Illustration by Catherine Pearson
Air Ruby Cake
The ultimate praise for any sauce or frosting is that it “would taste good on a shoe.” But sometimes the shoe itself is the thing. Enter Jeff Ruby’s Steakhouse’s Air Ruby Cake: a chocolate cake with chocolate mousse, salted caramel crispy pearls, Chambord creme, and a cognac caramel sauce, all shaped like an Air Jordan IV shoe. The $75 price tag is almost in line with the shoe itself, but you didn’t come to Jeff Ruby’s to skimp. • 505 Vine St., downtown, (513) 784-1200
Candy Bar 3.0
Last time we did our Best Restaurants list, I chose Boca’s Candy Bar 3.0 as best dessert, and I still stand by that decision. Boca takes classic candy bar ingredients like nougat and chocolate (Grand Cru chocolate, to be exact) and dials them up several notches, adding Rocher and hazelnut ice cream for some grown-up sophistication. It’s a bite of nostalgia without the cloying aftertaste. Who said all sequels had to be bad? • 114 E. Sixth St., downtown, (513) 542-2022
Pope’s Chocolate Salame
The phrase “chocolate salame” might bring back memories of the chocolate covered bacon craze, but the truth is much more traditional. “Salame del Papa” (“salami made for the Pope”) is a time-honored dessert from Italy’s Piedmont region. Chocolate is mixed with cookies and wrapped in an elastic net to resemble the classic cured meat. Forno Osteria & Bar serves up slices of the rich, cookie-speckled chocolate with vanilla gelato and white chocolate crémeux. Truly a dessert fit for a pope. • 3514 Erie Ave., Hyde Park, (513) 818-8720; 9415 Montgomery Rd., Montgomery, (513) 231-5555
Vietnamese Coffee Panna Cotta
Speaking of Italian desserts, they don’t come much more classic than panna cotta, which translates to “cooked cream.” Sweetened cream, often thickened with gelatin, makes for a silky, decadent finish to any meal. The best desserts strike a delicate balance, and Metropole balances its sweetened cream with earthy coffee notes and crumbly streusel for added textural contrast. That after-dinner coffee never tasted better. • 609 Walnut St., downtown, (513) 578-6660
Chocolate Mousse
I love the elegant simplicity of the elevated bistro faire at Le Bar a Boeuf. Case in point, the chocolate mousse. Velvety chocolate mousse gets sprinkled with chocolate powder and garnished with berries, for a little contrasting sourness. A decidedly placid dessert, but in this case still waters run deep—lovely, dark, and deep. The restaurant has no formal dessert menu, but if you see this dish listed as a special, order it. • 2200 Victory Pkwy., East Walnut Hills, (513) 751-2333
Mille-Feuille
Colette may be a self-described “mostly French” restaurant, but its mille-feuille—yeasty puff pastry layered with custardy crème légère that oozes out the sides like marshmallows in a s’more—seems fully French to me. Actually, Chef/Owner Danny Combs does add one nontraditional touch: a cherry drizzle that adds a delightful hint of tartness. It’s a dessert that somehow manages to be both light and satisfying. • 1400 Race St., Over-the-Rhine, (513) 381-1018
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