bones and Cocoa Runners, chocolate is set to be showcased in all forms with the experience including:
- Starts with a room dedicated to chocolate bars of different origins, percentages and flavours from some of the best bean-to-bar makers in the UK
- Then move on to filled treats; truffles, caramels and ganaches – from experts The Chocolatier and Melt
- Then on to blissful bakes, a room of perfect patisserie and sumptuous cakes with dessert makers and bakeries including EK Bakery
- To complete the experience, chocolate to drink. Stunning hot chocolate from Knoops, smooth chocolate liqueur from Bouvery and decadent cocktails from MayaJules Mezcal.
Be prepared though! There are only 320 tickets for the experience available.
Make your own chocolate bar courtesy of Melt’s Bean-to-bar chocolate workshop: if you fancy branching out and creating your own chocolate bar from cocoa bean then you might want to check out this experience available on selected dates from £54.99. But as well as making the chocolate itself, guests will also learn more about how the Aztecs created such beautiful cocoa.
You will taste chocolate at all the key turning points in its evolution from the Aztec’s raw cocoa to the sophistication of the Courts of Europe. Then it is time to try to make your own from how to sort the cocoa beans and then roast them, then crack and winnow them before with a pestle and mortar, you will grind the chocolate beans until they are fine. Along the way, you will taste the chocolate at different stages as it develops and changes. At the end of it all, you will take three handmade and unique Chocolate bars home with you.
Pay a visit to the Chocolate House exhibition at Greenwich’s Old Royal Naval College: for those interested in finding out how chocolate helped to revive Greenwich’s fortunes, then a trip to this exhibition is a must. It invites you to step back in time to 18th century London to discover the history and appeal of chocolate with a recreation of Grace and Thomas Tosier’s famous ‘royal’ Chocolate House.
Tracing the journey of chocolate and its impact on Georgian Greenwich society, the exhibition looks at the role it played in cultural and scientific conversations of the time.
It is on display until the 3rd November.
Indulge in a chocolate afternoon tea at The Chocolate Cocktail Club: this over 18’s venue celebrates chocolate in a variety of ways thanks to its inventive menu, but don’t forget to check out its afternoon tea menu! Available for £25 per person, it is served with unlimited hot chocolate ( or tea or coffee) or you can choose the option of having chocotini chocolate cocktail or prosecco to start with for £32 (but hot beverages aren’t included.
Enjoy a Charlie and the Chocolate Factory inspired Afternoon Tea at The One Aldwych it is hard not to think of chocolate and not think of Roald Dahl’s classic children’s story and of course Willy Wonka’s incredible treats – which have been inventively brought to life in this delectable afternoon tea that is filled with flair and will bring out your inner child. You can catch up with our review here.