Glendale, AZ – Chocolate is the star of the Glendale Chocolate Affaire, however, you’ll find more to see and do than just eating at this award-winning, three-day festival! From history and science to a romance novel cover model, Glendale’s got it all Feb. 3-5.
With more than 30 chocolatiers, how do you know what to taste first? Event planners can help with that; on Friday evening, the second annual SweetTooth contest will determine which delicious confection is the best. Visitors can watch the competition with special guest judges, and can find the winner noted with special recognition on Saturday and Sunday.
Event sponsor Cerreta Candy Company annually contributes to a fundraiser for the Mayor’s Youth Advisory Commission (MYAC). This year, students will sell candy bars, 50 of which will have special golden tickets. Just like the movie, the golden tickets will get winners a personal behind-the-scenes tour of the factory along with candy, of course.
Did you know that this event features the largest gathering of national romance novelists in the Southwest? This event features many different genres within romance fiction, including paranormal, historical, young adult, fantasy, sci-fi, romantic comedy and more. The book signings and writing workshops with authors are complemented by a special appearance by Jimmy Thomas, who can be seen in fitness magazines, on television and in music videos, but his most active modeling venue has been romance novel covers. To date he has been featured on more than 2,000 book covers, since participating in the "2002 Mr. Romance Cover Model" contest. He will appear Saturday, Feb. 4, 10 a.m.-6 p.m.
A unique element of the event this year will be “The Science of Chocolate.” Come learn about and experience the science and medicinal properties of chocolate with Dr. Francisco Villarreal, professor of medicine at the University of California, San Diego, on Saturday, Feb. 4, at 5 p.m. (Spanish) and 6 p.m. (English) in Diamond B at the Glendale Civic Center. In addition, the Arizona SciTech Festival will have a Science of Chocolate booth during all event hours.
With Glendale’s Chocolate Affaire being an officially-sanctioned Arizona Centennial event, history will be part of this celebration. State Historian Marshall Trimble will be featured in the lineup of writer’s workshops, giving a presentation on Arizona history on Saturday at 1 p.m. Also, the Glendale Arts Commission will put on a Plein Air painting contest with artists from all over the state coming to compete at this event. This year a major part of the competition instructions include painting historical subjects from the West Valley to acknowledge or salute the centennial, creating artwork to display tie-ins to the centennial such as Sahuaro Ranch, Beet Sugar Factory, First United Methodist Church and Murphy Park, all destinations that are more than 100 years old.
Event hours are Friday 5 - 10 p.m., Saturday 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. and Sunday noon to 5 p.m. The event is located in the heart of Historic Downtown Glendale, in Murphy Park, located at 58th and Glendale avenues.
The Glendale Chocolate Affaire is sponsored by Cerreta’s Candy Company, ABC 15, The Arizona Republic, Valley Buick-GMC Dealers, YooHoo, KMLE, KOOL and JAMZ, Sedona Pines, Pacific Monarch, Residence Inn-Springhill Suites Glendale, Phoenix Coyotes, the Glendale Arts Commission and Arizona SciTech Festival.
