Quick Bites: Delightful Desserts

With the holidays upon us, it’s that time of year when desserts abound, and we license ourselves to loosen our belts for everything from fruit cake to gingerbread cookies to chocolate babka. Of course, there are also desserts available all year round, especially here in the city of gourmet delights. Here are some of our favorites.

Chocolate Biscuits

Desserts

Outside of baklava, you don’t normally associate a Greek restaurant with desserts. Go to Kaia Greek on Miracle Mile and you will change your mind. The description of their kormos ($11) as “chocolate buttered biscuits” does not do them justice. Served with vanilla ice cream, the chocolate is Belgian Callebaut, with graham cookies and walnuts inside, and a touch of brandy to give it flair. The flavor grows deeper with every bite.

KAIA Greek (Temporarily Closed)
232 Miracle Mile
786.362.6997
kaiagreek.com

The Apple of Our Eye

The apple pie at Villagio in the Shops at Merrick Park ($13.50) is served hot, with cinnamon, a ball of vanilla ice cream, and powdered sugar on top. Maybe because Villagio is Italian, the pie is served like an open-face small pizza. No matter. This is the best apple pie you will ever eat, with a great crust, an all-American dessert ironically served in an Italian restaurant. Go figure.

Villagio in the Shops at Merrick Park
358 Lorenzo Ave.
305.447.8144
villagiorestaurants.com

Chocolate Cheese

At The Cheesecake Factory, the menu is vast. But why not stick with their specialty? Their Godiva chocolate cheesecake ($10.50), smooth and rich, satisfies both lovers of the cacao bean and cheese. Of course, it has enough calories (1,400) to fill three-quarters of the daily recommended allowance for women and three-fifths of the daily recommended for men. But who cares? It’s the holidays!

The Cheesecake Factory
2418 Ponce de Leon Blvd.
305.529.0703
thecheesecakefactory.com

Having a Ball

Desserts

Most profiteroles — pastry balls filled with vanilla cream — are dripped with chocolate. Not the Toffe Caramel Crunch Profiteroles ($10) at The Globe. As the name more than implies, their chilled profiteroles are covered instead with a caramel sauce and crunchy bits, then powdered with sugar. Proprietor Danny Guiteras says the caramel crunch is a secret recipe. We don’t care. These are light, not filling, and addictively delicious.

The Globe
377 Alhambra Circle
305.445.3555
theglobecafe.com

Smooth Operator

Proprietor Lucio Zanon of Tullio restaurant describes his gelato maker as the “Ferrari of gelato machines,” and after one taste you will agree. Each batch is made fresh for the table, nothing made before hand and left to lose their freshness ($38, feeds four). The flavors vary each day, ranging from hazelnut to vanilla to pistachio. On the day we visited it was vanilla with figs and a fig sauce. Incredibly creamy and scrumptious.

Tullio
160 Andalusia Ave.
305.926.4208
tulliomiami.com

Looking for more lunch options? Check out more of our Quick Bites.