[Photo: Kathy YL Chan]

La Fonda del Sol's pastry chef Casey Leever debuts her Cocktail Inspirations today: three cocktails in dessert form. It's never too early in the week to drink dessery. The "Dark & Stormy" is tucked in the center, a scoop of heady rum ice cream in a glass of spicy housemade ginger soda. To the right is a "Frozen Margarita" interpreted in the form of sorbet, the silver tequila and lime of equal intensity. The dessert is delivered with little straw and spoons to the table—so pick up that straw and stick it deep into the Bourbon Vanilla Milkshake, generous on the liquor. Vanilla ice cream meets Maker's Mark in a shot-sized serving. Makes me feel less guilty about drinking on a Monday. What is not to love?

While you're there, don't miss a plate of the Buñuelos ($9), four to an order. Heavenly light, closer to a fried choux pastry than a classic doughnut dough, the warm fritters are accompanied by a trio of dipping sauces. That's salty caramel finished with Maldon at the bottom, a silky passion fruit speckled with crushed pink peppercorns, and an warm orange and dark chocolate dip at the top. What you don't finish by dipping the fitters, you'll want to spoon up and leave nothing to waste. These fritters remind me a lot of the ones from Aldea, where they're called Sonhos, or "little dreams." If those are little dreams, then these are big ones—but with that perfect whisper of a shell, the fleeting crisp of the cinnamon-sugar dusted exterior.

La Fonda del Sol

MetLife Building, East 44th Street and Vanderbilt Avenue, New York, NY 10166 (map)
212-867-6767
patinagroup.com

About the author: Originally from Honolulu, Kathy YL Chan writes A Passion For Food, where she chronicles her eats and travels adventures between Hawai'i, New York and beyond. She firmly believes that there is always room for dessert.