Lava cake is never my first choice on a dessert menu. I think it's overdone, nothin special - and above all - I simply don't love chocolate cake. Just not my thing.

So, I didn't have high expectations for Hot Cakes Molten Chocolate Cakery. But I had friends who recommended it, so I thought I'd check it out.

This. Was. Life-Changing.

Hot Cakes Molten Chocolate Cakery crafts organic, classic American comfort desserts and other original and innovative confections. We were founded in 2008 by Autumn Martin with the dessert that gave us our name: Take-n-Bake Molten Chocolate Cake in a Mason Jar. The idea for the “take n bake molten chocolate cakes” came from a dessert Autumn created for a charity dinner. The cakes were so well-received, the guests practically fell out of their chairs and the orders started rolling in. Autumn was working as Head Chocolatier of Theo Chocolate at the time, but decided it would be fun to start a little side business. And so Hot Cakes was born. Autumn left her much-loved job at Theo Chocolate in 2009 and headed to Spain for a 4-month stint of organic farming and rock climbing. Upon her return home in 2010, she focused 100% of energy on slowly building up the Hot Cakes brand which is built on supporting local and organic farming through the creation of fine, innovative desserts.

We walked in, saw the super cute rustic-chic space and I looked over the menu. I actually looked at some of the other desserts - like a creme brulee or vanilla rhubarb bread pudding or a nutella brown butter milkshake (my gahhh). But, I was determined to try a molten chocolate cake.

The S'mores stuck out to me - smoked chocolate cake, campfire caramel, homemade 'mallow and graham, vanilla ice cream. The woman working the counter made sure to warn me the cake is smokey and even gave me a chocolate morsel to try before I committed. It was excellent - and smoky sweet - so we continued on.

After about 20 minutes (they take a little extra to bake), I was delivered this plank of wood with three perfect elements - the ice cream with graham cracker sitting in a pool of caramel, a whole graham cracker, and this smoky lava cake with homemade marshmallow on top.

This is out of this world. The cake is smoky and just a bit sweet, the homemade mallow is beyond good, the ice cream and homemade caramel are just phenomenal. The combination of sweet and smokey and creamy and crunchy - it was just magnificent. This is one of my favorite desserts I have ever eaten.

My only complaint is that the photo booth inside ate my money and didn't give us photos :(



Grade: A