Ice cream might be the planet’s most favorite dessert. As the
famous the maxim goes, everyone screams for ice cream! However,
one ice cream in specific is entertaining the fancy of rich foodies in
New York City. What is so unique about this frozen delight?
Now how much would you pay for a standard ice cream sundae?
Good question, huh. Well, a hotel in New York is serving its
customers up to one for 1,500 dollars sundae they called “Bear
Extraordinaire.” In 2018, a Japanese Peruvian pastry-chef based
in NYC, Rosario Wakabayasahi uncovered an ice cream sundae,
ranking among the planet’s most extraordinary and expensive
desserts!
The famous “Bear Extraordinaire” launched at the fashionable and
chic Baccarat Hotel in Manhattan, NY, in 2018. The 300 dollars
sundae is featuring a champagne sauce, black truffle, and an edible
gold leaf served in a 1,200 dollars crystal and porcelain bowl
shaped like a bear. The purchase of the uniquely made vessel is
voluntary to customers.
The ice cream is served in a white chocolate shell sitting atop a
mix of cocoa nibs, dark chocolate and black truffle. It is always
made in-house from vanilla beans, which are imported from
Madagascar. The edible silver and gold leafing decorates the shell
together with hibiscus champagne sauce as well as hand-painted
strokes of colored cocoa butter. It is also topped off with thin-
spur sugar threads along with appetizing flowers and fondant
butterflies.
Some patrons said it was an exquisite multi-sensory experience.
Not to mention, it was visually appealing with a tempting aroma
and heavenly flavor. A native of Peru who studied at Le Cordon
Bleu culinary school in Lima, Wakabayashi spent vacations in
Japan along with her father’s family. Thus, she landed her very first
work in a Japanese bakery in NYC.
The chef said that she learned a huge deal about Japanese culture
and desserts. Her recent creation put emphasis on the art of
presentation as well as balancing the high-end ingredients. It was
known that the quality of the superior ingredients and the level
of artistry, which goes into making the dessert, dictated its price
point.
The most extravagant element, nonetheless, is the vessel in which
the dessert is presented. It’s a transparent Baccarat “Zoo Bear”
crystal blower. It is composed of a crystal cover and a porcelain-
based together with a bear-shaped handle. The bowl cost 1,200
dollars, and diners could bring it with them as a souvenir. The best
thing here is that diners could also get a chance to order a cheap
sort of that ice cream sundae without the crystal container for only
300 dollars.
According to the hotel, they have been testing it for a while now.
That’s why they took it so long. They were motivated by the
Baccarat brand and by the colors, yellow, green and red. Thus, they
came up with the concept of the chocolate shell with such colors,
and the one people see in the Grand Salon. They also have the
Baccarat butterflies, which also inspired this expensive dessert.
“Bear Extraordinaire” debuted in the middle of July 2018.