Where to Celebrate National Hot Chocolate Day in Charleston

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Happy National Hot Chocolate Day! Did you know there was such a holiday? If you need an excuse to enjoy a post-holiday hot cocoa with your kids, here it is.

hot chocolateOur Favorite Kid-Friendly Hot Chocolate Spots

From frozen hot chocolate to hot cocoa flights, here are our favorite kid-friendly spots to grab a high-quality cup of cocoa:

Biggby Coffee
West Ashley, Goose Creek, and North Charleston, SC
Biggby Coffee makes their hot chocolate hot, iced, or frozen.

Brew
Hanahan, SC
If you love to try different flavors of cocoa, Brew offers hot cocoa flights on their menu of infamous coffee, mimosa, beer, etc.

Photo Credit: Brew Hanahan via Facebook

Christophe Artisan Chocolatier
West Ashley and Downtown Charleston, SC
Try a rich cup of liquid chocolate made by an expert chocolatier.

Kaminsky’s Dessert Cafe
Downtown Charleston, SC
Kaminsky’s is a perfect place to enjoy both a delicious dessert and a cup of hot cocoa. They also offer different flavors like mint, banana, and raspberry. And bonus, mom can add a shot of espresso in hers too.

Lodi Coffee Drive-Thru
North Charleston, SC
We love Lodi’s huge menu of delicious, Instagram-worthy drinks that never disappoint. Today is the perfect day to order a hot chocolate or one of their delicious holiday drinks.

Luxe Espresso and Wine Bar
Summerville, SC
Luxe Espresso and Wine Bar offer hot chocolate flights made with any one of their flavored syrups, typically featured in their coffee drinks.

Owl Bear Cafe
Mt Pleasant, SC
Owl Bear Cafe in Seaside Farms is a board game cafe, so you can play board games while you enjoy your hot cocoa.

Metto Coffee and Tea
Mt Pleasant, SC
This cozy Mount Pleasant cafe offers kid-sized hot chocolate for a date with your little one.

Vintage Coffee Cafe
Mt Pleasant, SC
Sip on Vintage Coffee Cafe’s hot chocolate, made with homemade chocolate sauce, while the kids play. You might as well get some hot apple cider donuts too, why not?

Make Hot Chocolate at Home

If you don’t have time to go out today, you can make the “holiday” a little extra special by making your own hot cocoa. Don’t get me wrong, I love a good Swiss Miss packet, but making homemade hot chocolate is pretty special. You will use a 2:1 ratio of sugar to cocoa powder, so you can adjust the amounts as you need.

Servings: 4 big cups

Ingredients:

  • 4 cups of milk (you can use any kind of milk, even dairy-free options like soy milk, oat milk, or almond milk)
  • 1/2 cup sugar
  • 1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
  • 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
  • Additional chopped chocolate or chocolate chips (optional)
  • Whipped cream, marshmallows, candy, sprinkles, etc. for topping

Instructions:

  1. Whisk together milk, sugar, and cocoa powder in a saucepan. Heat the mixture gently over medium heat, continuing to whisk every few minutes.
  2. Once the sugar is dissolved and the mixture is warmed to your liking, taste and add additional chocolate to get the cocoa to your desired richness.
  3. Remove from heat and stir in the vanilla extract.
  4. Serve immediately and top with your favorite hot cocoa toppings.

If you’re feeling ambitious, you can also use the sugar/cocoa mixture above to fill hot cocoa bombs. All you need is a silicon sphere mold like this and high-quality chocolate that you can melt to form the bombs. Your hot cocoa will taste like the chocolate you use, so make sure you’re using the chocolate you’d like to eat!

How are you celebrating hot chocolate day?