Brasserie Beck: Bread Pudding

Bill


Brasserie Beck's bread pudding is very unique.  Instead of the traditional rasins, it's dotted with chocolate and cherries.  It's topped with ice cream and swims in a pool of excellent creme anglais.

 

This dish creates a good combination of textures, most of which contrast only subtly.  With all those elements mixing in a tight dish, this dessert is changing while you watch.  The melted chocolate bursts and cherries punch through the soft, chewy, mildly-flavored bread.  The ice cream adds even more sweetness and a cold splash to tame the heat emanating from the chocolate.  This is the best bread pudding I've tried in DC, but its creativity may offend purists.  It deserves a great rating.

1101 K Street NW, Washington, DC 20005
(202) 408-1717 ‎

Google map & reviews (4/5)

Washington Post (Critic 2.5/4; Reader 1.5/4)

Washingtonian (2/4)

Yelp (4/5)

Open Table (4/5; Diners' Choice)

Trip Advisor (4/5; ranked 41 in DC)

ABC News Good Morning America (video)

Bread & Chocolate: Bread Pudding

Bill

Bread & Chocolate’s bread pudding is a caramelized crust topping heavy, moist folds of bread, with pockets of cinnamon flavor.  Raisins are limited to the top.  That is a risky and often lazy approach, because bread pudding needs significant flavor and texture bursts to prevent a bland core.  However, this dish maintained decent flavor throughout. 

Bread & Chocolate serves this bread pudding cold, which helps condense the dish and spread the flavor elements.  It really should be served with a dairy-based sauce like crème anglais.  This bread pudding was very good, but an accompanying sauce, relatively thick and cold, might have elevated it to divine.  It deserves a great rating. 

I've only tried one other bread pudding in DC, at Elephant & Castle.  That is good, in part because it is served with a sauce.  However, I rank this one just a bit higher.


2301 M St, Washington, DC 20037

(202) 833-8360

Google map & reviews (2.5/5)

Washington Examiner

Yelp (2.5/5)

Tripadvisor (3.5/5)