Chocolatier Byron McLean reveals the secret behind Cocoa Wilds' viral social media trend. Video / Alyse Wright
Craving a hot chocolate to welcome the arrival of winter? One beverage is enjoying viral popularity and has piqued Auckland’s - and the NZ Herald’s - curiosity.
As the weather cools and coats make forays into our wardrobe rotation, so does hot chocolate season begin. But marking a point of difference in the annual tradition, an Auckland chocolate shop has offered a fresh twist on the beloved beverage - and it’s causing a social media frenzy.
It’s 2024 and most foodies get their cravings and restaurant recommendations from the social media sphere, particularly TikTok. From crookies to cronuts, users have been inundated with attention-grabbing food offerings to keep us hungry and hooked on the platform.
Recently, TikTok has delivered local chocolate lovers a new obsession, and it’s seeing Aucklanders line up and down the street.
Cocoa Wilds, which opened its doors on the CBD’s O’Connell St at the end of 2023, has started a new hot chocolate trend, introducing toasted marshmallow hot chocolate to the public on April 12.
The gourmet drink, served with either 33, 53 per cent or 70 per cent chocolate, is topped with a gooey, toasted marshmallow rim. It’s priced at $7.50 (with an additional $2 to increase the size).
While chocolate prices have been rocketing thanks to the international cocoa bean shortage, local chocolate shoppers have seemingly been undeterred by its indulgent nature. In one of Cocoa Wilds’ Instagram videos, which has amassed over 400,000 views, thousands gushed over the hot chocolate, tagging their friends and spreading the word.
Since then, the beverage has seen a social media craze emerge. TikTok and Instagram have been filled with pictures and clips of the drink, the tiny chocolate shop has been stuffed to the brim with expectant chocolate enthusiasts and queues out the door have been a regular feature on O’Connell St.
So, what’s behind the beverage’s social media success? Cocoa Wilds founder and chocolatier Byron McLean says it’s simpler than it seems.
“The secret ingredient to going viral on social media would have to be actually making a product that doesn’t just look good, but actually tastes delicious,” he shares.
“The goal is just to make the best takeaway hot chocolate,” he adds, and the chocolatier may be on the money.
COMING FRIDAY! Fresh housemade toasted marshmallow with our melted hot chocolate! Only available at our O’Connell street chocolate store 🍫🍫 #auckland#smallbusiness
With various clips doing the rounds on social media, McLean admits he “stopped counting” the views after they hit one million, overwhelmed by how fast the trend took off and elated that it did.
“We’re just so grateful. We’re so fortunate because this is our first year in business, and in the first year of business more than 30 per cent of businesses fail,” he shares. “So it’s crunch time.”
As Aucklanders flock to taste the hottest chocolate trend in town, the question on everybody’s minds is: What’s next?
Hoping for the craze to continue, McLean asked himself the same thing. “What is something that no one is doing that delivers the taste experience we aim for?”
With even more innovative ideas to keep the hot chocolate trend churning, the chocolatier offered the Herald a sneak peek at what’s to come, with flavours like sea-salt caramel, raspberry, and cookies and cream potentially being added to the hot chocolate menu.
“We’ve just been putting it in front of people and saying, ‘Which one would you pick?’,” says McLean.
Byron McLean, managing director and founder of Cocoa Wilds, a boutique, hand-crafted chocolate business on O’Connell Street in the Auckland CBD.
The man behind the viral hot chocolate has a passion for making chocolate - a notable force driving his journey to success.
“My favourite thing about the chocolate world is that it is a space that offers you so much creativity, but demands so much precision,” says McLean.
His story is a unique one - trading in the suits and stress of corporate life for a world made of chocolate.
After being made redundant from his job in 2022, McLean decided to travel around Europe and the US, sampling over 300 different types of chocolate from around the world in the process. The trip served as suitable inspiration for him to embark on a new, much sweeter chapter, and the rest, as they say, is history.
“It’s about helping people find something that they’re going to enjoy themselves, they’re going to love, or helping them find something for someone that they love.
Cocoa Wilds is just one of several dedicated chocolatiers in Auckland who work with speciality beans and passion to bring innovation to the hot chocolate game.
Miann in Ponsonby, Britomart and Sandringham offers an experimental beverage of their own, a deconstructed smoked hot chocolate ($13), while PieFee on Karangahape Road allows Aucklanders to sip their hot choccy out of pie-sized edible cookie cups ($9.90).
And if you’re looking for an array of flavours to pick from, look no further than Elisabeth’s Chef in Kingsland, which offers dark chocolate, milk chocolate, salted caramel, ginger, peppermint, Aztec spice and s’mores-flavoured beverages ($12-15.50) to keep your hands warm and sweet tooth satisfied this winter.
Not confined to Auckland, hot chocolate is being championed across the country. Just pop into Bennetts in Mangawhai for a chocolate stirrer experience ($6.50) or Wellington Chocolate Factory in Te Aro for a Peruvian criollo chocolate blend ($6.50) to get a taste of some of the best Kiwi creations in the cocoa business.
So, this winter, there’s no excuse not to support local when getting your hot chocolate fix. According to TikTok, New Zealand has some of the best in the world.
Megan Watts is a lifestyle multimedia journalist for the NZ Herald whose passions include honest journalism, chocolate taste tests and doing things for the plot.
