clock menu more-arrow no yes mobile
Photo by Scott Charles Schroeder III
Photo by Scott Charles Schroeder III

Eat These 18 Restaurant Desserts Right Now

View as Map
Photo by Scott Charles Schroeder III

Why is it that if you don't order dessert after your meal, you feel empty inside? Dining out should be a comprehensive experience, a delight from beginning to end. Capping your night with something sweet, especially at a restaurant that puts heart and soul into its desserts, is not only the added indulgence you deserve, but your duty as a diner in this great foodscape we call Philadelphia. To cap off Sweets Week, we've compiled a guide to all of the desserts you should be eating in this city, here and now.

And they range! Gargantuan cakes, comforting pies, ethnic goodies, French delights, what have you — all treats that will make your inner child jump for joy, mapped out south to north for your every convenience.

Have other favorites? Share in the comments.

Read More
If you buy something or book a reservation from an Eater link, Vox Media may earn a commission. See our ethics policy.

Chocolate Soufflé at Townsend

Copy Link
Dip your spoon into this cloud of Valrhona chocolate and you'll know heaven intimately. Townsend's chocolate soufflé with a side of Pernod chantilly is a destination dessert, French at its finest, and a perfect nightcap.

Paris Brest at Restaurant Neuf

Copy Link
How can something so monstrous taste so good? Neuf's Paris-Brest, a Parisian bicycle race-themed choux pastry dessert, shaped like a wheel and stuffed with cream, gets an added bump of Middle Eastern flair with rose water and cherries.

Kaya Toast Saté Kampar

Copy Link
It might not look like much when it hits the table, but Saté Kampar's thick-cut white toast slathered with an especially addictive coconut custard is the ultimate Malaysian comfort food.

Biscotti Assortiti at Le Virtù

Copy Link
After a feast of homemade charcuterie, fresh pastas, and hunky roasts, you'll probably want a light dessert. Opt for a cappuccino, maybe some amaro, and a stunning plate of homemade Italian cookies.

Boterkoek at Noord

Copy Link
The Dutch butter cake has become somewhat synonymous with Passyunk Avenue's Northern European BYOB. One slice usually feeds two, the advocaat — a brandy custard — underneath is basically a dessert unto itself.

Cake at Bud & Marilyn's

Copy Link
Any cake at mid-century modern Bud & Marilyn's is choice, but the peanut butter malt ball cake might be the best slice of dessert in town. Make sure you get everything on your fork — fudgy dark chocolate cake, airy peanut butter buttercream, and crispy malt ball — for the perfect bite.

Baklava at Kanella Grill

Copy Link
Baklava is like pizza, in that it's hard to find bad baklava. But Kanella Grill's baklava is perfect: balanced sweetness, stacked high with chopped nuts — still crunchy and not pulverized to oblivion— and the phyllo still crisp and crackly.

Rocky Road at Serpico

Copy Link
The cool thing about Peter Serpico's restaurant is that he's pretty much cooking whatever he wants, whatever he likes. And wouldn't you know it, he likes rocky road ice cream. His is made up of frozen chocolate pudding, toasty marshmallows, and candied walnuts—probably better than any rocky road ice cream you'll ever have.

Konafi at Zahav

Copy Link
Like a Middle Eastern danish, Zahav's konafi-for-two is pumped with chocolate, topped with labneh ice cream, and garnished with seasonal sweets.

Tiramisu at Mr. Martino's Trattoria

Copy Link
Not too sweet, not too bitter, sublimely spongey — Mr. Martino's cushion of Italian-American goodness is among the best of its kind in South Philly.

Pumpkin Pie at The Hungry Pigeon

Copy Link
Pretty much any dessert — breakfast, lunch or dinner — at this Queen Village hotspot is worth a try, but pastry chef Pat O'Malley's pumpkin pie is every bit of that comfortable, homey goodness you often crave in the fall.
Photo by Scott Charles Schroeder III

Grandmother's Chocolate Cake at Southwark

Copy Link
If you're craving a good ol' chocolate cake without any of the fuss, Southwark does it right. Topped simply with some salted caramel ice cream, Chris D'Ambro's grandmother's chocolate cake recipe is top-notch.

Banoffee Tart at Stargazy

Copy Link
End your hearty meal of pie and mash with more pie—this one stuffed with toffee, and topped with sliced bananas and cream.

Toasted Hazelnut Cake at Fond

Copy Link
Fond's pastry chef and co-owner Jessie Prawlucki has a laudable seasonally rotating dessert menu, and currently, her toasted hazelnut cake with chocolate hazelnut ganache, raspberry sorbet, and white chocolate cream is an absolute delight.

Mille Feuille aux Framboises at Bistrot la Minette

Copy Link
Bistrot la Minette's mille-feuille is textbook: stacked three layers high with piped pastry cream, raspberries, and a little extra puddle of raspberry coulis love.

Bubble Waffle at Yummy Yummy

Copy Link
Bubble waffles are what regular waffles should aspire to be, and few do it better than Yummy Yummy in Chinatown. QQ waffles come in a variety of flavors, but green tea is the favorite.

Nutty Buddy at Wister BYOB

Copy Link
Wister's Nutty Buddy will make you feel young again. The big bowl of Franklin Fountain chocolate ice cream, chocolate peanut ganache, caramel, and tiny waffle cones is the type of over the top dessert a child would dream up. And you, as an adult, will love every spoonful of it.
http://wisterbyob.com/

Gâteau Basque at Helm

Copy Link
Ordering the Gâteau Basque at Helm is tradition. The adorable creation — a lifelong fixture on the restaurant's chalkboard menu — comes out warm and buttery, always, and forever, topped with goodies of the season.

Chocolate Soufflé at Townsend

Dip your spoon into this cloud of Valrhona chocolate and you'll know heaven intimately. Townsend's chocolate soufflé with a side of Pernod chantilly is a destination dessert, French at its finest, and a perfect nightcap.

Paris Brest at Restaurant Neuf

How can something so monstrous taste so good? Neuf's Paris-Brest, a Parisian bicycle race-themed choux pastry dessert, shaped like a wheel and stuffed with cream, gets an added bump of Middle Eastern flair with rose water and cherries.

Kaya Toast Saté Kampar

It might not look like much when it hits the table, but Saté Kampar's thick-cut white toast slathered with an especially addictive coconut custard is the ultimate Malaysian comfort food.

Biscotti Assortiti at Le Virtù

After a feast of homemade charcuterie, fresh pastas, and hunky roasts, you'll probably want a light dessert. Opt for a cappuccino, maybe some amaro, and a stunning plate of homemade Italian cookies.

Boterkoek at Noord

The Dutch butter cake has become somewhat synonymous with Passyunk Avenue's Northern European BYOB. One slice usually feeds two, the advocaat — a brandy custard — underneath is basically a dessert unto itself.

Cake at Bud & Marilyn's

Any cake at mid-century modern Bud & Marilyn's is choice, but the peanut butter malt ball cake might be the best slice of dessert in town. Make sure you get everything on your fork — fudgy dark chocolate cake, airy peanut butter buttercream, and crispy malt ball — for the perfect bite.

Baklava at Kanella Grill

Baklava is like pizza, in that it's hard to find bad baklava. But Kanella Grill's baklava is perfect: balanced sweetness, stacked high with chopped nuts — still crunchy and not pulverized to oblivion— and the phyllo still crisp and crackly.

Rocky Road at Serpico

The cool thing about Peter Serpico's restaurant is that he's pretty much cooking whatever he wants, whatever he likes. And wouldn't you know it, he likes rocky road ice cream. His is made up of frozen chocolate pudding, toasty marshmallows, and candied walnuts—probably better than any rocky road ice cream you'll ever have.

Konafi at Zahav

Like a Middle Eastern danish, Zahav's konafi-for-two is pumped with chocolate, topped with labneh ice cream, and garnished with seasonal sweets.

Tiramisu at Mr. Martino's Trattoria

Not too sweet, not too bitter, sublimely spongey — Mr. Martino's cushion of Italian-American goodness is among the best of its kind in South Philly.

Pumpkin Pie at The Hungry Pigeon

Pretty much any dessert — breakfast, lunch or dinner — at this Queen Village hotspot is worth a try, but pastry chef Pat O'Malley's pumpkin pie is every bit of that comfortable, homey goodness you often crave in the fall.
Photo by Scott Charles Schroeder III

Grandmother's Chocolate Cake at Southwark

If you're craving a good ol' chocolate cake without any of the fuss, Southwark does it right. Topped simply with some salted caramel ice cream, Chris D'Ambro's grandmother's chocolate cake recipe is top-notch.

Banoffee Tart at Stargazy

End your hearty meal of pie and mash with more pie—this one stuffed with toffee, and topped with sliced bananas and cream.

Toasted Hazelnut Cake at Fond

Fond's pastry chef and co-owner Jessie Prawlucki has a laudable seasonally rotating dessert menu, and currently, her toasted hazelnut cake with chocolate hazelnut ganache, raspberry sorbet, and white chocolate cream is an absolute delight.

Mille Feuille aux Framboises at Bistrot la Minette

Bistrot la Minette's mille-feuille is textbook: stacked three layers high with piped pastry cream, raspberries, and a little extra puddle of raspberry coulis love.

Related Maps

Bubble Waffle at Yummy Yummy

Bubble waffles are what regular waffles should aspire to be, and few do it better than Yummy Yummy in Chinatown. QQ waffles come in a variety of flavors, but green tea is the favorite.

Nutty Buddy at Wister BYOB

Wister's Nutty Buddy will make you feel young again. The big bowl of Franklin Fountain chocolate ice cream, chocolate peanut ganache, caramel, and tiny waffle cones is the type of over the top dessert a child would dream up. And you, as an adult, will love every spoonful of it.
http://wisterbyob.com/

Gâteau Basque at Helm

Ordering the Gâteau Basque at Helm is tradition. The adorable creation — a lifelong fixture on the restaurant's chalkboard menu — comes out warm and buttery, always, and forever, topped with goodies of the season.

Related Maps