About Us
YYC Hot Chocolate Fest was started in 2011 by Calgary Meals on Wheels as a way to bring our community together to support local businesses and raise funds for a good cause. Originally just 10 businesses participated to raise $5,000 for Calgary Meals on Wheels. This annual festival has grown into a beloved city-wide event that consistently sees over 100 businesses take part and raises over $100,000 annually to combat food-insecurity in Calgary.
Every February, participating cafés, restaurants, and chocolatiers compete for the coveted awards of YYC's Best Hot Chocolate, Best Spirited Hot Chocolate, Cup That Runneth Over (most sold) and, new for 2024, the Most Creative Hot Chocolate. For 28 days, Calgarians can sip varieties of hot cocoas and vote to determine the blend that roasts them all!
How does it work? Try out some of the Hot Chocolates from our list of contestants and then rate the drink online or through our app to help decide who has the best Hot Chocolate in town!
$1 - $3 from every cup sold supports Calgary Meals on Wheels, thereby directly providing nutritious meals to Calgarians.
Our Charity
Since 1965 Calgary Meals on Wheels has been providing healthy, quality, and accessible food; improving the food security and well-being of our community.
Access to quality, healthy, and affordable meals is a physical necessity and basic human right. One in ten Calgarians are living below the poverty line, and one in five Alberta households experience food insecurity and struggle to put healthy meals on the table.
We are in a unique position to address food insecurity. Each day our Production team, which includes Red Seal Chefs, a Registered Dietician, and a Dietary Technician, produces approximately 5,500 meals in our 16,000 square-foot custom commercial kitchen, strictly adhering to food safety best practices to ensure quality and safe meals for our clients.
Demand for our services has increased by 10% each year for the last 15 years, highlighting the need for our service in the community. In 2023, for the second time in our 59-year history, we locally prepared and delivered more than 1 million meals to vulnerable members of our community.
We believe everyone deserves to be well-fed; there is no waitlist to receive our meals.
Learn more and help support our efforts in providing nutritious meals to our neighbours in need.
Every $5 feeds one client for a day