I recently got a chance to sample Black Pearl Tarts at an event that I attended and what can I say…read more-- I'm hooked! Everything is tastier when it looks good and is bite sized and this my friend is a check, check and a check! The owner elevates tarts into one sophisticated bite using seasonal ingredients and beautiful flourishes like sprinkled covered marshmallows or edible flowers. If sugar ain't your thing you can check out their savory flavors as well -- sweet potato hummus? Yes please! The crust is hearty and the perfect foil to the sweet, sweet insides. Perfect for cocktail parties and they take orders online so you never have to talk to a human person (sorry, I'm an anti social hobbit who just wants to live on tarts). Definitely check this local business out!

Black Pearl recently provided red wine and fruit compote tarts topped with sweet goat cheese and…read morepoached pears for an event I attended. I was stunned. It's actually worth talking about their appearance before I get to the experience of eating them: On the table, their products look elegant--striking without being intrusive or gaudy. They set a great mood. These are some of the best-presenting tarts I've ever seen. I can't vouch for their full line of products, as the only tart on offer was the Mulled Fruit & Goat Cheese, but it was shockingly well-thought-out: Every texture at play in the tart--firm, crumbly shell; jammy compote; smooth sweet cheese; crisp poached pears--kept its distinct profile throughout the evening. Coming to them later in the night didn't result in a soggy crust, limp fruit or runny compote, and the textures recombining in your mouth were a delight. Of course texture doesn't mean much if it isn't backed up by flavor, and so I saved the best for last. As I mentioned above, it's obvious that everything about this dessert was carefully considered, and considered with excellent judgment, at that. Every element was in balance, announcing itself clearly on the tongue without overwhelming the other notes: The mild cookie-ness of the crust, the deep mulled wine in the compote, the sweet tang of the goat cheese--this was a joy to eat. Full disclosure: Black Pearl is operated by Christina Marie. I do know Christina personally--we have a number of close mutual friends, though I don't know her terribly well. I'm writing this review because Black Pearl is a local start-up whose food really impressed me, not as a personal favor to someone I know.

Really high-quality and thoughtfully curated flavors…read more When we ordered the banana cream, they had to check if it was still in stock which was a cheeky sign on how tasty the donuts are. Our donut was light and fluffy, with a creme infused with real banana. You can tell that they are being thoughtful on their approach to artisanal donuts, and it really shows up in how they elevate this classic dessert. Its rare to find donuts that balance complex flavors, sweetness level, and good crumb but all of those things are what make it distinct fom others, especially chain restaurant donuts. Of course, these are probably made the day of and ours was a large and substantial size. Its definitely a treat-yourself type of moment to commit to the price point, but we weren't disappointed. My take on high‑price‑point food in Union Market is simple: that's exactly where you'll find it. So once you let go of that once you enter, you have a more pleasureable experience by allowing yourself to indulge and try to find the thing that will really fulfill you. And they did that for me. Thank you beautiful ladies who helped me select my donut!

Not $60 doughnuts .... And also described as not dreadful??…read more cinnamon struseul was best of the bunch and was still just okay. But wow were the rest disappointing (super frustrating bc they look very pretty). All of them felt old and dry, the buttermilk glazed (which tasted like it had citrus glaze icing) and the citrus cake (way dense) were the driest. Chocolate ganache doesn't even taste like chocolate more chemical than anything. Service was extremely slow when all they had to do was place doughnuts in a box -- also seemed like customers were an inconvenience. Overall absolutely go buy other doughnuts. Don't waste your money, product to cost ratio is 1 star.

My friends and I went here for The Set, an R&B party that we all enjoyed! The party did not start…read moretil 10p that night and to start with parking, there is a garage locally that you can park at. It costs $40 for a flat rate and that was that; the walk in took maybe 4 minutes. I also wanted to highlight their parking situation because I frequently have a lot of parking issues when trying to access DC. But we walked inside, had an easy access to the event, and as the entered.. the vibes welcomed us! Great dj, great drinks, and great friends! I think I saw that these R&B events are monthly or continuously scheduled out, so if you love the vibes, go to Ivy City!

FOOD POISONING !!! do not eat here . I hate having to leave a review like this, but I feel it's…read moreimportant to share my experience. On July 2, around 3:00 p.m., a friend and I visited this restaurant for lunch. I ordered the fried chicken sandwich without the bun, and it came with a side of fries. Everything seemed normal at the time, but later that day I became extremely ill. I have since been diagnosed with food poisoning, and more than 48 hours later I am still dealing with the symptoms. Based on the timing of my illness and my medical evaluation, I believe this meal was the source of my food poisoning. This experience has been physically exhausting and has completely changed my confidence in eating here. Food safety should always be a top priority, and unfortunately my experience has left me very concerned. I sincerely hope the restaurant reviews its food handling and preparation practices so no one else has to go through what I've experienced. Based on my experience, I cannot recommend dining here.

Tried some of the flavors they were very sweet. We just got cookies and cream which was their best…read moreseller. It was perfect for the hot day but my favorite was their super thin snickerdoodle cookie! It was soo amazing !!

Nice ice cream, and good variety! I've enjoyed their ice cream sandwiches especially. Try to catch…read morethem on a day they have cinnamon rolls especially!!

The gelato here is great. This location usually has the exclusive flavors. I tried the butterfinger…read moresoft serve and the Yellow x Dolcezza pistachio sundae last year. The pistachio sundae was amazing. I hope they bring that one back! I love that they use locally sourced ingredients and have a portion of their menu focused on seasonal ingredients. It's also cool that they collaborate with local restaurants to come up with very unique items. The H street location is conveniently located between Whole Foods and Solid State Bookstore. I usually stop here after grabbing groceries. They share a space with The Apollo apartment building so you can sit in the apartment's lobby, which is beautifully decorated, or sit inside Dolcezza itself. The ceiling in this place is stunning. The staff will gladly give you samples of the gelato if you're stumped on what to order.

I had a great experience here and shoutout to Jon for making the experience so easy. I was able to…read moretry so many options. The Red Velvet Cake gelato is my favorite and I left with a pint of it. They have March specials going on: Banana Foster, Soft Serve Matcha, White Rabbit Sundae, & Grapefruit Campari.

I can always appreciate non-ice cream dessert establishments in the DMV. Although I find their pie…read moreslices to be steep in price, I find their assortment of flavors superior compared to other establishments. The service here is very fast and the staff members are always friendly. I also forget how big the establishment is in the inside... it's a lot bigger than one would expect. In terms of flavors, I am a sweets guy. I personally don't recommend the Berger flavor as it's a flavor you'll either love or hate. But honestly the pie itself is great. Support local businesses!

great pie and music…read more Cool H street spot. ..............................................................................................................................................................................................................................

Always try to get birthday cakes from here. Flavor is always on point, frosting is not insanely…read moresweet, and I find that the cake is relatively light (I.e. not dense). There are an assortment of other desserts, as well.

I am from Scottsdale and was coming into town for my son's wedding. This was just a low key civil…read moreceremony before the big bash. I searched Yelp extensively and settled on the bakers lounge. I called and spoke to the owner Katherine, explaining the situation. I told her that my you son and his husband have sophisticated palates and I left everything up to her. Katherine took care of everything and delivered the cake to the restaurant we were dining at. After dinner the beautiful cake appeared at our table and the grooms were really surprised. We have eaten a lot of really good cake but this cake was extraordinary. Pistachio cake with homemade raspberry and the most luscious buttercream. It was the perfect end to a lovely day. Thanks Katherine for making the day even more special

Anybody who knows me knows I love a good cookie. I was on my way out when I saw Bee J's Cookies. I…read morehopped in line immediately. There was only one person in front of me but the transaction was SO SLOW. I patiently waited my turn but a quick acknowledgment or eye contact from the person at the register would have gone such a long way. I ordered a chocolate chip cookie for myself and a snickerdoodle for my daughter. Both cookies were tasty. I had my eyes on the s'mores cookie so that'll be at the top of my list on the next trip.

Third stop on the cookie excursion in D.C. I took a chocolate chip cookie and a snickerdoodle…read morecookie with me. Both were a let down. The snickerdoodle was okay, but I have had far better. The flavors didn't come through for both cookies. The chocolate chip cookie was flat also and missing the key ingredients that make a chocolate chip cookie great like brown sugar. I didn't think it would be this challenging to find a good solid cookie.

Amazing cookies and ice cream that Cookie Monster loves. I used to get them by my work at the US…read moreDepartment of Education which was a job that sadly came to an end due to the RIFs. The staff was nice to give me and my wife a free ice cream cookie sandwich to share, either due to me sharing that or the fact there was a family picnic at the park next to this food hall. We ended up getting their cookie socks as a thank you. Looking forward to returning here and/or visiting their other locations or trucks.

Great customer service. It's in like a mini food hall, ambiance okay I guess. Cookies are good as…read morehell, but I had a chocolate chip cookie ice cream sand which and one snicker doodle. The cookies again are good, but ice cream is BAD, soft serve. So it makes it almost impossible to enjoy without it melting, I was left with melted ice cream. Will go back for cookies online. If you want a decent sandwich, go elsewhere.

We had dinner planned nearby and I saw this place on the map. There's a $20 reservation charge but…read moreit gets applied to the final bill! Definitely recommend reserving since the space is smaller so walkins seem harder to grab. We were sat at the bar and I loved the space and decor. The lighting was really nice and cozy. The staff were really helpful with recommending items. I gave a flavor profile I was looking for and he recommended lights of night market Light of the night market: if you're a coconut water of pandan fan, this cocktail was so good and so smooth. It was really refreshing and had a nice Smokey flavor as well. The aftertaste was of the pandan and coconut and it was sweet without being sweet at the same time. Totally recommend to anyone looking for a "sweet" drink that isn't also overly sweet or syrupy A travete te te is a great punchy tart cocktail with guava as the main flavor. This one was really summery and paired really well with the shaved ice (also guava) The star for us was the baked Alaska. Initially the photos online is what drew me to this and I was okay if it was gimmicky but omg this has genuinely been one of the best desserts I've had in a really long time. The outside is toasted marshmallows and inside is really delicate shaved iced with guava syrup. At the bottom there's matcha cream with like a chunky strawberry jam and coconut jellies. Literally kept getting better as we ate. I usually find marshmallows too sweet but paired with the rest of the dessert it was all so nicely balanced. Would 10/10 come back just for this.

Dare I say... my favorite cocktail bar I've tried in DC in the past couple of years, and a spot I'd…read moreabsolutely be a regular at if I lived in the area? Providencia has been on my to-try list forever, originally recommended by a bartender friend ages ago, and it wasn't until a recent trip that I finally was able to work it into my schedule to come for pre-dinner drinks and light bites. The spot is tucked away in a back alley off H Street, and honestly I'm not sure I would've found it if my Uber hadn't dropped me at the door. Reservations are required and you have to put down a $10 nonrefundable deposit that goes toward your bill, which makes sense because the space is small. Ideal for 1-3 people, not a group spot. The Salvadoran/Taiwanese flavor combo infused throughout this menu is its calling card. It's such a unique flavor combination and genuinely something I haven't seen before, and the menu does a beautiful job of letting both cuisines shine without one overpowering the other. The drinks are inventive but actually well-balanced, and the food does the same thing in small, snack-y portions perfect for pairing with tasty cocktails. My (kind of indulgent, but well-worth it) pre-dinner drinks order: - Lights of the Night Market (Ford's gin, Mal Bien mezcal, genepy, pandan, coconut). A great intro to how well the Salvadoran/Taiwanese flavors play together. The pandan is so pleasant here without being overpowering. - Run Bing with Nai Nai (Salvadoran white rum, Nardini rabarbaro, Licor 43, mazapán, oolong tea, lemon, milk, served with a little mazapán candy on the side). Nutty, beautifully balanced, sweeter than I normally go for but so unique and well-made that I didn't mind it at all. - The Big Chip and Salsa (tomatillo salsa, matcha chip): So fun and so tasty, a great small bite if you don't want real food. - Roasted eggplant pupusa (eggplant, squash blossom, gruyère, tomatillo). SO delicious. A really lovely mix of salty, tangy, and sweet! I'd come back just for this. - Plantain & hojicha tiramisu. Looked like a work of art, incredibly tasty but not heavy. The hojicha flavor is lovely and light and works so well with the plantain. It doesn't taste overly banana-y, which is always a worry of mine with plantain desserts. Overall, Providencia is doing something genuinely different flavor-wise than any other cocktail bar in DC right now and doing it extremely well. The cocktails are creative without feeling gimmicky, the food is thoughtful and delicious, and the whole experience feels intimate, cozy, laid back, and personable. The staff was so kind and helpful. Absolutely worth seeking out, and one of the first places I'd send someone looking for a great cocktail bar in DC right now.