The Best Hot Chocolate In North Carolina? Here’s Where To Find One Of The Nation’s Best In NC

There is nothing like a cup of hot cocoa when the weather starts to get cold. Sure you can make it home and perhaps you have that perfect recipe. Or you could get some at a place like Starbucks, which is a solid choice. But what if I could tell you where you can get some of the best of best? According to Yelp one of the best places to get hot chocolate nationwide is right here in North Carolina.

Yelp recently released a list of the 50 top hot cocoa spots in both the US and Canada This is based on data from reviews. They narrowed down businesses in the "food and restaurants" category that features a significant percentage of reviews mentioning "hot cocoa" and "hot chocolate". From there they ranked those places on factors such as the total number of ratings and reviews mentioning the two terms.

And coming in at number 17 on the list is Raleigh's own Escazú Chocolates. According to their website Escazú specializes in "locally made, carefully crafted, chocolate." It comes from cacao beans from Latin America which are processed into treats such as dark chocolate bars, confections, ice cream and of course what we are talking about here- drinks.  Their "chocolate factory" is in downtown Raleigh with a retail shop in front of factory. Here you'll find what is described as  an immersive chocolate experience."

It's not just your average hot chocolate you'll find on the menu. But of course that is an option. Additionally you can try a variety of other flavors including spicy, peanut butter, chocolate-chai, and white chocolate and spices. View the full beverage menu here.

If you don't plan on visiting Raleigh soon, you don't have to completely miss out. While it's safe to assume the beverages aren't available for online purchase the chocolates are!

You can read Yelp's full list of the best hot chocolate here.