Five of the best: the Gold Coast’s top hot chocolates

In the words of Jon Snow, winter is coming. But don’t despair — we’ve found the Gold Coast’s best hot chocolates to warm you up from the inside out.

One of Oh My Waffle's delicious hot chocolates — the campfire.

In the words of Jon Snow, winter is coming. But don’t despair — we’ve found the Gold Coast’s best hot chocolates to warm you up from the inside out.

COWCH

Pacific Fair Shopping Centre, 1606/07 Hooker Blvd, Broadbeach Waters

Choose from milk, white, caramel or dark hot chocolate at Cowch and jack it up with whipped cream and toasted marshmallows for a decadent winter treat.

THE GOLD COAST’S BEST CHOCOLATE DESSERTS

One variety of hot chocolate just isn’t the Cowch style, so the dessert bar has not just one, but four flavours of hot chocolate on offer. You can choose from milk, white, dark or caramel, then jack it up with extra sweet toppings. “Cowch hot chocolates are a must have this winter,” Cowch owner Arif Memphis says. “Choose what type of chocolate you want and then make it deluxe with whipped cream and tasted marshmallows. To make it even better, have it in store next to the warm fire for the ultimate winter hot chocolate experience.”

ELK ESPRESSO

Shop 44 The Oasis, Charles Avenue, Broadbeach

Gemma Gillin from Elk Espresso Broadbeach with the signature hot chocolate sphere. Photo: Steve Holland

Pink is the new black in the chocolate world, and Elk Espresso is riding the ruby train with its new hot chocolate sphere drink. Elk Espresso owner Andrew Whiting explains the modern chocolate flavour will take the Broadbeach cafe’s signature hot chocolate concoction to the next level. “Ruby chocolate is big at the moment with its beautiful pink and red colour and fruit flavour,” Andrew says. “Diners will receive a ruby coloured sphere with pouring hot chocolate mixer for them to melt the sphere to make a brand new flavoured hot chocolate. It will also have two secretly hidden marshmallows inside the sphere that will pop out during the melting process.”

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PADDOCK BAKERY

20 Hibiscus Haven, Miami

Paddock Bakery's hot chocolate comes with torched marshmallows on top.

THE GOLD COAST’S BEST BAKERIES AS VOTED BY YOU

Paddock Bakery says if you’ve finished your hot chocolate without a little sticky smudge on your face, you’re not drinking the right hot chocolate. The Miami breakfast haunt has brought back its hot chocolate with a torched marshmallow top, a gooey dream of warm liquid with a soft crunch. “It is a combination of top grade chocolate all melted together with a dash of cream, creating one big rich mouthful of chocolate,” Paddock owner Chloe Watts says. “We then top it with our house marshmallow and torch it before going to the table. The marshmallow cuts through the rich chocolate and makes for a fun and messy dining experience. It’s one of our favourites for sure.”

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LOST FAWN

2319 Springbrook Rd, Springbrook

The Lost Fawn Cafe in Springbrook dusts its hot chocolates with its signature baby deer stencil.

Crisp mountain air, a crackling fire and a smooth hot chocolate — a visit to Lost Fawn is a must-do winter day trip. The Springbrook cafe offers a standard hot chocolate and four specialty flavours, served in the charming dining room while a log burns on the fire. “We have our three flavours of hot chocolate — mint slice, Turkish delight and jaffa,” co-owner Regan Proctor says. “We also have a salted caramel hot chocolate.” Cadbury hot chocolate is infused with mint, rose essence or orange emulsion, before being dusted with the cafe’s signature baby deer stencil. “We have the fawn picture on top,” Regan says. “It’s very rare that someone doesn’t whip out their phone when they see it.”

POPULAR COAST CAFE’S NEW HOME REVEALED

OH MY, WAFFLE

6/1837 Gold Coast Hwy, Burleigh Heads

Oh My, Waffle's range of hot chocolates: red velvet 'drop it like it's hot', the s'mores 'campfire', and Nutella and oreo 'let's get chocolate wasted'.

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You can have your cake and drink it too at Oh My, Waffle (and your Oreos and s'mores). The waffle dessert shop has three decadent hot chocolate options for the sweet tooths in all of us, each one as tempting as the last. While the names might be comical, Oh My, Waffle co-owner Jessica Hannagan says they’re made for the serious chocolate sippers. “We have the campfire one, let’s get chocolate wasted and drop it like it’s hot,” she says. “The campfire hot chocolate is like a s’mores hot chocolate, it’s rimmed with chocolate icing and crushed biscuits, and we torch the mini marshmallows that go into it. Let’s get chocolate wasted is a Nutella one rimmed with crushed Oreos, and drop it like it’s hot has red velvet cake crumbs. They’re all made from Whittaker's hot chocolate.”