Rick's Dessert Diner (Midtown Sacramento): Epic Dessert Post, Part One!
food: 4.5/5
experience: 4.5/5
overall: 4.5/5
You may be familiar with the old Rick's Dessert Diner with the fancy grand bathroom (or whatever you wanna call it). They've expanded to a larger corner shop thanks to its popularity among the dessert crowd (honorable mentions to Ettore's and Tower Cafe). Rick's is known for their stacks-upon-stacks of layers, cakes. Truly photo-worthy. They also have some smaller desserts.
Believe it or not, I've never been here in my life until recently, this past year, when I happened to have an oh-so-glamorous photo shoot staged here. During this shoot we ordered a root beer float, a malt, a slice of cake, and a second malt. Sugar coma in full effect post-shoot. Yes, sometimes models do eat the food in front of them. And after about twenty takes that sugar adds up.
Malts: 5/5
They make their malts with Gunther's ice cream. I got mocha almond fudge first. It's good, a basic chocolate shake flavor with little almond bits throughout. And technically they don't make rocky road malts (even though they said any ice cream on the menu) but since we were giving them so much business (this being our fourth item) they made it special for me. I wish I could recommend this to you because it was so fucking good. The marshmallow, the chocolate, and the nuts all combined were just fantabulous. As with their desserts, the ice cream flavors rotate, so you might not see these.
Root beer float: 4.5/5
Also believe it or not, I've never had a root beer float. It's an interesting combo. Theirs probably tastes like any other, only made with Gunther's vanilla ice cream. It's pretty good. I still prefer malts and shakes though.
Chocolate strawberry mousse cake: 4.5/5
You know me. I loooove my chocolate. This has chocolate cake, chocolate mousse, rich chocolate ganache, and strawberries inside and on top, with whipped cream. Hello, this is Rick's. They do dessert right. So decadent. The frosting is so rich. You can feel the diabetes setting in and it feels so, so good. Mousse is always good. An all-win situation right here.
Okay so I definitely fell in love with this place immediately after all this insulin. It took me quite a while but I finally made my way through the menu. If you see something you like grab it because their menu is always rotating.
Obviously, we have to start with the cakes. I'm not a huge cake fan (I know, you wouldn't know it from my Ettore's post) but I tried a few.
Pumpkin spice cake: 4.5/5
A seasonal cake for obvious reasons. I love pumpkin so this was great. Plus the cream cheese frosting? Hell yeah. If they added a bit more actual spice this would be perf. Also comes in apple spice and pear spice but doubtful those beat this.
Chocolate mint cake: 2.5/5
A really simple cake, with a regular chocolate cake base and mint buttercream frosting. Not my choice and not my favorite. Doesn't satisfy the mint craving for me. And too sugary sweet. Much like cake tends to be.
Fudge fantasy: 4/5
Love raspberry and love chocolate so this is a good combo. It's got a thin layer of fudge in the middle as stated and the whole thing is just a heap of delicious chocolate. French buttercream frosting isn't bad either.
Chocolate espresso cake: 5/5
A simple cake but it does the job. For the coffee lovers out there. The frosting takes the cake, so to speak. It's an espresso buttercream and the espresso is present but not overpowering. The cake is a sour cream chocolate, which makes the cake a little richer in flavor. Weirdly enough my favorite part of this was the thick chocolate frosting on top. The chocolate mousse layer inside was pretty damn good too. What can I say, I bow down to chocolate. Very similar to this cake is the chocolate peanut butter, which looks the same visually and has the same sour cream chocolate cake, but peanut butter frosting instead and no espresso woven throughout.
Next up: pie. Love me some pie.
Chocolate coconut cream pie: 5/5
I love coconut and I love chocolate. Put them together and you got a masterpiece. This is chocolate custard mousse with a ton of coconut shreds inside it. It's simple but it's amazing, and the pie crust is nice and pie crust-y in flavor. It's not buttery but it's good. They put whipped cream and more chocolate shavings on top. I love u chocolate coconut cream pie.
Pumpkin pie: 5/5
A fall classic and Rick's definitely does it justice. It's got a rich pumpkin flavor and it's not overly sweet. Similar to the pumpkin pie bar (below), but more fluffy and the crust is flakier and still delicious. Do yourself a favor and treat yourself to a slice cus it has whipped cream and cinnamon on top (unlike the bar). They also allegedly have pumpkin cheese pie, whatever that is. If it's anything like pumpkin cheesecake I'll take it.
Cherry pie: 3.5/5
Tart cherries in a very gooey reduction. There's not a whole lot in there for how much it costs. The crust is aight, it's buttery but it's not very "crusty" in flavor (except the outer edge). Also comes in peach (see peach cobbler below to get an idea).
Peach cobbler: 5/5
Featuring peaches that must be marinated in brandy because 1) they were delicious in a way only alcohol accounts for and 2) I got a headache after scarfing down this whole slice. Definitely worth it. Honey brown sugar chunks with delicious pie crust and a brown sugar-brandy-peach glaze smothering all of it. Peaches are healthy anyway, right? They also have plain old peach pie but like... why. Cobbler all day.
Apple blackberry pie: 5/5
Speaking of pie. This dessert just further seals the deal for me that pie is and always will be the best dessert. Fruit brings a tang that plain old sugar, chocolate, and cream cheese don't. It's heartier too and you kinda feel like you're making a healthy decision? By eating fruit for dessert? Anyway, tangent aside, this candied - sorry, brandied (even better) - apple blackberry pie is just a bomb flavor combo. The apples are thinly sliced and the blackberries are so cooked they're red. It's not too tart like the cherry, plus it's got the cobbler brown sugar crumble topping on top. They also have regular apple pie, apple raspberry, and apple blueberry.
Peach pie: 4.5/5
I'm not one to turn my nose up at pie. No sirree. But I have to say the peach cobbler has a leg up on this one. It doesn't have the brown sugar crumble on top. There's also not enough peaches in it for me. There were like four or five maybe. The crust is good. It's a double butter crust. It tastes like regular buttery crust. I dunno. Once again, pie is always good in my book so I'm not complaining. If this one's available and peach cobbler is not, I'd still settle for this one again. The double butter crust is also featured on the apple pie which was basically my only other option on this particular occasion. Thought that'd be a little too basic.
They have sweet potato pie listed on their website but they don't serve it. Ugh! Come on, Rick's! That would be a humongous hit. Well apparently it wasn't a big enough hit because they used to have it and no more. Only available to order as a whole pie.
Upcoming we have the very decadent cheesecakes. Definitely the most bang for your buck, ingredient wise, calorie wise, flavor wise... but probably the least friendly on the waistline.
White chocolate Bailey's cheesecake: 5/5
Oh man, this hit the spot. I don't know if it's because I haven't had cheesecake in probably what, over a decade? This is bomb. The white chocolate and the Bailey's liqueur combine to make just a very rich and cheesy cheesecake. You don't notice either one in particular, only that the cheesecake just tastes fuller in flavor. Graham cracker crust don't hurt. There's a malt ball on top I think. I popped it in my mouth thinking it was a blueberry. This reminds me of those little Philadelphia cheesecake bars they used to sell in the grocery store. In a very good way, of course.
Blackout cheesecake: 5/5
Easily one of the densest slices I've had here next to the chocolate tortes. We start with whip and a layer of dense chocolate on top, then move down to a chocolate chunk (white and dark) cheesecake below, mixed with coffee liqueur (Extrait De Cafe), all of which is almost as dense as the pure chocolate on top. Oh yeah and it's finished off with a fucking Oreo crust. This is like the best thing ever. Make no mistake this thing is a brick. It was quite a task finishing this, but it had to be done. Similar to this is the espresso chocolate cheesecake, which is only available for pre-order.
Italian cheesecake: 4.5/5
Made with ricotta cheese and they mix in some pine nuts and golden raisins, plus it's topped with a sugary crust. Basically a cheesecake pie. There's supposed to be amaretto in the cheesecake but I couldn't taste it. Still, this is great, and it's definitely richer than it is sweet. Very dense but surprisingly not too heavy (that is, compared to some of their chocolate delicacies).
Many cheesecakes are not offered by the slice, either. The chocolate raspberry marble with chocolate-vanilla cheesecake swirl (please Rick's, I beg of you!) and the piña colada cheesecake (made with coconut cream, pineapple, lime curd and actual rum!) among the more noteworthy ones.
Following the cheesecakes are the tortes and gateaus (fancy French words for "cake"). I tried quite a number of these.
Lemon blueberry white chocolate torte: 3.5/5
The best part about this is the outer edge which is frosted with a very lemon-zesty white chocolate cream with a hint of blueberry. The actual vanilla cake is strongly lemon flavored and not my favorite. It's layered with sweet lemon mousse. The blueberries on top are more tart than sweet. Unique flavor combo but I'm not a lemon stan. They also have this in a tart version.
Banana bavarian torte: 4.5/5
A typical chocolate cake base (aight) with chocolate ganache frosting on the side, but it's also got this creme de coco frosting on top which is just divine. It's like a rich buttercream with a hint of coconut. And the ripe bananas inside are so good. They put some chocolate chips on top to finish it off.
Chocolate raspberry mousse torte: 4.5/5
It's seasonal so get it while it lasts! Featuring a chocolate soufflé cake with chocolate Grand Marnier mousse (Grand Marnier is an orange liqueur) along with more Grand Marnier chocolate frosting. It's chocolate heaven. The mousse has the texture of whip cream but it's got a richer flavor to it thanks to the Marnier. It almost tastes like white chocolate. The cake is just cake. The chocolate frosting is also rich and delicious and they packed some fudge into the interior of the cake as well, along with fresh raspberries. The raspberry jam on top accompanied by the mousse is arguably the best part.
Black forest torte: 4/5
Literally the only thing I wanted out of this was that amaretto mousse. It's amaretto white chocolate mousse and damn it is strong. My friend could taste it with one bite. The frosting is a typical buttercream. Good. Chocolate flakes on top and on the side. Bing cherries are tart, a little too tart for my personal tastes. Naturally they're soaked in amaretto as well. Basic chocolate cake interior. The mousse is the MVP here though for sure.
White chocolate almond torte: 5/5
Man oh man. White chocolate and almond is the next best combo to chocolate and raspberry. This is amazing. Everything. The frosting, the almonds, even the actual cake which I'm usually not a fan of. It's an almond soufflé cake and the mousse is white chocolate amaretto. Yum. With white chocolate frosting. Perfection. I couldn't help it - I ate all of this. Some regrets the next day.
Tiramisu: 3/5
Not too scenic, I'm sure. I'm not sure if I'm just not a big fan of tiramisu but this is just okay to me. It's got the ladyfingers, ricotta, mascarpone, and something called rum zabaglione but it all tasted bland to me. It's light, at least. Don't try if you're sensitive to caffeine. Or alcohol for that matter. Malt ball on top is a cute touch.
Chocolate hazelnut torte: 4/5
This one was kinda a letdown. And not just because it's gluten free. It's advertised as chocolate Frangelico mousse but it just tastes like plain old chocolate mousse to me with hazelnuts on the side. Don't get me wrong, chocolate mousse is still great. Half the fun of this one is the thick layer of pure chocolate "crust", which by the way is super fucking rich and made me feel sick. Otherwise, this one is not memorable. Only get if you want a whole slice of chocolate mousse for dessert.
Chocolate indulgence torte: 5/5
Holy shit. Chocolate overload. I had to stop about a quarter of the way into this one because I could feel my blood sugar rising. Layers upon layers of different kinds of chocolate that I don't even know. Kahlua chocolate mousse, bittersweet whipped chocolate, regular chocolate, chocolate cheesecake, and a truffle on top with chocolate frosting all around. I can tell the chocolate cheesecake is the bottom layer before the layer of hard chocolate "crust". Chocolate cheesecake, of course, is fab. But whatever the third one down is, that's the best one. It might be the Kahlua. I love Kahlua mousse. Yeah I'm gonna go with that's what it was. If I'm being honest, this was so rich I threw up the next morning.
Apricot almond gateau: 4.5/5
This is an interesting flavor combo. The best part is of course the frosting, which is a mix of chocolate and marzipan, a.k.a. that delicious filling you find in croissants and bear claws. The almonds give it a nice crunch. It's made with gluten-free chocolate almond soufflé and fudge, the better of which naturally is the thick creamy fudge. I'm not sure if I like the apricot though. It seems kind of intrusive to me. It's like the chocolate and almond were having a rad jam sesh and all the sudden apricot comes along and is like can I join? and then apricot starts singing off key and it just kind of gets weird after that. If this were say, raspberry or strawberry, it'd definitely get a 5/5 from me.
Next we have the tarts. I didn't get to many of these (as you can see) but there will be more covered in part two (which will be a long time coming if my teeth have any say in the matter).
Mint marble mousse tart: 5/5
This one features a dark and white chocolate mousse swirl with creme de menthe mixed in there and a delicious Oreo crust. The Oreo crust was perhaps the best part, actually. That and the little mint chips all throughout the mousse. Topped off with an Andes mint for an... after-dessert dessert? Pre-dessert dessert appetizer?
Some slices are only available seasonally so get them while they last. Hence the "part one".
Whew! Almost done. Last part. On to... the pastries!
Eclair: 4.5/5
For an eclair it's definitely good. With a rich bavarian custard filling and chocolate frosting, this is basically a better version of a cream puff. Served chilled which is even better.
Pumpkin bar: 5/5
Also served chilled. If you're thinking of getting a slice of pumpkin pie get this instead. It's like a dense pumpkin pie brownie with nuts and a crumble on top, and it's got the crust on the bottom. It's just all around amazing.
Brownie squad represent!
German chocolate brownie/fudge brownie (left): 4.5/3.5
The German chocolate brownie is the standard fudge brownie with German chocolate cake mix on top that'll cost ya extra. The German chocolate topping is a wonderful mix of coconut, brown sugar cream, and nuts. The best part of the brownie, truly, and without it the fudge brownie falls flat. The actual brownie tastes like it's from a mix. The fudge tastes a little bittersweet, and it isn't rich. It's dense but not moist. The nuts help but not really. You can also get this as a German chocolate cake which is similar but not as dense; or as a German chocolate tart in a chocolate crust (your best option).
Zebra fudge brownie (front): 5/5
I dunno who thought to put cream cheese inside a brownie but it's a match made in heaven. Unlike its brother above, this brownie is super moist and dense and has a nice sweet cream cheese woven throughout. It's kind of like a cheesecake, but an overwhelmingly chocolate one.
Chocolate mint brownie (back): 5/5
Similar to the zebra fudge brownie but with a mint chocolate swirl frosting. If I'm not mistaken this one has cream cheese too. It seems like it's got a bit of a cheesy tint to it.
White chocolate brownie (middle): 4.5/5
This one has cream cheese mixed in too I believe. Or maybe none of them do and it's all white chocolate. I dunno. But this one's pretty good, just not quite as good as the others since it's a little one-note. It has a little pie crust on the bottom and there's some nuts in there too.
Last but not least, the co-oo-kieees.
(top left to bottom right)
Chocolate chip: 5/5
We got a winner here. Not much to say. Just a simple, great, big chocolate-y chip cookie.
Oatmeal: 5/5
Pretty damn good for an oatmeal cookie. Got a nice balance of oats, batter, and raisins.
Blackout: 5/5
Like the blackout cheesecake, this is a rich double-chocolate cookie with a hint of coffee extract. I believe it's got white chocolate chips in there too if tastebuds are correct. Yummy, rich chocolate-y goodness.
Peanut butter: 4.5/5
Love me some nutty peanut butter cookies. This one is pretty smooth rather than crunchy - not many peanuts or chunks in it - but it's got a solid peanut butter taste.
A trip to Rick's will not be cheap. One slice is a minimum seven bucks including tax. Be prepared. But also know, that your tastebuds will soon be greeted with the delightful taste of sugar dancing upon them moments after you pay. Before you go though, make sure it is not Friday or Saturday night, and if it is, make sure it is not yet 9pm. This is rush hour for Rick's and the line will literally circle around the entire shop. It's a quick line but still, it gets a lil stuffy in there.
And for those wondering how the photo shoot went, I think it went pretty well:
experience: 4.5/5
overall: 4.5/5
You may be familiar with the old Rick's Dessert Diner with the fancy grand bathroom (or whatever you wanna call it). They've expanded to a larger corner shop thanks to its popularity among the dessert crowd (honorable mentions to Ettore's and Tower Cafe). Rick's is known for their stacks-upon-stacks of layers, cakes. Truly photo-worthy. They also have some smaller desserts.
Believe it or not, I've never been here in my life until recently, this past year, when I happened to have an oh-so-glamorous photo shoot staged here. During this shoot we ordered a root beer float, a malt, a slice of cake, and a second malt. Sugar coma in full effect post-shoot. Yes, sometimes models do eat the food in front of them. And after about twenty takes that sugar adds up.
Malts: 5/5
They make their malts with Gunther's ice cream. I got mocha almond fudge first. It's good, a basic chocolate shake flavor with little almond bits throughout. And technically they don't make rocky road malts (even though they said any ice cream on the menu) but since we were giving them so much business (this being our fourth item) they made it special for me. I wish I could recommend this to you because it was so fucking good. The marshmallow, the chocolate, and the nuts all combined were just fantabulous. As with their desserts, the ice cream flavors rotate, so you might not see these.
Root beer float: 4.5/5
Also believe it or not, I've never had a root beer float. It's an interesting combo. Theirs probably tastes like any other, only made with Gunther's vanilla ice cream. It's pretty good. I still prefer malts and shakes though.
Chocolate strawberry mousse cake: 4.5/5
You know me. I loooove my chocolate. This has chocolate cake, chocolate mousse, rich chocolate ganache, and strawberries inside and on top, with whipped cream. Hello, this is Rick's. They do dessert right. So decadent. The frosting is so rich. You can feel the diabetes setting in and it feels so, so good. Mousse is always good. An all-win situation right here.
Okay so I definitely fell in love with this place immediately after all this insulin. It took me quite a while but I finally made my way through the menu. If you see something you like grab it because their menu is always rotating.
Obviously, we have to start with the cakes. I'm not a huge cake fan (I know, you wouldn't know it from my Ettore's post) but I tried a few.
Pumpkin spice cake: 4.5/5
A seasonal cake for obvious reasons. I love pumpkin so this was great. Plus the cream cheese frosting? Hell yeah. If they added a bit more actual spice this would be perf. Also comes in apple spice and pear spice but doubtful those beat this.
Chocolate mint cake: 2.5/5
A really simple cake, with a regular chocolate cake base and mint buttercream frosting. Not my choice and not my favorite. Doesn't satisfy the mint craving for me. And too sugary sweet. Much like cake tends to be.
Fudge fantasy: 4/5
Love raspberry and love chocolate so this is a good combo. It's got a thin layer of fudge in the middle as stated and the whole thing is just a heap of delicious chocolate. French buttercream frosting isn't bad either.
Chocolate espresso cake: 5/5
A simple cake but it does the job. For the coffee lovers out there. The frosting takes the cake, so to speak. It's an espresso buttercream and the espresso is present but not overpowering. The cake is a sour cream chocolate, which makes the cake a little richer in flavor. Weirdly enough my favorite part of this was the thick chocolate frosting on top. The chocolate mousse layer inside was pretty damn good too. What can I say, I bow down to chocolate. Very similar to this cake is the chocolate peanut butter, which looks the same visually and has the same sour cream chocolate cake, but peanut butter frosting instead and no espresso woven throughout.
Next up: pie. Love me some pie.
Chocolate coconut cream pie: 5/5
I love coconut and I love chocolate. Put them together and you got a masterpiece. This is chocolate custard mousse with a ton of coconut shreds inside it. It's simple but it's amazing, and the pie crust is nice and pie crust-y in flavor. It's not buttery but it's good. They put whipped cream and more chocolate shavings on top. I love u chocolate coconut cream pie.
Pumpkin pie: 5/5
A fall classic and Rick's definitely does it justice. It's got a rich pumpkin flavor and it's not overly sweet. Similar to the pumpkin pie bar (below), but more fluffy and the crust is flakier and still delicious. Do yourself a favor and treat yourself to a slice cus it has whipped cream and cinnamon on top (unlike the bar). They also allegedly have pumpkin cheese pie, whatever that is. If it's anything like pumpkin cheesecake I'll take it.
Cherry pie: 3.5/5
Tart cherries in a very gooey reduction. There's not a whole lot in there for how much it costs. The crust is aight, it's buttery but it's not very "crusty" in flavor (except the outer edge). Also comes in peach (see peach cobbler below to get an idea).
Peach cobbler: 5/5
Featuring peaches that must be marinated in brandy because 1) they were delicious in a way only alcohol accounts for and 2) I got a headache after scarfing down this whole slice. Definitely worth it. Honey brown sugar chunks with delicious pie crust and a brown sugar-brandy-peach glaze smothering all of it. Peaches are healthy anyway, right? They also have plain old peach pie but like... why. Cobbler all day.
Apple blackberry pie: 5/5
Speaking of pie. This dessert just further seals the deal for me that pie is and always will be the best dessert. Fruit brings a tang that plain old sugar, chocolate, and cream cheese don't. It's heartier too and you kinda feel like you're making a healthy decision? By eating fruit for dessert? Anyway, tangent aside, this candied - sorry, brandied (even better) - apple blackberry pie is just a bomb flavor combo. The apples are thinly sliced and the blackberries are so cooked they're red. It's not too tart like the cherry, plus it's got the cobbler brown sugar crumble topping on top. They also have regular apple pie, apple raspberry, and apple blueberry.
Peach pie: 4.5/5
I'm not one to turn my nose up at pie. No sirree. But I have to say the peach cobbler has a leg up on this one. It doesn't have the brown sugar crumble on top. There's also not enough peaches in it for me. There were like four or five maybe. The crust is good. It's a double butter crust. It tastes like regular buttery crust. I dunno. Once again, pie is always good in my book so I'm not complaining. If this one's available and peach cobbler is not, I'd still settle for this one again. The double butter crust is also featured on the apple pie which was basically my only other option on this particular occasion. Thought that'd be a little too basic.
They have sweet potato pie listed on their website but they don't serve it. Ugh! Come on, Rick's! That would be a humongous hit. Well apparently it wasn't a big enough hit because they used to have it and no more. Only available to order as a whole pie.
Upcoming we have the very decadent cheesecakes. Definitely the most bang for your buck, ingredient wise, calorie wise, flavor wise... but probably the least friendly on the waistline.
White chocolate Bailey's cheesecake: 5/5
Oh man, this hit the spot. I don't know if it's because I haven't had cheesecake in probably what, over a decade? This is bomb. The white chocolate and the Bailey's liqueur combine to make just a very rich and cheesy cheesecake. You don't notice either one in particular, only that the cheesecake just tastes fuller in flavor. Graham cracker crust don't hurt. There's a malt ball on top I think. I popped it in my mouth thinking it was a blueberry. This reminds me of those little Philadelphia cheesecake bars they used to sell in the grocery store. In a very good way, of course.
Blackout cheesecake: 5/5
Easily one of the densest slices I've had here next to the chocolate tortes. We start with whip and a layer of dense chocolate on top, then move down to a chocolate chunk (white and dark) cheesecake below, mixed with coffee liqueur (Extrait De Cafe), all of which is almost as dense as the pure chocolate on top. Oh yeah and it's finished off with a fucking Oreo crust. This is like the best thing ever. Make no mistake this thing is a brick. It was quite a task finishing this, but it had to be done. Similar to this is the espresso chocolate cheesecake, which is only available for pre-order.
Italian cheesecake: 4.5/5
Made with ricotta cheese and they mix in some pine nuts and golden raisins, plus it's topped with a sugary crust. Basically a cheesecake pie. There's supposed to be amaretto in the cheesecake but I couldn't taste it. Still, this is great, and it's definitely richer than it is sweet. Very dense but surprisingly not too heavy (that is, compared to some of their chocolate delicacies).
Many cheesecakes are not offered by the slice, either. The chocolate raspberry marble with chocolate-vanilla cheesecake swirl (please Rick's, I beg of you!) and the piña colada cheesecake (made with coconut cream, pineapple, lime curd and actual rum!) among the more noteworthy ones.
Following the cheesecakes are the tortes and gateaus (fancy French words for "cake"). I tried quite a number of these.
Lemon blueberry white chocolate torte: 3.5/5
The best part about this is the outer edge which is frosted with a very lemon-zesty white chocolate cream with a hint of blueberry. The actual vanilla cake is strongly lemon flavored and not my favorite. It's layered with sweet lemon mousse. The blueberries on top are more tart than sweet. Unique flavor combo but I'm not a lemon stan. They also have this in a tart version.
Banana bavarian torte: 4.5/5
A typical chocolate cake base (aight) with chocolate ganache frosting on the side, but it's also got this creme de coco frosting on top which is just divine. It's like a rich buttercream with a hint of coconut. And the ripe bananas inside are so good. They put some chocolate chips on top to finish it off.
Chocolate raspberry mousse torte: 4.5/5
It's seasonal so get it while it lasts! Featuring a chocolate soufflé cake with chocolate Grand Marnier mousse (Grand Marnier is an orange liqueur) along with more Grand Marnier chocolate frosting. It's chocolate heaven. The mousse has the texture of whip cream but it's got a richer flavor to it thanks to the Marnier. It almost tastes like white chocolate. The cake is just cake. The chocolate frosting is also rich and delicious and they packed some fudge into the interior of the cake as well, along with fresh raspberries. The raspberry jam on top accompanied by the mousse is arguably the best part.
Black forest torte: 4/5
Literally the only thing I wanted out of this was that amaretto mousse. It's amaretto white chocolate mousse and damn it is strong. My friend could taste it with one bite. The frosting is a typical buttercream. Good. Chocolate flakes on top and on the side. Bing cherries are tart, a little too tart for my personal tastes. Naturally they're soaked in amaretto as well. Basic chocolate cake interior. The mousse is the MVP here though for sure.
White chocolate almond torte: 5/5
Man oh man. White chocolate and almond is the next best combo to chocolate and raspberry. This is amazing. Everything. The frosting, the almonds, even the actual cake which I'm usually not a fan of. It's an almond soufflé cake and the mousse is white chocolate amaretto. Yum. With white chocolate frosting. Perfection. I couldn't help it - I ate all of this. Some regrets the next day.
Tiramisu: 3/5
Not too scenic, I'm sure. I'm not sure if I'm just not a big fan of tiramisu but this is just okay to me. It's got the ladyfingers, ricotta, mascarpone, and something called rum zabaglione but it all tasted bland to me. It's light, at least. Don't try if you're sensitive to caffeine. Or alcohol for that matter. Malt ball on top is a cute touch.
Chocolate hazelnut torte: 4/5
This one was kinda a letdown. And not just because it's gluten free. It's advertised as chocolate Frangelico mousse but it just tastes like plain old chocolate mousse to me with hazelnuts on the side. Don't get me wrong, chocolate mousse is still great. Half the fun of this one is the thick layer of pure chocolate "crust", which by the way is super fucking rich and made me feel sick. Otherwise, this one is not memorable. Only get if you want a whole slice of chocolate mousse for dessert.
Chocolate indulgence torte: 5/5
Holy shit. Chocolate overload. I had to stop about a quarter of the way into this one because I could feel my blood sugar rising. Layers upon layers of different kinds of chocolate that I don't even know. Kahlua chocolate mousse, bittersweet whipped chocolate, regular chocolate, chocolate cheesecake, and a truffle on top with chocolate frosting all around. I can tell the chocolate cheesecake is the bottom layer before the layer of hard chocolate "crust". Chocolate cheesecake, of course, is fab. But whatever the third one down is, that's the best one. It might be the Kahlua. I love Kahlua mousse. Yeah I'm gonna go with that's what it was. If I'm being honest, this was so rich I threw up the next morning.
Apricot almond gateau: 4.5/5
This is an interesting flavor combo. The best part is of course the frosting, which is a mix of chocolate and marzipan, a.k.a. that delicious filling you find in croissants and bear claws. The almonds give it a nice crunch. It's made with gluten-free chocolate almond soufflé and fudge, the better of which naturally is the thick creamy fudge. I'm not sure if I like the apricot though. It seems kind of intrusive to me. It's like the chocolate and almond were having a rad jam sesh and all the sudden apricot comes along and is like can I join? and then apricot starts singing off key and it just kind of gets weird after that. If this were say, raspberry or strawberry, it'd definitely get a 5/5 from me.
Next we have the tarts. I didn't get to many of these (as you can see) but there will be more covered in part two (which will be a long time coming if my teeth have any say in the matter).
Mint marble mousse tart: 5/5
This one features a dark and white chocolate mousse swirl with creme de menthe mixed in there and a delicious Oreo crust. The Oreo crust was perhaps the best part, actually. That and the little mint chips all throughout the mousse. Topped off with an Andes mint for an... after-dessert dessert? Pre-dessert dessert appetizer?
Some slices are only available seasonally so get them while they last. Hence the "part one".
Whew! Almost done. Last part. On to... the pastries!
Eclair: 4.5/5
For an eclair it's definitely good. With a rich bavarian custard filling and chocolate frosting, this is basically a better version of a cream puff. Served chilled which is even better.
Pumpkin bar: 5/5
Also served chilled. If you're thinking of getting a slice of pumpkin pie get this instead. It's like a dense pumpkin pie brownie with nuts and a crumble on top, and it's got the crust on the bottom. It's just all around amazing.
Brownie squad represent!
German chocolate brownie/fudge brownie (left): 4.5/3.5
The German chocolate brownie is the standard fudge brownie with German chocolate cake mix on top that'll cost ya extra. The German chocolate topping is a wonderful mix of coconut, brown sugar cream, and nuts. The best part of the brownie, truly, and without it the fudge brownie falls flat. The actual brownie tastes like it's from a mix. The fudge tastes a little bittersweet, and it isn't rich. It's dense but not moist. The nuts help but not really. You can also get this as a German chocolate cake which is similar but not as dense; or as a German chocolate tart in a chocolate crust (your best option).
Zebra fudge brownie (front): 5/5
I dunno who thought to put cream cheese inside a brownie but it's a match made in heaven. Unlike its brother above, this brownie is super moist and dense and has a nice sweet cream cheese woven throughout. It's kind of like a cheesecake, but an overwhelmingly chocolate one.
Chocolate mint brownie (back): 5/5
Similar to the zebra fudge brownie but with a mint chocolate swirl frosting. If I'm not mistaken this one has cream cheese too. It seems like it's got a bit of a cheesy tint to it.
White chocolate brownie (middle): 4.5/5
This one has cream cheese mixed in too I believe. Or maybe none of them do and it's all white chocolate. I dunno. But this one's pretty good, just not quite as good as the others since it's a little one-note. It has a little pie crust on the bottom and there's some nuts in there too.
Chocolate chip: 5/5
We got a winner here. Not much to say. Just a simple, great, big chocolate-y chip cookie.
Oatmeal: 5/5
Pretty damn good for an oatmeal cookie. Got a nice balance of oats, batter, and raisins.
Blackout: 5/5
Like the blackout cheesecake, this is a rich double-chocolate cookie with a hint of coffee extract. I believe it's got white chocolate chips in there too if tastebuds are correct. Yummy, rich chocolate-y goodness.
Peanut butter: 4.5/5
Love me some nutty peanut butter cookies. This one is pretty smooth rather than crunchy - not many peanuts or chunks in it - but it's got a solid peanut butter taste.
A trip to Rick's will not be cheap. One slice is a minimum seven bucks including tax. Be prepared. But also know, that your tastebuds will soon be greeted with the delightful taste of sugar dancing upon them moments after you pay. Before you go though, make sure it is not Friday or Saturday night, and if it is, make sure it is not yet 9pm. This is rush hour for Rick's and the line will literally circle around the entire shop. It's a quick line but still, it gets a lil stuffy in there.
And for those wondering how the photo shoot went, I think it went pretty well:
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