The “Taste of Chocolate” at the Four Seasons Resort Maui at Wailea is an event I truly look forward to! I’ve covered it before for Hawaii News Now so I already knew how amazing the chocolate, drinks and atmosphere was. Plus, the celebrities that are being honored during the Maui Film Festival usually show up to enjoy the event too (if you look REALLY closely you can see them in the background of the picture above). This year, I wanted to give people a glimpse into what it takes to put the event on. I mean, come on? Chocolate + Hawaii would usually result in a sticky brown mess, but not at this event! Check out my coverage for MAUIWatch below 
A happy circumstance of covering the event is that we can also ENJOY the event… for journalistic purposes, of course. 
This was one of our favorites! The “Molten Milk Chocolate Shots.” Joe Manganiello and I had our discussion about both being on Hollywood Game Night over these non-alcoholic shots (Joe doesn’t drink). Delicious!
The puffs were fantastic … giving Liliha Bakery a run for their money.
These white chocolate cheesecake lime vodka syrup treats were good but VERY rich. I could only eat half – maybe that’s because I had already eaten so much chocolate… plus, my stomach was in knots because I was so excited to see and chat with the celebrities at this event. lol Guy Nattiv and his wife, actress Jaime Ray Newman remembered me and we had a deep talk about children. At the end of the night, Jaime switched her footwear out to more comfortable flats – so cute! The “Drop Dead Diva” & “Desperate Housewives” actress said “I never wear heels!”
The lemon raspberry crème brulée was delicious. Especially when taking in all of the elements at once. Getting the raspberry in the bite was key.
These were the truffles that Rhonda (the executive pastry chef) was preparing in the first half of our Taste of Chocolate coverage. They were delicious!! Creamy and oh so chocolatey!
The Alii Lavender and chocolate emulsion apricot fluid gel was probably the treat that tasted the “healthiest.” It was very herbal… the lavender came through loud and clear. This was probably my least favorite BUT it was really pretty!!
The chocolate mousse cones were divine! This was the first thing I tried and a great way to start the evening off.
The trifle (also saw these being prepared earlier in the day) was sweet but not sickly sweet – just the perfect amount of sweetness. I’m not a huge fan of cake but I tried the cake pop anyway. It was moist and denser than “normal” cake… yummy! I only had half though and shoved the rest into my husband’s mouth. lol
The chocolate fountain was a hit. We were in line behind Evan Peters (Emma Roberts fiancé & actor on “American Horror Story” – more on them below), he seemed to like it as much as we did! You could dip with banana bread, marshmallows, strawberries and fresh pineapple. The pineapple was my fav (even though I’m allergic)!
This was probably my favorite treat of the night! I’m a sucker for a creamy truffle type of dessert. These held together just right without being hard and chewy. They were soft and melted in your mouth. The olive oil kind of scared me at first but I had nothing to fear! Delicious! It’s also open bar and they have several signature drinks including a chocolate martini which they serve by pouring it through an ice sculpture.
As for the celebrities… Emma Roberts and Evan Peters were also in attendance. She wore a cute skirt and crop top with flats, barely any make-up and still looked AMAZING. He was dressed casually as well. They remembered us from our interview the other day and were so sweet and genuine in greeting me. Emma told me that Evan wore the necklace I made for him all day the day before and that she loved the sunrise shell necklace that I had given to her. They were able to make the horseback riding a reality and rode along the beach (not right on it) at Makena with a private tour from the ranch. Emma was worried that she looked tired and said she was exhausted from the week’s activities.
I didn’t get a chance to chat with Evan Rachel Wood again as she was busy talking with James Marsden (X-men, Anchorman 2). Another celebrity that had me doing a double take was Mr. Big from ‘Sex and the City”… I suppose I shouldn’t be surprised, after all, I don’t even know his real name, BUT he was the only person I asked to take a photo with at this event and he flat out denied me (after taking a photo with another fan) saying, in a nutshell, “You think this is fun for me? Pictures are depressing. Let me enjoy the party.” Granted he was a bit tipsy and I can see how being asked to take pictures all of the time can get aggravating but I still felt it was a little rude. Just saying… All in all, a great night though! It started with two amazing interviews with Joe and Evan and ended with awesome coverage of the “Taste of Chocolate” and an amazing event. When I got home I felt like jumping up and down like a teenager! I could hardly calm my adrenaline to fall asleep. What an amazing week!
Maui Film Festival Coverage:
My article on meeting Joe Manganiello & Evan Rachel Wood – Honolulu Pulse
Star Advertiser Article on Emma Roberts “Shining Star” award
Honolulu Pulse Article on meeting Emma Roberts & Evan Peters
Life’s Swell blog on Joe Manganiello
Life’s Swell blog on Evan Rachel Wood
Life’s Swell blog on Maui Film Festival outdoor cinemas
Thursday, June 12th 2014 at 3:37 pm
Seeing all the pictures I almost had a diabetic coma! Looked just amazing. You are so lucky to do what you do.