2014 Big Island Chocolate Festival

 

For the third year was honored to photograph the 2014 Big Island Chocolate Festival. The Festival is "a 2 day event of chocolate decadence, education, and fun! From seminars and demonstrations with top notch chefs, to a student culinary competition to the evening fundraising Gala." (Julie Zemelis) 

Chefs, Chocolatiers and Students are judged by a panel of celebrity chefs “Mr. Chocolate” Jacques Torres of New York City and Valrhona Chocolate’s Vincent Bourdin of Singapore. Other team judges included chocolatier Ken Goto and pastry chefs Rhonda Ashton-Chavez of Four Seasons Resort Maui, Elizabeth McDonald of Mala Restaurant, Ricky DeBoer of The Fairmont Kea Lani, Maui; Heather Campbell of Kaua‘i’s St. Regis Resort Princeville and Daniel Sampson of The Fairmont Orchid.

The real winners of the third annual festival are two beneficiaries: the Equip the Kitchens campaign for the future Hawai’i Community College-Palamanui and Kona Pacific Public Charter School.

This year I captured a combination of wonderful chocolate products and demonstrations along with shots of people just having fun and enjoying the gala event and the music of Yisa Var and her band.

Enjoy!