Winter might be on the horizon, but if there’s anything that can coax us out of hibernation, it’s a guilty pleasure dessert. London is considered heaven for those of us with a raging sweet tooth, and if you ask us, it’s okay to give into your cravings every once in a while. We called on our friends at DesignMyNight to give us the low-down on where to find the best dessert spots across the capital; from a £99 luxury serve at Selfridges to ice cream with candy floss clouds, here’s where to hit when you’re having a cheat day.
Snowflake Luxury Gelato
Just how far would you go for an Instagram opportunity? Snowflake Luxury Gelato have only gone and created the most lavish ice cream to ever grace the capital. The downside? It’s gonna set your bank balance back a cool £99. The Billionaire Soft Serve takes inspo from the humble 99 Flake ice cream, and we’re convinced it’s worth dipping into your overdraft for. Holding this beautiful creation will be a two hand job, as almost an entire tub’s worth of gelato is scooped into a dark chocolate and golden pearl encrusted wafer cone. Decoration wise, think the likes of a gold-leaf coated flake and spoon, caramelised pecans, Belgian white chocolate truffles, a raspberry sorbet macaron, and a few edible ‘diamonds’ thrown in for good measure. Do yourself a favour: start saving your pennies and buy a train ticket to London - this decadent and exclusive dessert is only available in Selfridges.
Basement Sate
If you thought heaven on earth didn’t exist, you thought wrong, because there’s a place in Soho called Basement Sate and it’s dedicated to serving cocktails and paired desserts. These are no bog standard desserts mind; their spin on a carrot cake is made from carrot fluid gel, cream cheese chantilly, edible chocolate soil and a candied baby carrot, and it comes served in a plant pot. If you think carrots have no business in a cake, their edible chocolate cigar is sure to win you over. They’re made with popping candy, angel hair chilli, chocolate mousse and hazelnut feuilletine praline. As for the cocktails, make sure you try Made In Ecuador; it contains cocoa nibs-infused gin, banana and cherry liqueur and lemon juice.
Chin Chin Labs
Considering Chin Chin Labs is more like a trip to a science workshop than an ice cream parlour, you (kinda) don’t have to feel guilty about calories when you visit. They serve their scoops using billowing liquid nitrogen, and the inventive flavours and creations have to be seen (and eaten) to be believed. Doing away with standard vanilla, some of the regulars are tonka bean and burnt butter caramel, and on their weekly-changing guest flavour menu you might just find a blueberry and coriander seed sorbet. As you’d expect, there are tonnes of special serves but we rate the cookie-wich. It’s your choice of ice cream served in between two cookies, but you can swap them for brownies if you’re a die hard chocolate fan.
Yolkin
There’s no point in denying it, a dessert that tastes just as good as it looks on Instagram is the goal. Cue Yolkin; a place that’s responsible for dishing out divine-looking macaroon ice cream sandwiches. Born from the idea of using leftover macaroon yolks in ice cream (genius), you can find these sugary bites at Siam Eatery in London every single Saturday. Naturally, the flavours are made weekly and are subject to change, but with past flavours ranging from red velvet to blueberry cheesecake and rose pistachio; you’re in for a treat when you visit.
Ruby Violet
If you’re in the business of trying experimental flavours, you need to get yourself down to Ruby Violet . We’re not over exaggerating when we say the flavour possibilities are endless; some of their past creations have included the likes of purple sweet potato, rice pudding, and a boozy Campari sorbet. Head down for a scoop in a cone, or push the boat out and have your flavour of choice served with a meringue, complete with a lathering of either hot caramel or chocolate sauce, before being sprinkled with fruit and nuts. Ruby Violet has parlours in King’s Cross and Tufnell Park, so go knock yourself out.
Milk Train
London’s ludicrous food trend scene is showing no signs of abating (thank goodness) and Japanese-style cafe, Milk Train , happens to be aboard the trend train. These guys take the Mr Whippy-soft ice cream cone we all know and love, and serve it in a candy floss cloud. Temperatures might be dropping outside, but for the love of Instagram get down there before the year is out. Choose from signature vanilla, hojicha and matcha flavours (they have changing specials too, pumpkin pie being the most recent), and go wild when decorating your cone with everything from oreos and rainbow drops to sprinkles and popcorn.
Meringue Girls
We’re yet to find a dessert that’s too pretty to eat, but if there was one to come close, it would probably come from the masterminds at Meringue Girls. This lot are known for their colourful ‘kisses’ that are cute-as-a-button teardrop-shaped mini meringues that come in beautiful flavours like lemon sherbet and sour cherry. Choosing what to have will be a tough feat, but if you’re looking for a tip; their unicorn macaroons with zingy lemon and raspberry buttercream are the business. You’ll find the team glitzing-up Broadway Market on Saturdays, but you can make an online order any goddamned day of the week if you can’t wait until then.
Maître Choux
You’ll want to eat everything in sight when you visit Maître Choux, but that’s all the more reason to go, don’t you think? Sitting pretty in Kensington, this charming patisserie has Michelin-starred chefs whipping up three types of iconic desserts; choux, chouquettes and éclairs, but we recommend turning your attention to the eclairs. They have a showstopper status and with a gold-painted hazelnut and milk chocolate treasure on the menu, there’s no need to question where your next Insta post is gonna come from.
Maxwell’s
When it comes to desserts, there’s no place quite like Maxwell’s. They’ve got unicorn freakshakes, American-inspired S'mores cookie pots and they have dessert cocktails too. They’ve even gone and created a donut burger (that’s essentially a burger inside a deep fried, sugar-coated donut), so if you’re looking for an any-time-of-week treat, there really is no better place. If you’re feeling spoilt for choice, you can’t go wrong with their salted caramel freakshake. It’s made with a salted caramel thick shake that comes lathered in tonnes of whipped cream and salted caramel sauce, with a homemade salted donut and a barrage of marshmallows plonked on top for good measure.
Naked Dough
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Cookie dough isn’t just a dessert; it’s a way of life. If you agree, you need to visit Naked Dough. They serve cones (and tubs) of safe to eat cookie dough, and the flavours are as millennial as they come; think emoji poos (cookie dough with chocolate chips) as well as Nak-Ed Sheeran (salted caramel and honeycomb). Needless to say, arrive with your phone charged because you’ll want to take a whole gallery worth of snaps. They’re currently stationed at Old Street station, but from November they’ll also be at Lakeside and Westfield Shepherd's Bush.
For more info on what’s on in London, and across the UK, visit DesignMyNight and follow them on Instagram and Twitter; @DesignMyNight.
