Hot Chocolate Bar Ideas

Put together a fun hot chocolate bar with these great tips and tricks and free printable hot chocolate bar labels. Perfect hot chocolate bar ideas for any season or event!

I Love a Good Hot Chocolate Bar

If you’ve been around here for a while, you know how much I love putting together fun hot chocolate bars!  I’ve been doing it for years now and usually have one up somewhere in the house throughout most of the year.  Hot chocolate bars can really be as simple or as extravagant as you would like.  From just a few bottles in a crate to a more elaborate set up on a side bar or buffet, there’s always room for a hot chocolate bar!!

To help get you started, I’ve put together all of my favorite hot chocolate bar ideas, tips, and tricks.  A hot chocolate bar is great at any time of year, so don’t limit them to just Christmas time.  They’re perfect for any season, holiday, or special event!

This Year’s Hot Chocolate Bar

I go back and forth between putting our hot chocolate bar in the kitchen or the dining room.  The dining room gives me a little more room, but the kitchen is great for a simple, family hot chocolate bar. If you saw our Christmas dining room home tour this year, you’ve already seen some sneak peeks at the hot chocolate bar this year.  I set it up on our tray in the corner {where I often put it} but then expanded it into our buffet and hutch.

What to put in a hot chocolate bar.

Choosing what to put in your hot cocoa bar is half the fun!  Stick with the old tried and true favorites or get creative with different toppings and add-ins to come up with your own signature drink. What you choose to put in your hot chocolate bar will obviously depend somewhat on the space you have available, so start with the basics and then add on some fun toppings.

Ingredients for a hot chocolate bar.

• hot cocoa mix.  This looks cute displayed in a mason jar or just get the packets for a quick and easy serving. Look for a couple of different flavors to mix things up and be sure to check if there are any special requirements for making it.  Some mixes do require hot milk rather than water.
• marshmallows. Mini, flavored, or regular size – anything goes!  Seasonal Peeps marshmallows also make cute hot cocoa toppers.  You can pretty much get them for any holiday!
• whipped cream
• chocolate chips.  Melted in the hot chocolate, these add a nice, rich chocolate flavor.  Try other chips like white chocolate, peanut butter, or butterscotch to create your own custom flavor!
• candy canes. Use whole candy canes for stir sticks or crush them up for a peppermint flavored hot chocolate.  You can also buy finely crushed candy canes that works great for sprinkling over the whipped cream!
• chocolate, caramel, or strawberry sauce
• caramels or little chopped caramel bits
• sprinkles.  These are a must for my kids!
• cinnamon. Cinnamon hearts are cute for a Valentine’s Day hot chocolate bar too!
• mini-eggs – grab the seasonal colors!
• toffee bits
• chopped nuts
• cookies.  You can either get the wafers to use as a stir stick or just have regular cookies out for dipping.  I love shortbread for this at Christmas time!
• pretzel sticks.  These taste great if their dipped in chocolate too!
• ADULTS ONLY – Bailey’s or Kahlua. 🙂

Decor Ideas for a Hot Chocolate Bar

There are lots of cute ways to decorate your hot cocoa bar and just a few little changes can take it from one season to another.  Here are a few of my favorite things to add

• seasonal chalkboards. This is a great way to change things up without having to buy any new decor!  Get my basic chalkboard 101 tips here as well as some awesome christmas chalkboard ideas here.
• free printables. There are so many wonderful free printables that you can display on a clipboard or in a photo frame.  You can even store the prints in the photo frame and just switch them around each season for some quick and easy decorating. I created this North Pole Cookie Co. printable last year and have it out on the side board again this year with a cookie jar tucked in behind.

• seasonal signs. I love signs and think they add such a unique touch to any area.  Smaller signs or ornaments work great to tuck into bare spots or use one larger sign as the anchor.  This DIY framed canvas sign and sleigh ride printable would be perfect for a rustic Christmas or winter hot chocolate bar.

• fun napkins.  It’s kind of my mission each season to find the cutest seasonal napkin. HomeSense {or HomeGoods in the States} and Pier One are usually where I score the best ones.
• garlands.  A sweet little garland is always a great way to add a seasonal touch with very little effort.  You can purchase pre-made ones at crafts stores or DIY your own. This cupcake liner Christmas tree garland was a favorite of mine and I still use it!
• lights. I think twinkle lights make a pretty addition to your hot chocolate bar at any time of year.
• colored stir sticks
• mason jars. Mason jars look cute and keep your ingredients fresh.  I love the added look of these bamboo mason jar lids.  These red mason jar lids would also be cute for Christmas or Valentine’s Day!

• cute mugs. I love finding sweet mugs that go with our hot chocolate bars. The mugs don’t have to be expensive – especially since you’re just using them seasonally. I found the ones on our mug rack ladder from Walmart this year and they were under $3. The Santa mugs were also from Walmart many years ago and they’re the kids special Christmas mugs that we use every year.

If you like the little gnomes on the hot chocolate bar labels, you might also like this cute Christmas gnome printable that I have in our Christmas kitchen this year…

Where to put a hot chocolate bar.

A hot chocolate bar doesn’t have to take up a lot of space.  It can be as simple as crate and bottles that you can move around or tuck it into a kitchen corner.  If you want something a little more substantial, you can put it on a bar cart, side table, side board, or buffet and hutch.  Trays can also be a great way to present a hot chocolate bar and you can move it around as needed.  Even just putting it on the table on a couple of cutting boards works well!  Get a little creative and utilize the space and supplies you already have.

Hot Chocolate Bar Ideas

If you’re still looking for some more hot chocolate bar inspiration, I’ve put together some of our past hot chocolate bars {from different seasons} as well as well as a few awesome hot chocolate bars that I’ve found throughout the blogosphere.

Christmas

I’ve done a lot of Christmas hot chocolate bars over the years, but everything got started with this easy hot cocoa bar using some milk bottles and a wire crate. I pretty much just updated the basic idea for a couple of years before starting to do some different things. If you don’t have a lot of room, the portable crate is a great idea for putting your hot chocolate bar together.  You can see a couple of our first Christmas hot chocolate bars HERE and HERE and download the free printable Christmas hot chocolate bar labels here.

Last year, I had our Christmas hot chocolate bar in the kitchen.  It was pretty basic but still looked cute and definitely served its purpose!

If you just want a temporary hot chocolate bar, this hot chocolate dessert charcuterie board from No. 2 Pencil is absolutely adorable.  It definitely makes my mouth water!

This cute hot chocolate bar cart was put together from Hobby Lobby.  I love all of the chalkboards and signs!

I also loved this rustic hot chocolate bar from Martha Stewart – especially the rustic mug holder!

If you’re short on space, a rolling cart is the perfect spot to put a hot chocolate bar! You can get all of the details of this hot chocolate bar cart here…

Valentine’s Day

I transitioned our Christmas hot chocolate bar to a Valentine’s Day one with just a few simple swaps.  I also created a couple of free printable Valentine’s Day hot chocolate bar printables that you could display.

Here’s a super easy Valentine’s Day hot chocolate station using a red crate.  If you’d like the free printable hot chocolate bar labels, you can grab them here.

Easter Hot Chocolate Bar

The hardest thing about our Easter hot chocolate bar is keeping the mini-eggs in stock!  You can find our Easter dining room and hot cocoa bar HERE and download the Easter hot chocolate bar printables HERE.

Halloween Hot Chocolate Bar

Hot chocolate is always perfect in the fall as the weather starts to get colder and there are always lots of fun things to add to a Halloween hot chocolate bar.  This is our Monster Mash Halloween hot chocolate bar from this year…

And you can grab the free printable Halloween hot chocolate bar labels here…

Hot Chocolate Recipes

if you’d like some delicious new hot chocolate recipes to try, I’ve put together some of my favorite hot chocolate recipes here…

Free Hot Chocolate Bar Labels

If you’re ready to get going on your own hot chocolate bar, I’ve created some free printable labels for you.  You can use them as is, or I’ve created some blank ones so you can add your own ingredients.  If you’re using the blank ones, you can either just write in the toppings or open the JPEG in a photo editing program and add a text overlay.  I’d love to see your photos if you use these, so be sure to tag me in your social media posts so I can see what you’ve created! {NOTE: these printables are created for your own personal use ONLY}.

Round Hot Chocolate Bar Labels

Print these out and then cut out with scissors or a circle punch.  I have an old Coluzzle from my scrapbooking days that’s awesome for cutting out circles of various sizes.  You can always mount them on patterned scrapbook paper or colored cardstock for a more custom look.

 

ROUND HOT CHOCOLATE BAR LABELS HERE
BLANK ROUND HOT CHOCOLATE BAR LABELS HERE

Foldable Hot Chocolate Bar Labels

Print these out on white cardstock and then trim them down a bit with scissors or a paper cutter.  Fold them in half so they stand up and trim the bottoms.

PAGE 1 FOLDABLE HOT CHOCOLATE BAR LABELS HERE 
PAGE 2 FOLDABLE HOT CHOCOLATE LABELS HERE 
BLANK FOLDABLE HOT CHOCOLATE BAR LABELS HERE

Whipped Cream Label

Print this out and trim off the top of the bottom to your desired width.  Wrap around a whipped cream tin and secure in the back with double sided or clear tape.

WHIPPED CREAM CAN LABEL HERE

I hope you liked these fun hot chocolate bar ideas and you’re inspired to create your own hot chocolate bar for the holidays – or just because!   They’re lots of fun for parties, holiday gatherings, or just a family night in.  Cheers!!