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

Another little gem in Pike Place Market is Piroshky Piroshky Bakery.

These handcrafted Russian pastries draw a crowd, and for good reason.

The bakery has sweet, meat and vegetable piroshky. Some sell out super quickly (like the smoked salmon pate), but we all know I have a sweet tooth anyway. 

So, I ordered the "Oscar's Star," which is a delicious buttery dough topped with chocolate, sweet cream cheese and sprinkled with hazelnuts.

Pairing this sweet piece of heaven with a coffee was all I needed to make for a perfect morning. Sweet, creamy and a perfectly chewy pastry.

Grade: A

This shop is really cute - from the black and white awning and lights outside, to the softly lit, sweet interior.

The case is full of all sorts of tasty looking cupcakes. There are tons of different flavors, depending what day you're there.

It all began baking as a child under the guidance of my wonderful mother. With four older brothers, I always had plenty of volunteers to test my creations. It was a great way of getting positive attention from them! 

As a registered nurse for 19 years, I finally traded in my syringe for a piping bag to fulfill my love and passion of putting smiles on peoples' faces! There is no other joy i like better than to see my customers approach the cupcake bakery case, and see their eyes light up with a smile on their face! Everyone loves cupcakes including me! 

At Paula Vega Cakes, we do not skimp on the ingredients such as creamy butter, rich chocolate, real vanilla beans, heavy whipping cream, pure cane sugar, whole eggs, fresh raspberries, blueberries, strawberries and nuts. These are my staples! Everything is made by hand, by me and my trained bakers, using my recipes I have tested and tried to perfect over the years. Each of my cupcakes and cakes to order have their own special trademark of fruit, cream or fudge filling. My goal, at Paula Vega Cakes, is to provide you with luscious indulgences that lift your spirits and makes you smile! I invite you to come by and try one of our cupcakes (ABOUT).

When I asked which flavors are most popular, I was told the Fresh Strawberry was the winner. I'll take one then!

And, I also asked for a cappuccino with a shot of caramel.

There's just not a much better combination than a coffee and a pastry or sweet treat.

The strawberry cupcake has real strawberries in it, and the frosting was also strawberry flavored - strawberry on strawberry! It's a good cupcake.

That, paired with the coffee made for a perfect stop. What's your favorite cupcake to get here?




Grade: A

What is better in summer time than a cool treat? That's right, nothing.

So, after snacking my way through Parkersburg, I made a stop at Snow Biz for dessert. There are a few locations for Snow Biz, but the one in this shopping center claims to be the original.

"Snow Cone" is a dirty word around here, we don't sell them and never will. We only sell gourmet shave ice. We shave the ice in front of you, from fresh blocks of ice. This creates a smooth fluffy texture, like snow, and then we add our vividly delicious flavors and colors for a tropical taste sensation. The texture of the shave ice holds the flavor from the first delightful bite to the last. No sucking flavor from the bottom of a paper cone here. Our syrup is freshly made by us. We serve well over 100 natural, non fat, and dairy free flavors and combinations of flavors. We bring a taste of the tropics to you. Once you've tried shave ice a snow cone will be a dirty word to you too. Stop by our retail location or we'll come to you! It's the perfect way to celebrate a party, or event. We can even help you with fundraising for your school, team or charity, at no cost to you. We take care of it all. Contact us for pricing and availability.

This shop has shaved ice, iced coffee, smoothies, slushies, shakes, super sundaes and floats. There are SO many flavor combinations for shaved ice that it is literally overwhelming. So, I asked for their recommendation, and "rainbow" was a popular response. Sold.

But, I didn't just get shaved ice, because that would be boring. I got a "super sundae," which is shaved ice ON TOP OF ICE CREAM. I've never heard of this, so I needed it immediately.

The sizes here are gigantic; I got a small and it was still more than enough. The rainbow consisted of a strawberry, a lemon and a sour blue raspberry, I believe. It was on top of vanilla ice cream swirled with blue syrup.

Not only is it beautiful, but it's actually really tasty. I quickly ate the shaved ice, which tasted like eating a rainbow. So, heaven. It was light and fruity. Then, the ice cream comes into play - creamy and rich. If you don't eat this quick enough, I could see it becoming a giant mess. But, very tasty and would definitely try again.


Grade: A

Savannah's Candy Kitchen is apparently a ~thing~ in Atlanta, so I stopped by this shop in the airport to check it out.

From a mother’s kitchen in Woodbine, GA to Savannah, GA, candy from the Strickland kitchen is still down home delightful. 

The man behind the famous Savannah, GA Candy is, Stan “The Candy Man” Strickland. The story begins in Woodbine, Georgia where his mother worked in a candy factory known for their Pecan Pralines, Log Rolls, Glazed Pecans, Peanut Brittle and Divinity Candy. At home, would always make candy and pralines, especially during the holidays. She was an old-fashioned baker who measured with the “cup” of her hand and always used the best fresh ingredients. For Stan’s mother, cooking and baking was an art form. Stan baked with his mom in the kitchen learning how to make her spectacular homemade Southern delights. 

Stan decided to share his family’s sweet Southern delights with others at his Savannah, GA candy company. Over thirty years ago, Stan opened Savannah’s Candy Kitchen on historic River Street. Visitors quickly discovered that Stan’s kitchen was the place to experience and taste down home Southern sweetness. In order to keep up with the demand for his candy, Stan had to expand; he made sure to keep his recipes fresh and homemade no matter how big the kitchen grew. Now the original Savannah’s Candy Kitchen store on River Street occupies over 4,200 square feet and every square foot is filled to the brim with the best candies, cakes, and confections in the South. He has also added new stores in Savannah's City Market, the Atlanta Airport, Charleston, Nashville, and National Harbor, Maryland. 

Our Savannah pralines have put us on the map and let us expand our candy selection to include all kind of wonderful Savannah sweets including Savannah cakes, pecan pies, pecan log rolls, glazed pecans, praline layer cakes, and much more. We are the largest candy company in the Southeast and we are proud to share all of our creations. We are so confident in our products that we offer a 100% satisfaction guarantee. If you are unhappy with your item for any reason we will gladly refund your money or ship you a replacement at your request (OUR STORY).

While I had no idea what a gopher was, I did know I needed it in my mouth as soon as I saw it.

Shop our hand made Gopher Turtles and see why they are consistently one of our Best Selling items. These wonderful creations come in Milk Chocolate Gophers, Dark Chocolate Gophers, and White Chocolate Gophers with pecans or peanuts. To create a perfect Gopher Turtle we first make a batch of caramel from scratch, stirred by hand in our authentic copper kettles, then pour this over a bed of the best pecan pieces, and finally finish it off with a rich chocolate topping. These wonderful Southern Sweets are a staple in many of our Gift Baskets Online, because our customers love them!

These things are super good!  I mean, how could it not be? The thing that stuck out to me, though, is the chocolate itself is milky, creamy goodness. And, everything else is just icing on top!

Grade: A

Noteworthy Sweets, a bakery and sweets shop in Fairmont, has been on my to-try list for a long time. The only problem is they are only open on weekdays during lunch. So, when I had a weekday off and no plans, I headed to Fairmont to get some goodies.

Located along Fairmont Avenue, Noteworthy Sweets has specials for lunch, in addition to tons of pastries and cakes and more. So, you can see what they have for lunch that day right outside the restaurant.

So, I walked in and toward the back bakery case to see what they had left toward the end of the day. Off to the right, there is a large dining space that is basic, but nice.

Noteworthy Sweets is located in the Historic Crawford Building on the corner of Fairmont Ave. and 1st Street. Parking is available on the side of the building in addition to street parking.

We are a limited service restaurant in that we focus on one daily special each day. By doing so we have the flexibility to change our menu every week to keep up with what's fresh and in season.

If for some reason the daily special doesn't interest you we also offer our "Noteworthy Salad" with Sauteed Chicken, Quiche, and Chicken Salad Sandwich. When the weather turns cool we also offer fresh Homemade Soups. 

In July 2014 we had the opportunity to expand so we can now offer in house catering for up to 60-70 people. If you're not familiar with our facilities be sure to check out our pictures. 

There was one giant slice of cake that I took home with me, and I all but begged for a pepperoni roll. Initially, they said they were out, but I told them how I included them in my pepperoni roll book and I've been wanting to try one forever and they had just a few left over!



Let's start with the cake. It was an almond flavor with some very delicious, sugary icing. Pretty tasty! I imagine if I got there a bit earlier in the day, it may have been a bit more moist, too. Alas, that's what I get for being late.

But, let's talk about this pepperoni roll! This is a good pepperoni roll! It is moist, and there is pepperoni in absolutely every bite. It's light and fluffy while still having a good bit of chew. Very good.

Have you been? What's your favorite special?



Grade: A

Strawberry Pie Week is legendary in Huntington.

Jim's Steak & Spaghetti serves up their homemade strawberry pie just one week of the year - and it has cultivated a following in recent years.


I've never tried it though I've been to Jim's before, and it's a West Virginia classic, so I made it a point to get my fill this year.


Jim's strawberry pie week starts the Tuesday after Mother's Day each year. So, I took that Tuesday off, woke up early, drove to Huntington and got in line. That's right, there was a line. I actually parked around 10 a.m., took a look and saw two people waiting, so I went around the corner and got a cupcake and a coffee. Took my time and then made my way back around 10:30 to see about two dozen people in line.

That's when I decided I should get in place. Unfortunately, it was about 80 degrees this day and I juuuust happened to be outside of the shade. Just barely.

By the end of this week, if last year's history repeats itself, an astonishing 10,698 slices of pie or more will have headed out the glass front doors of Jim's, the popular downtown restaurant. Made entirely from scratch by Patti and her daughter Michelle, Jim's famous strawberry pie is featured one week only, from 11 a.m. until 8 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday, May 16-20 (Herald Dispatch).

When the doors finally opened at 11 a.m., the crowd flowed inside, and the hostess was triaging as quickly as she could and directly people to sit. Within minutes, the entire dining area was full. Media was swarming to document every moment.

Since I was alone, I sat at the end of the counter and ordered my pie. The service was ON POINT despite how crazy it was. I have no idea how they did it. But, since I just came for pie and not the full lunch, I was one of the first to be served, and I was at the end of the counter, and that made me prime for media coverage. See this pie being delivered here? That's mine, and you can see me and my phone and my camera waiting. That photo above? That was my view to the right.

So, the pie. It is quite delicious. The crust is sweet and crumbly, the strawberries fresh and the cream on top is the perfect touch. I can definitely see why this little bit of heaven has a huge following. Since you can only get it once per year (and two slices of pie per customer!), the line is no surprise to me. If I were local, I might be in line every day to get it. I'm a fan.

And, it's an amazingly well-oiled machine. My longest wait was simply to pay because there were folks also trying to place to-go orders. But, I was in and out within 30 minutes once I was seated. That's impressive for the amount of people packed into that space.

If you didn't get a chance to try the pie this year, mark your calendar for next year. And, get that second piece of pie to go.