After two whole years, the Lewisburg Chocolate Festival is back!
The annual event has been shuttered since 2019 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, but this weekend the festivities, and the crowds, are set to return to downtown Lewisburg.
In 2019, an estimated 5,000 chocolate fans lined the streets of downtown Lewisburg, enjoying upwards of 48,000 chocolate-themed treats. The 2019 Lewisburg Chocolate Festival, a fundraiser for the United Way of the Greenbrier Valley, raised a record-setting $30,000 for the local organization.
April 9 marks the 14th year of the Lewisburg Chocolate festival, and there are treats and events for all kinds of chocolate fans.
Early risers can enjoy a chocolate-themed breakfast at Hill and Holler, directly benefiting the United Way of the Greenbrier Valley, and runners and walkers are invited to race the Chocolate Chase 5k and 10k at 9 a.m., benefiting HospiceCare.
Other restaurants will have chocolate-themed entrees and desserts, while shops, restaurants, and bars across downtown will have special chocolate tastings.
Festival goers will want to keep an eye out for the Easter Bunny who will be hopping through town all day long. At 3 p.m. there will be a free Easter egg hunt at Hill and Holler.
Other free activities include performances by El Gleno Grande, Valley Dance Studio, the Thomas Taylor Band, the Vince Lewis Sextet, and a drum performance by the Greenbrier Academy for Girls.
Free events include face painting, a showing of the movie “Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory” at Greenbrier Valley Theatre, live story telling, and pastry demonstrations.
You’ll want to leave your pooch at home. Not only is chocolate bad for dogs, organizers wish remind everyone that dogs are not permitted at the festival.
Tickets are available online. Purchased tickets can be picked up on Saturday at City National Bank during will call hours, 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Tickets can also be purchased locally at the Greenbrier Valley Visitors Center in downtown Lewisburg. Ticket sales close Thursday, April 7, at 5 p.m. while supplies last.
The Lewisburg Chocolate Festival takes place from 11 a.m.-4 p.m. on Saturday, April 9.
The chocolate festival event schedule and list of tasting locations is located in this newspaper on page 7.
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