The Winner of The Best Of Desserts in Coral Springs: Runyons Chocolate Basket!

Posted on February 11th, 2017 by
The Champ...Runyons Chocolate Basket!

The Champ…Runyons Chocolate Basket!

The Winner of The Best Of Dessert in Coral Springs:  Runyons Chocolate Basket!   (as voted on by the Dan I Cook Food Agents, www.tasteofcoralsprings.org and www.coralspringsfoodies.com)

L to R, John Arnold (Taste of Coral Springs), The Talent, Ryan O'Connor ( Owner Runyons), Kevin O''Connor ( Owner Runyons), Joe Kelleher (Manager), Micheal Brothers (Chef). Not pictured Jeff Rosen (Coral Springs Foodie.com)

L to R, John Arnold (Taste of Coral Springs), The Talent, Ryan O’Connor ( Owner Runyons), Kevin O”Connor ( Owner Runyons), Joe Kelleher (Manager), Micheal Brothers (Chef). Not pictured Jeff Rosen (Coral Springs Foodie.com)

This was very close! I have at least 50 Dan I Cook Food Agents but everyone couldn’t participate for various reasons. Some started a weight loss challenge, some don’t like desserts, one was in the hospital and two work for one of the restaurants nominated in the top three. I also removed myself from being a judge, too, because I hang out at Runyons and my daughter works there. I want this to be legit and it was.

The final results were as follows:

Runyons Chocolate Basket:  10 votes
Cherry Smash Sundae:  7 votes
Melting Pot Chocolate Fondue:  7 votes

Cherry Smash Sundae

Cherry Smash Sundae

My Opinion

I tried all three desserts, even though, my vote was not counted. My opinion on all three are as follows:

Cherry Smash Sundae: If you are a kid this would be your #1 pick. I could picture myself as a twelve year old walking in here with my parents and just being in awe. All the cool stuff to look at and then the dessert would be delivered and I would have said, “Oh Boy!”, before diving in for a spoonful. I can see why they were tied with Melting Pot because the Sundae is damn delicious! Plus it has a nostalgic vibe while you are eating it, you just feel like a kid again.

Melting Pot Dippers

Melting Pot Dippers

Fondue!

Fondue!

Melting Pot: Transcends childhood and puppy love of Cherry Smash…It has this “I’m in my twenties/thirties, got a little cash in my pocket, and I’m trying to impress the person I love” feeling to it. To me this is a damn sexy dessert! Dipping all these cool dessert items in melted chocolate just makes me smile. You know if you can make it to the dessert without being full, your night should end on a high note…wink, wink.

The Winner! Runyons Chocolate Basket

The Winner! Runyons Chocolate Basket

Runyons: I’ve never had this dessert before. When I saw it delivered to our table, I was like “This dessert is beautiful!”. I’m not a fan of strawberries but my wife is and she loved it. As I was eating this, I realized that these three desserts have taken me thru a trip of my life. This Chocolate Basket clearly stated that I have arrived to a great place in my life! Mature, seasoned, and blessed that I can have such an elegant dessert with people I love. It’s a perfect dessert if you had a nice steak for dinner because it’s a relatively light dish. Even though the votes were close, it didn’t surprise me that Runyons came out on top.

Who Would I have Voted For?

I would have voted for Melting Pot. The reason is simple, I like the choices of dippers. It would be hard to recreate this dessert at home.

The Cherry Smash Sundae:  If I could find the right ice cream, I could make at home.

The Chocolate Basket:  While unique and beautiful, I really don’t like strawberries.

There is a reason why it was so close with the voting. The winner could have easily changed if more men, women, or even children voted. Each have different palates. I suggest you do your own taste contest with your family and see which one comes out on top.

What the Agents Said

Agent Scott Rosen, owner of CoralSpringsFood.com and Facebook Group, said, “My wife and I picked the Cherry Smash Sundae because it has a great flavor and nice texture with the chocolate pieces and cherries. We believe desserts need to be fun as well. It was a fun dessert to eat with amazing flavors. Loved it!”

Agent Dave Lesser said, “Dude it was tough, but presentation was the deciding factor for me. Taste, they were all freaking delicious….Runyons took my first place with Melting Pot a very close second.”

VIP Judges, Alli Kai, Proprietor of Carrabbas in Coral Springs, and three of her staff all voted for the Cherry Smash Sundae. Team Carrabbas stated this about Cherry Smash, ” Flavor of the ice cream was out of this world and we’re not huge cherry fans. The ice cream was not too sweet and was very creamy. Great tasting hot fudge and whipped cream. Atmosphere made it even better!”

Agent Linda Siegel was probably the most thorough with her review/judging. She and her husband picked the Melting Pot and said this, “Loved the upscale dippers (cream puffs, coated marshmallows, rice krispie treats, fresh raspberries). The service, presentation and ambiance were wonderful. This was our clear winner, it was the best tasting of the three desserts.”.

The Video

I was blessed that Videographer and Food Agent Julie Blanco Conroy owner of www.inanyevent.video came on board to videotape four on my Food Agents sampling the desserts. The Food Agents featured are Renee West, Michele Floro Helburg, Nicole Jordison Vrendenburg and Colby Vrendenburg. The video is AWESOME and  I hope you enjoy it!

Verdict

I want to thank all my agents for taking the time out of their busy schedules to sample each dessert and spend money in the City Coral Springs, Fl. Y’all are awesome! Congratulations again to Runyons!!!!!

I can say this about the way I run my Best Of Series for Coral Springs…this is as fair as it gets. Having paying customers decide who has the best product by actually going to the business and judging is such a beautiful thing. Plus, it’s very dear to my heart. I am probably the only blogger who does this ‘traveling judging”-gig in the United States. I’m very proud that I started this almost three years ago with another blogger, but this was my idea and I’m damn proud of it. Sorry, as I pat myself on the back, LOL, but I’m a proud papa!

I want to thank Nickolette Hernandez-Mottola Photography for taking the pictures of the winner.

Please don’t forget to support the Taste of Coral Springs on Tuesday, February 28th 2017 from 6:30p- 9:00p. All proceeds go to local charities so but your tickets now! Please visit their website for more information www.tasteofcoralsprings.org

Lastly, please visit the Children’s Tumor Foundation at www.ctf.org to educate yourself on this worthy cause. If you cannot afford to make a donation please share the website with your friends.

If you hit any of these three businesses please tell them Dan I  Cook and his agents sent you and Stay Hungry!

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