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The aquarium welcomed 7,937 guests, smashing the old single-day mark of 6,857 set at the Chocolate Expo 2014.
The expo served up a combination of sea turtles and chocolate turtles, frogs and fudge, and seals and celebrity chefs to the aquarium.
It featured 40 regional chocolatiers and other specialty food retailers offering samples and sales of their products throughout the aquarium.
The goodies, offered with all Maritime Aquarium exhibits, would be enticement enough. But icing on the cake: Admission prices were cut and the aquarium stayed open an extra two hours, until 7 p.m.
“It was a tremendous day,” said Brian Davis, president of The Maritime Aquarium. “We thank everyone for coming, for the support of our sponsors – First County Bank and News 12 – and I must acknowledge the work of the entire aquarium staff to plan and execute such a busy day.”
First County Bank was presenting sponsor.
“First County Bank strongly values giving support to community events and our community resources, so we were thrilled to partner with The Maritime Aquarium and to have met so many Expo guests on Sunday,” said Karen M. Kelly, senior vice president and chief marketing officer for First County Bank.
Chocolate Expo offered aquarium visitors the chance to taste and purchase everything from the finest gourmet chocolates to gelato, fudge, crepes, cannolis, pickles, tomato sauces, waffles, empanadas, vinaigrettes and even bath soaps hinted with chocolate.
There was a line all day for visitors looking to taste fresh-made chocolate crepes and to dive into the various items — including strawberries — dipped in the chocolate fountain.
Free demonstrations were presented by celebrity chefs Tony Albanese of “Cake Boss”, Barret Beyer of “Hell’s Kitchen”, Frances Legge of “MasterChef” and Larry Rosenberg, recipe-book author and owner of Bacon Bites.
The Chocolate Expo is a production of Baum Image Group Inc. Learn more about The Chocolate Expo, including future dates in the New York area, at www.thechocolateexpo.com.
For more information about more special events coming up at The Maritime Aquarium, click on
www.maritimeaquarium.org or call (203) 852-0700.
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