Sou’wester: Red Velvet Cake

Bill

Sou’wester’s red velvet cake is served with cream-cheese frosting and vanilla crème anglais.  Incorporating vanilla crème anglais is a unique conceptual element.  However, this dessert falls far short of Sou’wester’s generally high standard.  The cream cheese frosting separates from the cake like a mass-produced plastic-wrapped dessert.  Normally, a red velvet cake’s chocolate flavor is subtle, but this entire dish is beyond subtle; it’s excruciatingly flavorless.  Skip this one. 

Don’t write off Sou’wester’s desserts as a whole.  The pecan pie lived up the standard set by the restaurant’s other offerings.   

1330 Maryland Avenue Southwest

Washington, DC 20024

Google map and reviews (3.55/5)

Open Table (3.9/5)

Washingtonian: 100 Best Restaurants 2011 (2.5/4)

Washingtonian (2.5/4)

Washingtonian: Great New Restaurants 2010 (2.5/4)

Washington Post (Critic 1.5/4; Reader 3/4)

Examiner

Washington Times

Bistrot Lepic: Torte Chaud au Chocolat

Bill

This dessert, in concept, marries a relatively dense, soft, warm cake-like torte packing a smooth, powerful chocolate flavor with crème anglais. It is my favorite dessert at Bistrot Lepic.

This dish could approach divinity with a thicker compliment of crème anglais surrounding the torte. It would have added more flavor and a better mix of textures. The right mixture of rich chocolate and a dairy-based sauce like crème anglais can create magic, but this dessert didn’t get the mix right.

The torte wasn’t as good this time as when I’ve tried it before, so it carries a consistency risk. At its best, the torte is soft, warm, and moist throughout. Some brittleness on the edges can actually be a welcome offset to that softness. However, this time, the outer half of the torte was hard, around room temperature, and dry. The center was much better, meeting what I usually expect from this dish. Even with the consistency risk, the torte ranks well above the average DC dessert.


1736 Wisconsin Ave. NW
Washington, DC 20007
(202) 333-0111

Google map & reviews (4/5)

Washingtonian

Examiner

Washington Post (Editors' Pick; Reader 4/4)

Washington City Paper (4/5)

Yelp (3.5/5)

Tripadvisor (DC rank: 60; 4/5)