Sipping Cacao at Chocolate Maya 

If commercially produced candies aren’t your thing, head over to Chocolate Maya at 15 West Gutierrez Street for your chocolate fix this Halloween season. “We try to educate people about chocolate here,” said owner Maya Schoop-Rutten. “We tell people about how it’s grown and made, about the farmers, and why it’s expensive. When you buy a $2 chocolate bar, just imagine what the farmer gets.” Originally from Switzerland, Schoop-Rutten opened Chocolate Maya in 2007 when she realized there was an absence of high-quality chocolate in the area.

Along with Day of the Dead– and Halloween-themed chocolates, Chocolate Maya also serves up a spicy, Mexican-inspired chocolate drink. The 70 percent cacao beverage is mixed only with water, which turns it into a thick, delicious, and dairy/soy-free beverage. It’s topped with a habanero, cinnamon, clove, and nutmeg — you’ll definitely want to sit back, relax, and enjoy some cocoa in celebration of Día de los Muertos this weekend.