{"id":16703,"date":"2019-09-26T16:48:31","date_gmt":"2019-09-26T20:48:31","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.portlandmonthly.com\/portmag\/?p=16703"},"modified":"2020-05-01T11:08:44","modified_gmt":"2020-05-01T15:08:44","slug":"the-dessertists","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.portlandmonthly.com\/portmag\/the-dessertists\/","title":{"rendered":"The Dessertists"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" style=\"border: none; width: 100%; height: 450px;\" src=\"\/\/e.issuu.com\/embed.html?backgroundColor=%23fefefe&amp;d=oct19_flipbook&amp;hideIssuuLogo=true&amp;pageNumber=24&amp;showOtherPublicationsAsSuggestions=true&amp;u=portlandmagazine\" width=\"300\" height=\"150\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<h1 class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\">Forget tapas, entrees, and apps\u2014life\u2019s too short<br \/>\nto <b>save the sweets for last<\/b>.<\/span><\/h1>\n<p class=\"p1\"><em><span class=\"s1\">By Sofia Voltin<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n<h5 class=\"p1\"><strong><span class=\"s1\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignleft size-medium wp-image-16749\" src=\"http:\/\/www.portlandmonthly.com\/portmag\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/Gross-26-284x300.jpg\" alt=\"Gross-26\" width=\"284\" height=\"300\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.portlandmonthly.com\/portmag\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/Gross-26-284x300.jpg 284w, https:\/\/www.portlandmonthly.com\/portmag\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/Gross-26-200x212.jpg 200w, https:\/\/www.portlandmonthly.com\/portmag\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/Gross-26-331x350.jpg 331w, https:\/\/www.portlandmonthly.com\/portmag\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/Gross-26.jpg 450w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 284px) 100vw, 284px\" \/>Dessert? Gross.<\/span><\/strong><\/h5>\n<p class=\"p3\"><span class=\"s1\">A\u00a0<\/span>new addition to the Portland food scene serves up one-of-a-kind desserts, signature cocktails, and a dash of facetiousness. <strong>Gross Confection Dessert Bar<\/strong> experiments with flavors, techniques, and textures on the corner of Middle and Exchange Street.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p4\"><span class=\"s1\">\u201cI was working at Fore Street when I came up with the idea for the name,\u201d says chef and owner <strong>Brant Dadaleares.<\/strong> \u201cI took photos of delicious food and posted them on social media with the sarcastic caption \u2018gross.\u2019 It became my moniker.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p4\"><span class=\"s1\">On a recent visit during happy hour, we pored over the dessert selection while sipping on prosecco (a $5 deal at happy hour). \u201cEvery week or so we switch up the menu,\u201d Dadaleares says, \u201cbut we have a few staples such as the Coconut Macaroon and the Brown Butter Panna Cotta. We\u2019re best known for the Gross Confection Mess.\u201d We ordered all three, along with the Pistachio Profiterole, and kicked off our indulgent banquet with another after-dinner snack\u2014the locally sourced Charcuterie Board. The pickles satisfied our daily vegetable requirement, right?<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p4\"><span class=\"s1\">We devour every last bite on all five plates. No regrets. My friend\u2019s still dreaming of the chewy Coconut Macaroon. \u201cI love the addition of passion fruit. It\u2019s just a bit sour to counter the sweet stuff.\u201d I\u2019ve set my sights on the Crumb Brule\u00e9 for next time. \u201cIt\u2019s always on the menu,\u201d Dadaleares says, \u201cbut we regularly change the flavors. Right now, it\u2019s a Lavender Chamomile Custard with Chocolate Crumbs.\u201d <\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p4\"><span class=\"s1\">\u201cPear and fall fruits will be coming in October,\u201d Dadaleares says. \u201cCustomers can look forward to cider and mead flavors, maybe something like a mead sabayon. I like pumpkin, too, so long as it\u2019s not in a latte.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<h5 class=\"p1\"><strong><span class=\"s1\">Chocoholics, rejoice!<\/span><\/strong><\/h5>\n<p class=\"p3\"><span class=\"s1\"><strong>The Bar of Chocolate<\/strong> on Wharf Street has been a dessert go-to for almost 15 years. It\u2019s the stop we make when we want to drink our sweets, preferably with a splash of booze. The dessert martinis ($11) come in many forms: Key Lime Pie, Espresso, Peanut Butter, or Chocolate Caramel with a Chocolate-Dipped Rim. If that\u2019s not your speed, they also serve reliable gourmet desserts such as the lauded Blueberry Pie, Carrot Cake, and Cr\u00e9me Brule\u00e9. \u201cThere aren\u2019t a lot of changes made to the menu. We already make about 20 different desserts (and whenever I remove one I hear about it), but we do make specials,\u201d says chef and owner <strong>Sarah Martin.<\/strong> \u201cI\u2019ll be making pumpkin cheesecakes this week. \u2018Tis the season!\u201d So order a slice of cake and raise your glass\u2014it\u2019s time to treat yourself.<\/span><\/p>\n<h5 class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\"><b>Sweet Mascots<\/b><\/span><\/h5>\n<p class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\"><b><br \/>\n<\/b><\/span><span class=\"s1\">D<\/span><span class=\"s1\">id you hear the buzz? It\u2019s coming from 390 Congress Street. <strong>The Press Hotel<\/strong>, in collaboration with <strong>Honey Exchange<\/strong><b>,<\/b> care for 4 beehives on their roof with panoramic views of Portland\u2014it\u2019s the first time I\u2019ve ever been envious of a bee. <\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p4\"><span class=\"s1\">\u201cI shouldn\u2019t, but I think of them as pets,\u201d says apiarist and executive chef <strong>Josh Berry.<\/strong> \u201cThe bees travel up to a two-mile radius around the hotel, collecting nectar from the cherry blossoms of City Hall, the flowers on Eastern Promenade, and the dandelions popping up through the pavement.\u201d The 80 to 85 pounds of honey collected this year provide the zing (not the sting) for some delicious desserts at the hotel\u2019s <strong>UNION<\/strong> restaurant. <\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p7\"><span class=\"s1\">C<\/span><span class=\"s1\">ase in point\u2014the Honeycomb Semifreddo. Made of white chocolate honeycomb with malted cream, vanilla crumble, mandarin orange gel, and bee pollen, this dish is the bee\u2019s knees. \u201cThe Semifreddo will be leaving the menu soon\u2014it\u2019s more of a summer dessert,\u201d says Berry. \u201cBut we will have another honey-based dessert to follow. I\u2019m not sure what yet, but it will be more appropriate to the season. We\u2019re waiting for inspiration to hit.\u201d <\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p4\"><span class=\"s1\">The dessert menu is short and sweet but curated to appeal to all tastes. \u201cThe Carrot Cake Swiss Roll is my favorite. It\u2019s the most savory of the desserts,\u201d says the Press Hotel\u2019s <strong>Karl McElligott<\/strong><b>.<\/b> The Union M&amp;Ms ($7)\u2014 a small plate of macarons, madelines, and meringues\u2014is just right to satisfy a sugar craving. \u201cThe whole dessert menu here is the best I\u2019ve had my entire life,\u201d says bartender <strong>Isaac Beaupre.<\/strong> \u201cI recommend the whipped cheesecake ($9). It\u2019s made from scratch and served deconstructed.\u201d Union restaurant is keeping dessert altogether local, and altogether sweet.<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Life\u2019s too short to save the sweets for last.<br \/>\nBy Sofia Voltin<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":16733,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[8,315],"tags":[475,474,472,471,473,478,405,479,126,476,477,480],"class_list":["post-16703","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-featured","category-hungry-eye","tag-bar-of-chocolate","tag-brant-dadaleares","tag-dessert","tag-dessertists","tag-gross-confection","tag-honey-exchange","tag-hungry-eye","tag-josh-berry","tag-portland","tag-sarah-martin","tag-the-press-hotel","tag-union"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.portlandmonthly.com\/portmag\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16703","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.portlandmonthly.com\/portmag\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.portlandmonthly.com\/portmag\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.portlandmonthly.com\/portmag\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.portlandmonthly.com\/portmag\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=16703"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/www.portlandmonthly.com\/portmag\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16703\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":18571,"href":"https:\/\/www.portlandmonthly.com\/portmag\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16703\/revisions\/18571"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.portlandmonthly.com\/portmag\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/16733"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.portlandmonthly.com\/portmag\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=16703"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.portlandmonthly.com\/portmag\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=16703"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.portlandmonthly.com\/portmag\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=16703"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}