The Best Hot Chocolate in Boston: From Hot Chocolate Bombs to Steaming Cocoa!

When you're looking for the best hot chocolate in Boston, whether it's to warm up after swooshing down the local sledding hill or just hoping to satisfy your seasonal sweet tooth, you don't just want a boring powdered mix. You want the good stuff. The great stuff. Hot chocolate bombs and melted chocolate with local, organic milk. Luckily, we know exactly where to find the best hot chocolate in Boston. The stuff worth indulging in.

So, gather the family, pull off those mittens, and sip on some sweetness at one of these places—from Boston to the North Shore—serving up the season's most delectable drink. If you need something sweet to go with that drink, check out our favorite Boston-Area Donut Shops. Or, if a nor'easter is hitting and you can't leave the house, get our Easy, 5-Step Recipe for Hot Chocolate Bombs to make at home.

Thick rich hot cocoa at L.A. Burdick is a crowd-pleaser. Photo courtesy of L.A. Burdick

Best Hot Chocolate in Boston

1. L.A. Burdick — Boston

L.A. Burdick is the place for serious chocolate lovers to get a cup of indulgent drinking chocolate. Choose a chocolate blend or one of a variety of single-source cups. Either way, the rich, dense flavor of real chocolate will not disappoint. A word of caution: sip slowly or share your drinking chocolate with a friend; more than one customer has reported chocolate overload after drinking a full cup. ​Enjoy Burdick hot chocolate anytime day or night when you purchase a bag of drinking chocolate to take home.

2. flour bakery + cafe — Boston and Cambridge

Flour bakery + cafe has a half-dozen locations in Boston and Cambridge where families can make a pit-stop for luscious hot chocolate and perhaps a sticky bun or two. Chocolate lovers can find cupcakes, brownies, cookies–even brioche. But the liquid kind does the trick for those exploring the city. The Mt. Auburn Street location is perfect for a treat while visiting the Harvard Museums with kids.

 
Photo courtesy of Paris Creperie

3. Paris Creperie — Brookline

We don't think there's an adult or kid around (with the exception of one of mine) who doesn't love Nutella, that obsession-worthy Italian chocolate/hazelnut spread. Well, Nutella enthusiasts: rejoice! Paris Creperie has taken the beloved spread and turned it into a delicious warm winter drink. Try your basic Nutella Hot Chocolate, the shop's own blend of steamed milk and Nutella, or try it with mint or raspberry flavoring for a little something extra. Enjoy breakfast, lunch, dinner—or all three—by choosing one of Paris Creperie's sweet or savory crepes. 

4. 1369 Coffee House – Cambridge

The 1369 Coffee House offers light breakfast and lunch fare, but you’ll make a beeline for the scrumptious cookies and creamy cocoa. Purists of all ages opt for the traditional hot chocolate. More adventurous moms, dads, and kids can try the spiced Mexican cocoa, featuring cinnamon and coriander, for a unique twist to this winter treat.

 
Photo courtesy of the Thinking Cup

5. Thinking Cup – Boston

The French hot chocolate at Thinking Cup coffee shop delivers exquisite flavor from its blend of dark chocolate and whole milk. French hot cocoa has a more intense, savory taste, but the staff at Thinking Cup’s three Boston locations will sweeten it to your liking. The downtown shop, nestled between the Theater District and Boston Common, makes an ideal spot for warming up with a tasty cup.

 
The North End offers some of Boston's best hot cocoa. Photo courtesy of Caffe Vittoria

6. Caffe Vittoria – Boston

Even in a neighborhood filled with world-famous pastry shops, the first Italian cafe in the city is our pick for decadent Italian sweets and the best hot chocolate in Boston’s North End. The creamy concoctions pair well with strolling on Hanover Street, walking the Freedom Trail, and all the other fun things to do in the North End with kids.

Best Hot Chocolate near Boston: Worth the Drive!

7. Crave – Hull

Nantasket Beach’s miles of shoreline have spectacular ocean views any time of year. Hull’s Crave makes a winter trip to the ocean worth your while, with steaming cups of cocoa and sweet hot chocolate bombs available at the cafe or to go. The menu includes smoothies and bowls crafted with fresh fruit and grains. The healthy offerings provide a perfect balance to the endless waves of chocolatey goodness.

8. Cacao — Newton and Jamaica Plain

This shop specializes in nuts–roasted, raw, or coated in spicy chocolate. The rich cocoa, served smothered in whipped cream and topped with chocolate shavings, has been known to drive customers a little nuts. The signature mix (traditional, dark, or spicy) makes an excellent gift. Or just grab some to make for the kids when the next snow day hits. Cacao's Jamaica Plain location is close enough to Franklin Park to warrant a pit stop to or from the Franklin Park Zoo. 

9. Coffee Time Bake Shop — Salem

The secret to Coffee Time Bake Shop's Hot Chocolate Milk—a twist on the traditional hot chocolate—is Dunajski Dairy, a century-old, family-run dairy farm in Peabody. Thick and creamy chocolate milk is warmed and mixed with cherry syrup for the Chocolate Covered Cherries drink. Or, try the Peppermint Patty: hot chocolate milk mixed with frosted mint syrup. Whipped cream is optional, but oh so necessary!​
Be sure to pick up one of Coffee Time's real cream Bismarks, a puffed pastry stuffed with a layer of thick, rich cream.

 
You want the good stuff - hot chocolate bombs and melted chocolate with local, organic milk. Photo courtesy of Bigstock

10. Ovedia Artisan Chocolates — Amesbury

Known locally as the place to go for a wide variety of decadent chocolates, Ovedia also features a super friendly staff, amazing coffee, baked goods, and yes, warm, liquid chocolate. These confectioners have seasonal specialties, like sumptuous hot cocoa bombs, during the colder months. Close to I-495, this Merrimack Valley sweet shop and espresso bar makes a great pit stop on the way to the coast. But the hot chocolate bombs sold here make Ovedia a chocolate-lovers destination well worth the trip.

Originally published December 18, 2014