7 Filipino Dessert Spots in SOCAL to Impress any Date
Nothing says “I love you” (or at the very least, “I’m into you”) than ending a perfect date night with a dessert spot perfectly crafted to suit your love’s sweet tooth. These Filipino inspired dessert spots in Southern California are sure to please as each provides the perfect combo of traditional flavors with new school vibes. Equally, these spots also work if you want to take yourself out on a date and up your self-love game. Bookmark this for Valentine’s Day!
Cafe 86 in Artesia (and other SoCal Locations) for their Ube Truffle & Ube Butter Bar
Starting off with a hometown favorite, we have Cafe 86, one of the most popular Filipino dessert spots in Southern California for as long as I can remember. If you haven’t met the pride and joy of ube desserts, Cafe 86 has an Ube Truffle dessert that will leave a lasting impression on your taste buds. Imagine a moist cake-pop filled with truffle mix, bursting with ube flavor, rolled in oreo crumbs, and decorated with white chocolate and coconut cream frosting. Now imagine what that would taste like and multiply that by 10 and that’s what Cafe 86’s Ube Truffle tastes like. And if Ube is your cup of tea, you need to try Cafe 86’s unsung hero, the Ube Butter Bar. Paying homage to Ube Halaya in the Philippines with a nice crust on the bottom that can be served warm for a soft texture or served cold to give it a little bite.
Learn more or vist them here or on IG @cafe_86.
2. Baked Dessert Bar in Chino Hills for their Halo Halo & Cupcakes
Of course everyone loves Baked’s Halo Halo, who wouldn’t enjoy some ube ice cream or buko pandan paired with leche flan or sweet corn, all covered in ice on a hot day? But today we are focusing on their endless variety of cupcakes. First and foremost, each of their cupcakes has amazing texture, the right amount of moist and decadence without being overwhelming. For me, my top 3 are the Ube Cupcake with leche flan topping, the Coconut Buko Pandan Cupcake containing the crunchy texture of coconut crisps on top, and my personal favorite Turon Cupcake, the caramelized flavor of turon, slightly oversweet, and the details of using the turon wrapper around the cupcake to give it that crunch with every bite. With over 30 different flavors of cupcakes listed on their website, I’m sure you’ll find one that speaks directly to your foodie soul.
Visit their website or IG to drool some more: @bakeddessertbar.
3. StarBread Bakery in Anaheim for their Senorita Bread
A San Francisco legend has finally made its way down to Southern California! The Anaheim location is the first of the Socal bakeries to open in 2020 with Carson and Chula Vista recently opening their locations earlier this year. StarBread Bakery is known for their senorita bread that is commonly described as extra buttery bread sprinkled with sugar that melts on top, reminding people of spanish bread that they enjoyed for merienda in the Philippines. These are so delicious that you can’t eat just one, which explains why they are constantly making fresh batches no matter what time you arrive.
Here’s their website and IG @starbread_bakery.
4. Fill Bakeshop in Costa Mesa for their Ube Mochi Cookies & Pandan Mochi Doughnuts
Fill Bakeshop was one of the first bakeries to bring Mochi Doughnuts to Southern California. For those of you who are not familiar with a Mochi Doughnut, it is your classic, doughy doughnut texture, combined with the chewy nature of the Japanese treat, mochi. Although they have other flavors that represent the Hawaiian islands, their Ube Shortcake Mochi cookie is the perfect ratio of crispy outside and chewy mochi on the inside, allowing the ube flavor to hit your pallet in 2 different ways. More recently, they came out with a holiday flavor, Pandan Mochi Doughnuts that will change your mind on what your favorite doughnut is.
Go already! Here’s their info and IG @fillbakeshop.
5. Kape Republik in Ontario Crinkles & Milk Tea
For any of my boba drinkers looking for something sweet, head to Kape Republik to try their famous purple rain, which is an ube flavored creamy milk tea to be served with or without boba. But if you’re looking for a little more caffeine for those long work from home days, try their Taro Cold Brew and treat yourself with a crinkle on top, it hits the spot everytime. Their crinkle game is top of the line, they have Filipino flavored crinkles like ube, buko pandan, and calamansi but their menu doesn’t stop there, red velvet, smores, cookies and creme, the list goes on and I’m hungry just thinking about it.
Plan your visit now and check out their website and IG here @kaperepublik.
6. Nova’s Grill in Covina for their Ube Turon
A hidden gem only known to locals in the Covina area, Nova’s Grill is commonly sought out for their amazing sisig and their iconic, boodle fight dinners (kamayan buffet style). However, their Ube Turon is the turon you didn’t know you’ve been craving! Nova’s grill takes the traditional turon, fried crispy spring roll with sweet banana in the middle and adds ube jam that really pops with flavor with every bite. Even if turon isn’t your preferred Filipino dessert, you need to give this a try, I’m willing to wager it could change your mind. Remember, tu-ron, don’t walk, because these are the best!
7. The Park’s Finest in Echo Park for Cornbread Bibingka
With over 2000+ reviews on Yelp, The Park’s Finest finishes out our list for top 6 Filipino dessert spots in LA. Located in Echo Park, The Park’s Finest draws on Filipino party food that was inspired by their adventures as kids. Although they are known for their meat dishes like coconut beef, pulled pork, and tri tip, their 2nd most reviewed item on Yelp is their cornbread bibingka dessert. They have taken the filipino delicacy of bibingka and fused it with traditional cookout cornbread using cornmeal and bits of corn. No single Yelp review can give you an idea of it’s all encapsulating mouth watering flavors, so we invite you to head on over as soon as possible and see for yourself. Extra points if you order some and have some sent to me!
Check out their site and IG @theparksfinest.