'Desserts After Dark' Invites Guests to Indulge

Rodeo Drive was transformed into a dessert-lovers paradise Sunday night as pastry chefs showcased the most sinful sweets Los Angeles has to offer.

“Desserts After Dark” was part of food and wine festival, which held events in Beverly Hills, Hollywood and downtown Los Angeles throughout Labor Day weekend.

“It’s fantastic. This whole street, everywhere I look there’s another new booth, another new thing to try,” Connie Kim said. “I have a pretty big sweet tooth and I usually try to keep my cravings to a minimum, but when it’s an event like this, you just have to indulge.”

Cakes and cupcakes, pies and ice cream and every other dessert imaginable, along with wines and liqueurs to complement them, were available to sample.

“I just picked up some cotton candy from Dolly’s and I’m having it with a glass of red wine,” Kim said. “It’s delicious.”

For chocolate lovers, the Cheesecake Factory offered samples of its new Hershey’s Chocolate Bar Cheesecake, which consists of chocolate cheesecake sandwiched between moist chocolate cake with chocolate frosting on top and chocolate chips along the edge.

“It’s pretty hectic with the chocolate, but it’s so soft and moist it just melts in your mouth,” said the restaurant's Eric Pineda.

junior Anton Saleh was at The Taste to enjoy his last few days of freedom before school starts—and to eat as many desserts as possible.

“I love food and I eat sweets as much as I can,” Saleh said. “Right now I am eating a peach maple bacon streusel pie from Simplethings and it’s pretty good. It has interesting flavors—the bacon actually adds a really nice touch.”

Saleh said the best treats he had tasted so far were the Fonuts—from the bakery of the same name—which offer a new spin on the donut.

“I tried the strawberry and the lemon Fonuts and they were both pretty awesome” Saleh said. “Good flavor, good texture—everything was just spot on with them.” 

Elin Katz, owner of on Robertson Boulevard, was on hand with her baked creations. She considers herself more of a cake artist than a cake decorator.

“I was in art school and I needed a job. That’s how I got into creating these unique cakes,” Katz said. “I get to eat dessert while creating wonderful works of art—what could be better than that?”

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