Fairview’s 6th Art of Chocolate fundraiser, presented by Groton Utilities, was another success! On Sunday, January 26th, the Mystic Marriott Hotel & Spa was filled with over 500 chocolate lovers. With 13 local vendors in attendance, guests were able to satisfy their sweet tooth and try all things chocolate! Music was provided by Marcy Kelly & Dan Watson, and Mynd Spa & Salon provided mini services for guests to enjoy.
This year’s chocolate tasting extravaganza featured an assortment of chocolate themed foods made by Black Dahlia Baking Company, Cake by Franck, Carlo’s Bake Shop at Mohegan Sun, Chapter One, Dutch’s Vegan Bakery, Fairview, Flanagan’s, Hot Rod Cafe, Karma Kitchen, Ocean Blue Catering, Octagon at Mystic Marriott, Pop On the Block—Gourmet Popcorn and The Arc Eastern Connecticut.
Guest judges this year included Chef Maurice Beebe, Owner of Catering by Maurice, Lee White, Food Columnist for The Day’s weekly papers, and Rick Koster, Art and Culture Columnist and Food Reviewer for The Day.
These three judges teamed up to select their favorite chocolate items and gave out five awards. First place Judges’ Choice was awarded to Hot Rod Café for their creative chocolate shrimp dish, second place was awarded to Cake by Franck for his phenomenal pastries and third place was awarded to The Arc Eastern Connecticut for their delicious, signature classic crunch chocolate chip cookies. Most Creative Use of Chocolate was a tie this year between Black Dahlia Baking Company and Ocean Blue Catering, while Most Savory Use of Chocolate was awarded to The Octagon. Best Display, chosen by the Art of Chocolate committee, was another tie between Pop on the Block Gourmet Popcorn and Cake by Franck. In addition to the awards given out by the guest judges and the committee, first place People’s Choice went to Hot Rod Cafe, andrunner up went to Cake by Franck.
Fairview is grateful to have the support of ; Groton Utilities, Mystic Marriott, Full Power Radio – 106.5, 107.7, 99.5, 94.9, Thames Valley Communications, PSAV, The Day, K-Hits, The Westerly Sun, Loureiro Engineering Associates, Mynd Spa & Salon, Mystic Shipyard, MysticView TV, Sheree Sirpenski Photography, LLC, Gordon Foods, Bouvier Insurance, The Schuster Group and ABC PhotoLab. These sponsors help Fairview to make this fan favorite fundraiser possible.
The proceeds from this fundraiser will help support Fairview’s unrestricted annual fund, which allows the organization to continue to offer the high quality of care and services that enhance the lives of its residents.