The 19th edition of the Salon du Chocolat in Paris will take place this year from October 30th to November 3rd, 2013 at Porte de Versailles.

Like every year, it is the Parisian event for food lovers not to be missed! And like every year, I am looking forward with great impatience to going there to have a (very temporary, rest assured) chocolate overdose!

This year, the Salon du Chocolat is expanding and will offer stands between chocolate and confectionery on two levels with this year’s gourmet theme: “Why is Chocolate magical?”.

As usual, I have prepared a small selection of tips to enjoy once inside the Salon.

Melle Bon Plan’s selection not to be missed:

• Recipe demonstrations every day in the “Choco Démo” and “Pastry Show” areas from 11 am to 7 pm every hour (250 seats)

• A daily fashion show of chocolate dresses will be offered to visitors from October 30th to November 3rd, at 5 pm

• Tasting conferences every hour, every day from 11 am to 7 pm in the Chocosphère area (80 seats)

• A Gourmet bookstore, specializing in old and modern books on gastronomy and oenology with signings, every day from 10 am to 7 pm

• Every hour from 11 am to 7 pm, in the “Cacao Show” area, a show-colat with rites and cultures from the Lands of Cacao

• Every day from 11 am to 7 pm, the Chocoland area welcomes children from 4 to 10 years old and offers them culinary workshops in partnership with the company Hélianthème (24 seats, sessions every 45 minutes)

• A competition area with a specific competition every day, which will take place in front of gourmet visitors who will watch and taste the recipes made live (80 seats)

• Gourmet lessons with the Atelier des Sens every day with free pastry & chocolate workshops for adults and children, in partnership with Valrhona

• A new demonstration area that will allow artisans, young talents, chefs, and established pastry chefs as well as amateurs to present recipes on varied gourmet themes in front of nearly 300 people

• An area entirely dedicated to nostalgic treats revolving around the snacks of our childhood, Le Grand Goûter offers 20 privileged people (14 adults and 6 children) each day for the duration of the Salon to taste a breakfast and then an afternoon snack in an area specifically set up for this purpose (rotation every 45 min). Limited places – Free registration at the entrance of the area

• A fun Léonidas photo booth for its 100th anniversary

• Valrhona presents the opening of its Cité du Chocolat

• The chocolate factory Pierre Marcolini, of which I am a fan, will perform all the manufacturing steps to transform the cocoa bean into chocolate, thus unveiling all their expertise

• Demonstrations and gourmet tastings, signing at the stand of the Jean-Paul Hévin house, which is celebrating its 25th anniversary

• Nestlé Dessert will delight all food lovers and pastry enthusiasts with its Dessert Table

• Citycake.fr creates the event with the 1st “interactive” stand at the Salon du Chocolat with numerous activities, a big treasure hunt, not to mention the many prize draws

Salon du Chocolat / Porte de Versailles – Pavillons 5/1 and 5/2-5/3

From October 30th to November 3rd, 2013 from 10 am to 7 pm

Adult Prices: 13 € – Children up to 12 years old: 6.50 € Free up to 3 years old

GIVEAWAY:

I am offering you the chance to win 3 tickets on the blog for the Salon du Chocolat 2013 which will be held at Porte de Versailles in Paris at the end of the month.

To participate, just leave a comment below this article telling me about your addiction (or not) to chocolate and like the Facebook page of the Salon du Chocolat.

A random draw will choose the 3 winners (who will benefit from one ticket each). Good luck everyone!

Rules:

– Giveaway limited to Metropolitan France

– + 1 chance if you are a fan of the blog’s Facebook page; + 1 chance if you follow the blog’s Twitter page; + 1 chance if you follow the blog’s hellocoton page (don’t forget to leave your username in your comment if you want to benefit from extra chance(s) and you can accumulate up to 3 additional chances)

– 1 entry per IP address

– competition start date Wednesday, October 16, 2012 – participation deadline Saturday, October 19, 2012 and results the following day on the blog in an edit of this article

EDIT of October 20, 2013:

Following the draw, I am announcing that the 3 winners of the invitations for the Salon du Chocolat in Paris are Malika, Rebecca and Louisegoingout.

Congratulations to you, I will contact you shortly by email so that you can provide me with your contact details so that you can receive the tickets at home.

And thank you all for your participation.