Second Helping

Make no mistake: Devil’s Food Bakery is a dangerous place, a place firmly dedicated to helping those with a weakness for the venal wrongs of gluttony to pave their way to hell with pastry. With real lemon curd, with Devonshire cream, fondant, butter cream and mousse. With profiteroles with handmade banana ice cream and banana-caramel sauce. And with doughnuts, especially the signature Devil’s Food doughnut: as big as the spare tire on a clown car, as dark as a black hole, and with the same kind of inescapable gravity for those who venture too close. Since I raved about the five-year-old bakery-turned-coffeehouse-turned-full-fledged eatery late last year (“A Hell of a Place,” November 18, 2004), pastry chef/owner Gerald Shorey has acquired both a liquor license and chef Michael Degenhart, which makes Devil’s Food as deliciously dangerous after the sun goes down as it had been during the day. (Both the wine and dinner menus change as often as the mood of the kitchen.) Whether you stop in for breakfast, lunch or dinner, you’ll find cuisine that’s cafe-casual with a devilish twist of French nouvelle.