Serendipity 3, which opened in May, is a chintzy, gone-to-Grandma’s fantasyland done up with baby pink walls, wainscoting and Tiffany-style lamps. With a menu roughly the size of a two-page newspaper spread, and waiters in matching hot pink and orange ties, the place is ripe for the tourist crowd; the American fare such as BBQ chicken and cheddar pizza ($12); lobster rolls ($19), and mac and cheese ($14) will sit nicely with pickier eaters. A few dishes, mainly seafood offerings such as crab cakes and President’s Lobster Pasta, were rolled out just for the D.C. location.

The reason people go to Serendipity, of course, is for the sweets, which fill the back page of the menu but were often the first things tables were ordering. (It’s legend that Andy Warhol was a fan of this sugar shop decades ago.) The restaurant’s $9-a-pop "frrrozen" hot chocolates -- billed as being loaded with 20 types of chocolate -- are creamy shakes topped with a four-inch mountain of whipped cream and two straws. And if plain old chocolate isn't your thing, there are a half-dozen other "frrrozen" options, including a peanut butter incarnation. There are also a slew of sundaes, including the red velvet sundae, which comes with a whole slice of cake nestled in ice cream, one made of deep fried Oreos, and the $77 D.C. Treasure Chest, which comes in its own edible box made of chocolate.



--Lavanya Ramanathan, May 31, 2011