If you’re one with a sweet tooth, you’ve probably been in love with anything made out of chocolate. May it be bittersweet, tangy, nutty, or surprising you with an unusual filling, any chocolate is set to make your day. We’ve all dreamed of a day where you’d get a whole new dining experience that’s made entirely out of your favorite chocolate—wouldn’t that be a treat?

One whole day dedicated to all things cocoa-based which is loved by all, whether you’re the white chocolate type or the 85% dark chocolate type, it’s a time of gathering, all for the love of sweet tooth. If legends are believed to be true, World Chocolate Day is a celebration for when this succulent goodness was introduced to Europe in 1550. Chocolate then traveled the world and became a show stopper for all our desserts, shakes or smoothies (even in main dishes!), and then the rest is history.

When you’d get your mind running on about this sweet treat, you’d stop to think if it’s even worth the calories and fat you’re gonna gain from binge eating. However, contrary to popular belief, chocolate has health benefits! Losing all the guilt for eating chocolates is surely a way to go, as it is believed to be good for the heart, strengthens immunity, strengthens brain function, and soothes digestion, to name a few.

World Chocolate Day may probably be the best thing that’s ever happened to dessert enthusiasts, and what better way to celebrate this momentous occasion with unlimited chocolate! Last July 7, we made our way to Mövenpick Resort in Mactan Cebu and took part in their grandiose Chocolate Hour, where a parade of mouthwatering and melt-into-your-mouth chocolates were served to the guests for a whole hour.

The Chocolate Hour is one of the hotel’s brand signatures, open for guests daily in its hotel lobbies all around the world. It presents eating chocolate as a brand new experience. With live demonstrations by chefs from icing cakes to topping chocolate-inspired drinks, these complimentary chocolate treats echoes the Mövenpick brand vision, “we make moments”.

As it is a much over-the-top celebration with this Chocolate Hour coinciding with the international Chocolate Day, adults and kids alike feasted their eyes and their stomach on a buffet of chocolates. Topped with chocolate chips and caramel syrup, their chocolate pizza clearly stole the show from a number of chocolate drops and bars. It was a great concoction of a warm hearty pizza with a twist of chocolate’s sweet delight.

Staying true to its promise of extraordinary chocolate experience, chocolate ice cream on top of cotton candy, chocolate bars with curry filling, and french macaroons topped with any type of chocolate and caramel cream were also the key players in the game.

Mövenpick’s newest executive chef Jean Louis-Leon shared that the chocolate desserts served during the chocolate celebration were locally sourced from the country’s best tree-to-bar chocolates, the Malagos Chocolate. Choosing Malagos chocolate as the main ingredient apart from other locally available ones was because of how the chocolate can be made into different varieties of desserts and that one truly learns when working with chocolates like Malagos on treats as it makes these treats unique, shares Chef Jean Louis.

Apart from satisfying their taste buds with the chocolates, people were also crowding over the show area where the process of completing the chocolate dishes were presented to the awed audience.

“What the hotel used to do before was just putting cakes out for people, and people would help themselves, and that’s it. But what I want is action,” shares the executive chef on the changes to be expected from his onboarding.

What makes the Chocolate Hour experience more breathtaking is when chefs establish a connection with the audience and the audience actually sees how their food is made.

“Back then I would take time to explain to the people what I’m doing with the dish, explains Chef Jean. He adds, “It’s because once you explain the dish to the people, they will have a different vision.”

It’s relationships like these with food that truly needs commemorating, for chocolate is not simply some piece of dessert you’re willing to gain weight for, but for most people, it’s probably a safe space, a calming therapy, or maybe just a tight warm hug. Food, especially desserts, always have a special place in our hearts, especially in our stomachs!