Lemon Cake & Lavender Ice Cream at Plums Cafe

Jessica Ford

​Plums Cafe in Costa Mesa draws in a steady crowd with its Northwest-inspired menu and first-rate wine selection. In the smallest section of the menu you will find just two dessert choices--but one is so good you won't want anything else.

Even when crammed into a to-go container, the lemon cake with lavender ice cream begs to be devoured before the rest of the meal.

The lemon cake manages to be moist, full of flavor, and bold enough to stand out even when smothered in ice cream. The ice cream has only a faint taste of lavender--which is all you'd ever really want--and is topped with strawberries, raspberries, blueberries and boysenberries. Put all of these elements together and you have a dessert that doesn't leave you feeling like you just inhaled a mountain of sugar; instead you will be feeling full and oddly refreshed.

Don't let the lack of parking turn you away from Plums Cafe. Circle the lot a few times until a spot magically opens up and make your way to the unassuming cafe in the corner of the shopping center--it will be worth it.