How to Make Chocolate a Healthy Habit at Woodstock, Ontario’s Habitual Chocolate

In our Doors Open community spotlights, the Teachers on Call in-person and online tutoring team have been highlighting family-friendly and educational spots to check-out, including a children’s museum, berry farm, and rare books library – just to name a few. We feel it’s only fitting to include a chocolate shop in the mix given the provincial theme for 2023 is: “Food — exploring Ontario’s historical traditions of food production as well as the spaces that shape and define our culinary traditions today.” For all the chocoholics who want to have their chocolate and eat it too, you won’t want to miss Habitual Chocolate’s delicious samples for Doors Open Woodstock, taking place on Saturday, September 23, 2023. Read on for our president’s interview with chocolatier, Angela Neddo, to learn more about good quality chocolate and how to make eating it a habit!

What is Doors Open Ontario and how does it work?

From April to October 2023, participating communities across Ontario are opening their heritage sites, museums and local businesses to the public on designated weekends, all in partnership with Ontario Heritage Trust. Often, many of these locations do not open their doors to the public – or let you go on exclusive behind the scenes tours.

Since it’s unlikely to visit them all in one day or two, our in-person and online tutoring service is spotlighting participants this fall from each participating city.

Teachers on Call's Woodstock, ON Community Spotlight

There is no lack of interesting locations to visit and learn about during the Doors Open events, and the best part is: they’re completely complimentary to attend and do not require reservations.  In this blog, we’re showcasing a city in Southwestern Ontario that is known as both the Dairy Capital of Canada and “The Friendly City”.  Part of Oxford County and 43 km away from London, Ontario, the city of Woodstock is hosting their Doors Open event with 11 in-person sites to visit, including crowd-favourite, Habitual Chocolate.

Given that Teachers on Call's in-person and online tutors are classroom teachers, we love learning about the stories behind historical buildings, and Habitual Chocolate’s storefront is no exception. This hand made chocolate shop is very popular in the neighbourhood, located at 389 Dundas St, Woodstock, ON N4S 1B6.

“Woodstock is a community that cherishes its heritage. We have 10 civic buildings still standing, everything from the museum which was the old town hall to the firehall which is now an office building. The whole idea is repurposing it and keeping it alive,” explains Karen Houston, Staff Liaison for the Woodstock Heritage Community. “Habitual Chocolate is in a storefront that has existed since the 1890s and looks very different today than it did back then, but the core building is still intact. This storefront has had a multitude of different uses. At one point it was a furniture showroom that went on to partner with a funeral home to sell coffins. Later, it became a drugstore, and the list goes on. It’s been in continuous use since then and is now home to Habitual Chocolate. Their chocolate is amazing,” Karen enthusiastically shares with Teachers on Call.

Read on for Teachers on Call’s interview with Habitual Chocolate’s owner and chocolatier, Angela Neddo. After our interview, we share a complete list of all 11 participate sites. We highly recommend you check out as many destinations as possible (after you have eaten some chocolate samples of course).

An Interview with Habitual Chocolate

What is the story behind Habitual Chocolate and how you got your name? 

The name Habitual Chocolate came from the idea that we want you to make eating good quality chocolate a HABIT in your life, and that our chocolate will become a habit because it is so good – and good for you! 

For chocolate lovers looking to visit you during Doors Open, what can they expect? 

On Saturday, we will have our retail store open so you can stop in and sample some of our bars. Throughout the day our chocolate maker will be doing demonstrations of how our bars are poured and molded, as well as how our dried fruits are dipped in chocolate.  

Your website references Canada’s largest collection of bean-to-bar chocolate. What does this mean exactly? 

At Habitual Chocolate 20 of our 21 bars are single origin bars. That means that each bar has a bean sourced from only one country in it. That allows the true flavours of origin to shine in the bars, since the growing location, conditions, soil, temperature etc. can change the tasting notes of the beans.  

Please tell us more about your commitment to making your treats with local and Canadian ingredients from farms in our country.   

Since we cannot source cacao beans locally, we do source as many of our inclusions and flavours as local as we can. For example, our milk powder is always from Canadian Dairy Farms. Our coffee, lavender and mint infused bars all come from small businesses and farms within 100km of the store – the lavender is grown just 12km from our store!  

Do you offer educational tours, experiences or classes for students and schools? 

We offer all of the above! Right now, the best way to discuss is to send an email to info@habitualchocolate.com so we can discuss the specific needs of your school/classroom. We can come to you, or your smaller classes can come to us! 

For admirers out of the Woodstock area, what kind of treats can be ordered online? 

All our chocolate products made here in the store can be ordered online for shipping during cooler months from www.habitualchocolate.com

Full List of Doors Open Woodstock In-person Sites for September 23, 2023

• Brickhouse Brewpub (190 Fairway Rd, Woodstock, ON N4T 1W3)
• Habitual Chocolate (389 Dundas St, Woodstock, ON N4S 1B6)
• Knox Presbyterian Church (59 Riddell St, Woodstock, ON N4S 6M2)
• Oxford EarlyOn Child and Family Centre (75 Graham St, Woodstock, ON N4S 6J8)
• RedBarn Berries & Veggies (744716, County Rd 17, Woodstock, ON N4S 7V7)
• Reel Treats (495 Dundas St, Woodstock, ON N4S 1C3)
• Southside Park (192 Old Wellington St S, Woodstock, ON N4S 3L3)
• Whitelaw Machinery Co. Ltd. (572 Main St, Woodstock, ON N4S 1V6)
• Woodstock Masonic Lodge (10 Brock St, Woodstock, ON N4S 3B4)
• Woodstock Museum National Historic Site (466 Dundas St, Woodstock, ON N4S 1C4)
• Woodstock Public Library (445 Hunter St, Woodstock, ON N4S 4G7)

We hope you enjoy learning about Habitual Chocolate and the various historical uses for their building throughout the years. If you are interested to visit additional sites on Saturday, you can find additional information through the official Doors Open Woodstock website.

Not to fret if you don’t live near Woodstock, Ontario. If you live closer to Kingston or St. Marys, you are in luck, as their Doors Open events are taking place the same weekend. Check out our community spotlights with Doors Open St. Marys and Doors Open Kingston and Area!