Max Brenner - Part Two

I dropped by Max Brenner with a few friends for the whole chocolate experience. At 9:30 p.m., there was a 20-minute wait, but it quickly passed as we admired the offerings in the chocolate shop. I noticed an all-purpose product called Fresh - it's a fondue, mousse or hot chocolate depending on how you prepare it.

With Usher playing on the stereo and attractive couples sharing desserts, Max Brenner seemed like a real hotspot on its second day. We were led to a table upstairs and given the good news that everything we ordered would be discounted by 10% due to the grand opening.

There were two menus: sweet and savory. The savory menu consisted of quiche, sandwiches and salads, but we were really there for the sweet. Max Brenner offers chocolate in every conceivable permutation from the sublime to the insane. There are bagels filled with melted chocolate bars, warm chocolate soups, chocolate pizzas with grilled marshmallows, chocolate "messes" which you lift out of the pan with your spatula.

We opted for a peanut butter crepe, a chocolate-orange hot chocolate, a dark Venezuelan cocoa served in a "hug mug," and a melted chocolate heart cake. The chocolate-orange hot chocolate was exquisite - creamy and not too sweet, with a slight hint of citrus (if a little less than hot). The dark cocoa also suffered from a lukewarm temperature.

The paper-thin peanut butter crepe arrived with a small vial of peanut butter sauce, and the melted chocolate heart cake came with extra chocolate sauce, a dish of strawberries and vanilla ice cream topped with chocolate swirls. The rich cake was delicious but was not very warm, so the unmelted center had the consistency of frosting instead of syrup.

Judging from how packed the place was, I doubt anyone noticed these small shortcomings. I foresee a Max Brenner in every neighborhood.

Max Brenner: 841 Broadway, (212) 388-0030. Open at 5:30 p.m. for the next couple weeks; hours will then be extended.