Salón del Cacao y Chocolate

Each November, Guayaquil hosts the Salón del Cacao y Chocolate, an annual show that floods the city's exhibition floor with artisan chocolatiers, small-farm cacao growers and international buyers, reflecting Ecuador's position as one of the world's most significant fine-flavour cacao producers. Unlike Quito's more consumer-facing chocolate festival, Guayaquil's event leans further toward trade and industry, offering a genuinely in-depth look at the country's most globally important agricultural product.

Visitors can taste single-origin chocolates made from varieties like Arriba Nacional and CCN-51, watch bean-to-bar production demonstrations, and buy chocolate bars directly from the producers responsible for them. For anyone tracking Ecuador's food culture at its most technically detailed, the event offers a level of access to the cacao supply chain that few other festivals attempt to provide.

With Ecuador supplying such a significant share of the world's finest cacao, the Salón del Cacao y Chocolate functions as both a genuine celebration of the country's agricultural heritage and a serious industry event — a combination that gives it a distinct character among Ecuador's food festivals.