For the Love of Chocolate Gala Filled with Foodie Festivals
The French Pastry School Scholarship Foundation Raises $100,00 for Students
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Path to a Chef: Johnny Iuzzini
Path to a Chef: Keegan Gerhard
Path to a Chef: Chris Hanmer
Cocoa Venetian Carnival : Sweet as Sin: Cocoa Candy Land
Confectiatory : Chocolate Spa : Chocolate Sutra
Entertainment : Photography : Event Sponsors : Special Thanks
- COCOA CUISINE: In Cocoa Cuisine, we bring you sweet and savory bites from Chicago’s best chefs. As you walk through what feels like miles of tempting displays and aromas prepared by over 50 top chefs from around the country, be sure to pace yourself so you can try a bit of everything.
- COCOA VENETIAN CARNIVAL: Transport yourself to a raucous night in Venice during Carnival, where elegance and mischief meet. Join the fun by donning a mask, playing with Redmoon Theatre, and admiring Carnival-inspired chocolate designs as they come down the runway.
- SWEET AS SIN:
Prepare to pick your poison as you cross our chocolaty River Styx into the sweetest Hades you’ll ever see. Our gatekeepers will have you choose your favorite chocolate sin so you can have the chance to indulge in sweet and savory morsels, dance to the DJ’s devilish tunes, and lose yourself in a full chocolate bar. If this is bad, you won’t want to be good.
- COCOA CANDY LAND:
Get your evening’s sugar fix in this colorful passage, spanning the entire length of The Merchandise Mart. You’ll encounter Princess Lollipop, a traveling band, and live demonstrations of sugar showpieces as you satisfy your sweet tooth.
- CONFECTIATORY:
PolyScience and SubZero/Wolf present the Confectiatory, where mad scientists will manipulate chocolate and sugar to do things you never thought possible. Taste how new technology like the Reverse Griddle can change familiar confections into space age concoctions.
- CHOCOLATE SPA: Everyone knows high heels and stuffy shirts can make for a long night. Recharge in our chocolate spa where you can receive chocolate massages, touch-ups on hair and make-up, and even a pair of flip-flops to relieve your aching feet. Once you’re refreshed, you’ll be ready to party through the night!
- COCOA SUTRA: In a big event like this, you may need a moment to take it all in. Take a break from the dancing in the Cocoa Lounge, the best place in the Gala to relax, listen to some calming tunes, catch a belly dancing performance, and get ready to return to the festivities.
- ENTERTAINMENT: The best talents from the West Coast, East Coast, and, our very own, Third Coast, will gather at The Merchandise Mart to offer our guests a variety of entertainment that will last all night.
- PHOTOGRAPHY:
These photographers will be roaming the event, capturing you at your most glamorous.
- EVENT SPONSORS: For the Love of Chocolate Foundation depends on the generosity of its sponsors and donors. Their support and yours provides scholarships which make it possible for students to attain the finest pastry arts education at The French Pastry School and become the future of pastry in Chicago and around the world.
- SPECIAL THANKS:
Thank you to our partners who help make this event such a special one!
Located in one of the largest buildings in the world, the Merchandise Mart, the gala was a feast for the senses, with exquisite cuisine, live music, dancing, celebrity chef tastings in the modern LuxeHome Kitchens.
Learn how to become a sponsor, or renew your sponsorship to the foundation, and help an aspiring student of the pastry arts achieve the best possible education.
For the Love of Chocolate Foundation thanks the Merchandise Mart for hosting the 2011 gala!