Omaha, NEHot Chocolate

The World-Herald's four-taster panel named this the favorite of its nine-shop hunt for the city's best hot chocolate. The seasonal Cozy Ginger Cocoa runs on the shop's own cocoa blend with ground ginger, ginger syrup and turmeric, finished with homemade whipped cream, caramel drizzle and sprinkles piped into a swirl. Co-owner Traci Page called it a hug in a mug. Order the Cozy Ginger Cocoa while it's on the seasonal menu, in sizes from 12 to 24 ounces.

The World-Herald's tasters found their favorite chocolate at this Bellevue chocolatier's counter: Parisian drinking chocolate, dark brown and only slightly sweet, poured in small to-go servings. The intense flavor and nearly black color won over one taster who had been loyal to another shop until this stop. The panel credited the quality of the chocolate itself, made in house by the shop's own chocolatier. Order the Parisian drinking chocolate, five dollars for a small pour worth savoring slowly.

This themed art cafe, its decor rotating every few months, was a favorite stop on the World-Herald's hot chocolate crawl. The $4.50 gourmet hot cocoa starts with Ghirardelli chocolate and is finished with a Torani syrup flavor, the tasters' caramel pour giving it a rich, complex taste without leaving residue in the cup. One taster ranked the caramel version at the top of her list. Order it with a caramel boost, the combination the panel liked best, and budget time to look around.

An honorable mention on the World-Herald's hot chocolate crawl, this Benson coffee shop makes its own marshmallows, which the tasters singled out over the cocoa itself. Barista Lenette Haliburton described the drink as homemade vanilla syrup and Torani dark chocolate syrup steamed into milk, topped with a marshmallow or whipped cream, and said hot cocoa accounts for about a quarter of sales each shift even though the shop's focus is coffee. Order it topped with a marshmallow rather than whipped cream, the version that won the panel over.

This Mexican pastry and coffee counter inside the Isla del Mar restaurant made the World-Herald panel's top five with a Mexican hot chocolate built on chocolate abuelita, spicy and creamy and among the thickest the tasters tried anywhere in the city. One taster called it the perfect blend of chocolate and cinnamon, served at the right temperature and in traditional Mexican ceramic cups. It comes in two sizes for three dollars and three-fifty. Order it hot, in a ceramic cup if they have one out.