On a cold, windy morning last weekend the Baker-Dowdell family set out in search of chocolate. We were so determined to find chocolate we went to the Chocolate Winterfest at Latrobe and faced gale-force winds that whipped at us in icy gusts. And when I say icy, I mean actual ice. It was cold, yes, but it’s all about the chocolate!
The festival was set up at a number of venues throughout the town – sort of like a chocolate scavenger hunt, or so we thought. We started at the guide hall, where we were tempted by chocolate mousse adorned with Anvers chocolate frogs, but let the boys indulge in a chocolate crackle each and a pink butterfly for Ethan.
Next stop was the farmer’s market, where we picked up lots of yummy produce and then we dropped in at the fire station. The boys loved climbing into the fire truck and Noah got to have his photo taken with a real fireman! He wasn’t bearing chocolate gifts though.
By now I was getting disturbed by the sheer LACK of chocolate, so we headed where we knew we could find some – Anvers. There were so many people there we had a quick peek at the staff making the chocolates and then headed for the shop. This was also packed, so I took the boys out of the mayhem and left Harvey to choose some chocolate for us. By the time he finished shopping the shuttle bus had arrived to transport us back to town, so we jumped aboard (still having eaten no chocolate) hoping we could grab a coffee at one of the cafes and indulge in something chocolate with it.
The cafes in the town centre were packed (or closed – can you beleive it???), so we walked into the wind (by now nothing was getting between us and our chocolate) and found one cafe that had a table and dishes made from chocolate! The baked chocolate mousse cheesecake was yummy and the kids had a chocolate cupcake (but only ate the icing because “the cake isn’t like mum makes”).
So, after waiting all day to feast on chocolate I managed to eat something I could have had a my favourite cafe. The Chocolate Winterfest did not have anywhere near enough chocolate to warrant the “festival” title. While we enjoyed the company of the wonderful family who joined us for the day, the festival itself was a wasted opportunity. I couldn’t help but wear my marketing hat and think of how it could have been better organised to satisy the chocolate-starved crowds that braved horrendous weather to attend.
