The best hot chocolate spots in NYC

This French-Korean pastry shop offers desserts as breathtaking to look at as they are to eat. Their corn mousse cake—in the shape of an adorable, miniature ear of corn—has probably passed through your social feed. Alongside their signature treats, a dairy-free "Maemil" hot chocolate made with Valrhona chocolate is a standout. Notes of nutty buckwheat and a flower-shaped, homemade bruleed marshmallow take it over the top. 

Venchi, at almost 150 years old, is an Italian institution with locations all over NYC. In the summer, you can’t miss its gelato; when the weather gets chilly, you shouldn’t take a stroll around the park without their hot chocolate in hand. It’s unbelievably rich on its own, available in dark and milk chocolate varieties. You can choose to add hazelnut spread or spike it with a taste of rum. 

Cocoa overflows in the hot chocolate at Bar Pisellino, a local take on the classic Italian caffè. Its offering, which is rich enough to evoke a chocolate fountain, is topped with a dollop of slow-melting whipped panna. A lot of hot chocolates split the difference between sweet sippable treat and dedicated dessert, and this one is proudly the latter. 

Daily Provisions’ seasonal hot chocolate marries foamed milk and rich, house-made chocolate ganache. The cuppa is already airy, but becomes especially buoyant when topped with a plush large marshmallow and perfect swirl of whipped cream. 

Pastry chef's Umber Ahmad's take on hot chocolate is straightforward and richly sumptuous: dark Valrhona chocolate, steamed milk of your choice and a toasted housemade vanilla-bean marshmallow out of a child’s wildest dreams.

Enjoy three categories of “drinking chocolates” at this nearly forty-year-old chocolatier chain: Blended (in dark, milk or white chocolate varieties), single source (Bolivia, Brazil) or a spicy dark brew punched up with chili powder. Each is truly a treat. 

The original Levain, whose goods are now sold far and wide, is still a hot spot for all manner of sweets. Its comforting hot cocoa is made with French Valrhona chocolate, which pairs perfectly with their signature chocolate chip walnut cookie. 

This old-timey soda fountain celebrates sweater weather with a hot cocoa that invites a spoon. It’s topped with a small mountain of toasted house-made marshmallow (an extra $1.50) and freshly whipped cream (an additional $.95), making it feel far more like a winter sundae than any old beverage. 

MarieBelle’s Soho boutique serves up hot chocolate made with cacao shavings—not chocolate powder—straight from its own Cacao Bar. Choose from Aztec dark, milk hazelnut, spiced or white chocolate for a totally decadent cup. It also offers each option as a pre-made mix to recreate that velvety hot chocolate experience at home. 

Made with Omanhene cocoa and dried lavender, Maman’s fragrant, floral hot chocolate is a subtle but surprising take on the favorite. Add a dollop of whipped cream and order a warmed-up cranberry-orange croissant for the perfect walk-around-the-city-on-a-winter-day snack. 

Glace—the ice cream and dessert chainlet from Sasha Zabar (yes, that Zabar)—went viral for its frozen hot chocolate creations, but it's no slouch when it comes to the classic kind of cocoa. From Fluffer Nutter to Cookies 'N Cream, there are a range of flavors but we're parial to the Classic S'mores cup, featuring hot chocolate crowned with a toasted marshmallow halo and a picture-perfect scoop of whipped cream on top.

Breads makes chocolate in so many ways—including that stunner of a chocolate babka—but we’re partial to drinking it straight. Their version of hot chocolate is totally classic, made with 35% Cacao Noel solid chocolate disks and a cap of steamed whole milk.