Best of the Gold Coast 2019: The Gold Coast’s best chocolate dishes and desserts to get you egg-cited for Easter
Chocolate as you know it is about to go next level. Best of the Gold Coast has rounded up 11 of the best chocolate desserts and dishes putting the humble Easter egg to shame.
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CHOCOLATE as you know it is about to go next level. Amber Macpherson has rounded up 10 of the best chocolate desserts and dishes putting the humble Easter egg to shame.
The Star Gold Coast
1 Casino Dr, Broadbeach
There’s chocolate and then there’s chocolate at Broadbeach’s The Star.
The restaurants at the flash casino don’t do things by halves, so when there’s a cocoa-infused dessert is on the menu you can guarantee it’s going to be decadent.
Harvest Buffet is celebrating chocolate month throughout April with 10 additional items including tarts, puddings, pavlova, mousse and a sweet pizza — all waiting to be dipped beneath the towering chocolate fountain.
“Guests can enjoy unlimited trips to Harvest Buffet’s infamous dessert station all year round,” Harvest executive chef Dustin Osuch says.
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“There’s fresh desserts, endless ice cream, and the two-metre-high chocolate fountains and interactive fondue dipping stations.”
Another chocolate masterpiece is Nineteen at The Star’s smoked white chocolate and oscietra caviar.
“This dessert is my interpretation of salted caramel ice cream: caramel from the unique chocolate and salt from the exquisite caviar,” Nineteen executive chef Kelvin Andrews says.
At Kiyomi, the Japanese restaurant’s Goma Street dessert has remained a permanent fixture on the menu for many years.
The signature sweet is a stack of tempered dark chocolate and caramelised white chocolate mouse served beside black sesame ice cream.
Be warned — your Lindt Bunny or Ferrero Rocher will never taste as fancy as it did before.
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White Rhino
55 Cavill Ave, Surfers Paradise
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Testing out new dessert recipes at this Surfers Paradise bar and restaurant could be the next best thing to working in Willy Wonka’s chocolate factory. White Rhino business partner Matthew Keegan says the chef and bar manager have a bit of fun coming up with new concoctions for special occasions. “They get together and start trialling and erroring, and try to come up with something unique,” Matthew says. While it sounds Easter themed, the White Rhino’s Egg Surprise is a permanent fixture on the menu featuring a pebble-looking egg encasing a hazelnut cake and coffee mousse, served beside berry coulis and chocolate soil. “It’s pretty instagrammable, they (customers) want to take photos of cracking it open and seeing what’s inside,” Matt says. White Rhino is also serving a creme egg shot, fluffy bunny cocktail and Easter Bunny’s dessert during the holidays.
Cowch Dessert Bar
Pacific Fair, Hooker Blvd, Broadbeach Waters
Broadbeach dessert bar Cowch has created a whole Easter menu, because why should children have all the fun? Cowch owner Arif Memis says a top pick is the creme egg pancakes dish. “We love Easter so of course we had to do a limited edition Easter menu,” Arif says. “Our creme egg pancakes (are) chocolate pancakes layered with caramel and milk chocolate, topped with white chocolate and Creme Egg ice cream. (It’s) served with an Easter egg filled with mini marshmallows, mini Cadbury Creme Eggs and crispy speckled eggs.” While you’re at it, you can wash it down with a Cowch bunny shake — a milkshake served in a chocolate rabbit.
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Oh My, Waffle
6/1837 Gold Coast Hwy, Burleigh Heads
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If it’s not drizzled in Whittaker’s melted chocolate it’s not from Oh My, Waffle. The Burleigh Heads dessert shop has released a limited edition waffle stack ahead of Easter, featuring hot cross bun ice cream, sticky date sauce, toffee shards, Easter eggs and — you guessed it — lashing of melted chocolate. “It just tastes like Easter,” co-owner Jess Hannagan says. “The sticky date sauce goes really nice with the hot cross bun ice cream. We love when there’s new occasions that come up so we can play around with waffle ideas. We did this one last year but we’ve made it bigger and better.”
Lik Lik Lik Gelato
2/2221 Gold Coast Highway, Mermaid Beach
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There’s nothing basic about Lik Lik Lik Gelato’s chocolate ice cream — just count its medals and trophies. “The gelato chocolate has won all of the awards,” co-owner Steve Forbes says. “It’s much smoother than any others, it has the right balance between not being too rich or too mild.” If you’ve never tried Lik Lik Lik’s gelato Steve says the chocolate-based flavours are perfect for getting excited for Easter, and there’s even a flavour for your four-legged friend to get them in the spirit, too. “We sell doggie ice cream and we have a range of it with an Easter egg on top. It’s called ‘eggstravaganza’ and it’s coconut based.”
Poppy’s Chocolates
Robina Town Centre, Robina Town Centre Drive, Robina
Poppy’s Chocolates manager Amanda Holland says Easter is always a drawcard for business for the Gold Coast chocolate factory. “We’ve just signed up quite a few companies over Easter who’ve tried our new products,” Amanda says. “We get really egg-cited.” Among the Easter bunnies and hampers, Amanda says the team are thrilled to offer products in a new flavour of chocolate. “Ruby is the new fourth chocolate (flavour) of the world,” Amanda says. “Our new ruby bunny is one of our exciting projects. It’s got a very citrusy taste to it but it’s still quite a smooth chocolate, it’s really nice.”
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Mamasan Kitchen and Bar
3 Oracle Boulevard, Broadbeach
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In Mamasan’s four years of operation one thing has remained consistent — its chocolate brownie. The pleasurable pudding has become an icon of Broadbeach as much as the towering Oracle buildings or Dracula’s Cabaret, and after one bite you’ll know why. It’s next-level rich, chewey and gooey, served with toasted sesame ice cream, salted caramel fortune cookie and chocolate and candle nut soil. There’s pops of sweetness balanced by salt, with the soft scoops of sesame ice cream complemented by the crunch of caramel cookies. Don’t flinch at the $23 price tag — it’s a brownie to remember and worth every penny.
Creative Pizza
7/145 Pappas Way, Carrara
This pizzeria gives you permission to eat dessert first. Its range of sweet pizzas come topped with all kinds of confectionery but owner Ron Rezuk says the Valentino, sprinkled with chocolate, strawberry and fudge sauce, is the winner with customers. “Who doesn’t like Nutella and chocolate fudge and strawberries? he says. “It’s beautiful. They’re a unique dessert as a pizza. They’re really good cold too, they’re like a danish.” Creative Pizza is open throughout Easter with no public holiday surcharge, and will be offering its latest creation to the masses — any of your favourite Creative Pizza pasta served atop a pizza base.
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Paddock Bakery
20 Hibiscus Haven, Miami
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Why nibble on chocolate when you could drink it straight from the glass? Paddock Bakery’s frozen hot chocolate is a delectable drink ideal for sipping on a warm autumn day. It’s made with five different types of chocolate, including a secret Lindge fudge recipe, before being blended with ice and a dash of milk and served in a decorated cup. “To finish things off the glass is rimmed with Nutella, dipped in marbled chocolate shards, topped with vanilla bean cream and then for the final ‘hoorah’ we top it with bits of our famous Lindt chocolate brownies,” Paddock Bakery owner Chloe Watts says. “It’s refreshing, indulgent and damn delicious.”
Bambino Ristorante
117 Ashmore Road, Benowa
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Chocolate and spaghetti aren’t two things that typically go together but Bambino Ristorante owner Tarscha De Vito says the flavours come as a nice surprise. “What you find is it’s not what you expect,” Tarscha says. “A lot of people order it thinking it’s super sweet, but by nature it’s not a super sweet dessert. The spaghetti is made with chocolate through it and it’s the sauce that makes it sweet.” The house made spaghetti is drizzled in chocolate, hazelnut and caramel sauce and topped with berries and vanilla mascarpone, or ice cream for the little ones. “It goes really nice with a coffee or espresso martini or a really sweet drink for the kids,” Tarscha says.
Baked at Ancora
118 Wharf St, Tweed Heads
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Baked At Ancora’s cookie creations never cease to amaze, and its combo dessert biscuit is no exception. The S’Mores cookie comes with gooey marshmallow and a warm chocolate centre, with chunks of Lindt dark chocolate, crushed Graham crackers and “molten” marshmallow for extra decadence. If you can stand to torture yourself a little, check out Baked At Ancora’s Instagram for a slow motion video of one of these badboys being pried open and its melted insides sliding away. They’re baked fresh every day so make sure to arrive early or you’ll miss out.
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