Local life
A Winter Visit to the Great Ocean Road Chocolaterie
We recently visited the Great Ocean Road Chocolaterie on one of those properly cold winter days when you really don't want to be outside for very long. Fortunately, there aren't many places better suited to that sort of weather than a building full of chocolate. We've been living on the Great Ocean Road for a while now, and I'm gradually adding some of the places we actually visit to Great Ocean Road Living. Not exhaustive tourist guides, just the places we enjoy and would genuinely go back to. The Chocolaterie is definitely one of them.
The hot chocolate was the highlight
It was absolutely freezing when we visited, so hot chocolate was an easy decision.
What arrived wasn't quite what I was expecting.
Instead of a normal ready made hot chocolate, you get a glass of warm milk with chocolate separately, and then add the chocolate yourself.
You stir it through and let it melt into the milk.
It's such a simple thing, but it makes the whole hot chocolate feel like a bit of an experience rather than just ordering a drink.
And it was really good.
Possibly the weather helped. When you've come in from a freezing Great Ocean Road winter day, a glass of warm milk with chocolate melting through it is pretty hard to beat.
An easy stop with kids and dogs
We visited with our son, and it's an easy place to take kids.
There is obviously plenty of chocolate and ice cream involved, which helps. There are also chickens out the back, which are always worth a look, and little things around the Chocolaterie that make the visit fun for children, including the giant ice cream photo board that resulted in the photo above.
It's also dog friendly, which makes it particularly useful for us.
If you've been out for a beach walk with the dog, it's a great place to stop afterwards for a coffee, hot chocolate or something sweet without having to worry about leaving the dog behind.
It doesn't need to be an elaborate day out.
For us, that's part of the appeal. You can do a beach walk, stop at the Chocolaterie afterwards, have something nice and then continue with your day.
And in the middle of winter, I'd definitely recommend the hot chocolate.
Sometimes local is enough
One of the things I want to do more of on Great Ocean Road Living is share the ordinary places we actually go.
When you live somewhere that other people travel to for holidays, it's easy to overlook the places sitting practically on your doorstep.
Not every Great Ocean Road experience needs to involve a huge drive, a famous lookout or an entire day's itinerary.
Sometimes it's winter, it's freezing outside and a really good hot chocolate is enough.
And next time we go back, I already know what I'm ordering.
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