Mastering Dessert at Mastro's

Mastro's Steakhouse

633 Anton Blvd.

Costa Mesa, CA 92626

Okay, yes, this is a review of Mastro's Steakhouse, but you will not see any meat in this review. That was not our purpose on this trip. The steak aroma that wafted through the air was definitely intoxicating, but we had just come from another restaurant and were only here for dessert. Well, not just any dessert, but the dessert we have been hearing about for some time now: the Mastro's Signature Warm Butter Cake.

We got to Mastro's at about 7 on a Sunday night. We did not have a reservation but planned to sit in the bar area. We were directed down the hallway and found an empty table in the darkened lounge. They had a couple of musicians playing hits from Billy Joel, Hall and Oates, and others. The vibe here was of a fancy restaurant, but maybe because we were in the bar area, it seemed less stuffy.

I was surprised to learn that Mastro's has only been around since 1999. It seems like I have been hearing about this place forever. Started in Scottsdale, Arizona, this very respected steakhouse has grown to nine locations, with a tenth opening up in Palm Desert later this fall. OC is blessed to have two locations of Mastro's, with the other in nearby Newport Beach.

Just because we were here for dessert did not mean that I had to forgo a chance to have a birthday cocktail. I ordered a Rum and Coke ($8.00). I usually do not show the drinks I have on this blog, but this one I thought was unique because they gave me this tiny bottle of soda along with my rum. It is very rare that a place does not shoot the soda out of a gun. Of course, I only used less than half of the Coke.

We were here for the cake, but Katie also wanted some Chocolate Gelato ($9) for dessert. I mean, who could have cake without ice cream? Okay, technically gelato, but you get the point. This came with three scoops of the delicious, light gelato. The chocolate was prevalent here, and Katie called this gelato "superior."

We were here because of the Mastro's Signature Warm Butter Cake ($14). This picture does not do this dessert justice. Biting into this is just like how winning the lottery would feel. A loss of your senses, a feeling of an out-of-body experience, then the realization that this is real life. This butter cake was all that it was hyped up to be. This was served with vanilla ice cream on top and some assorted fruit around the outside. The cake was mildly crunchy on the outside and warm and buttery on the inside. Kind of tasted like a very rich Twinkie, but much better. The only thing that would have made this greater would have been more ice cream on it. Be warned, this is very rich, though. I almost ate this all myself and paid the price, but it was worth it. Get this cake!

If we did not have enough dessert, our server brought out this complimentary chocolate sin cake because Katie had mentioned it was my birthday. I wonder what people around us must have thought with all of the desserts cluttering our table? Anyway, this cake was moist and predictably had a rich chocolate taste. This is the cake to get if you are into chocolate. The next day, I shared this with my parents, and it was still moist. Just in case this was not rich enough, they gave us a plate of real whipped cream to top this with. With all of our desserts, we did not need it.

I know this is a dessert review about a place famous for its steaks, but the desserts also need to be acknowledged here. Even if you are too full from eating steak here, leave room for dessert. You will be sorry if you miss the butter cake.

Out of five Arabian horses (because Mastro's was founded in Scottsdale, home of the aptly named Scottsdale Arabian Horse show, which has been held since 1955 and draws thousands of visitors to the area), five being best to zero being worst, Mastro's Steakhouse gets 3.5 Arabian horses.

For more information on Mastro's Steakhouse, click here:http://www.mastrosrestaurants.com/