Would You Splurge ₹21 Lakhs To Satiate Your Sweet Tooth Cravings At This New York Joint?

In the mood for hot chocolate? Wait till you read the price for this one. Picture this: a glass goblet of frozen hot chocolate that costs more than a luxury vacation and health insurance. Decked out with extravagant details like a garnish of 23-karat edible gold and a diamond-studded golden ice cream spoon, this never was your average winter warmer. So, what made it worth a staggering Rs21 lakh? Here’s the lore galore behind one of the world’s most outrageous sweet treats.

Serendipity 3, a legendary spot in New York's Upper East Side, opened its doors in 1954 (they opened a second location in Times Square in 2024) and has since become an NYC landmark. It quickly rose to fame after the likes of Marylin Monroe kept showing up to experience what this joint had been cooking. Andy Warhol, who would trade drawings for meals before his artistic fame. Today, Hollywood patrons like Grace Kelly and Cary Grant have been swapped out for celebrities like Selena Gomez (who is also an investor), Kim Kardashian, and Justin Bieber.

Priced at $19.95 (Rs1,694), the Frrrozen Hot Chocolate is a favourite of celebrities, New Yorkers and tourists alike, but back in 2007, the restaurant added a $25,000 (Rs21,00,000) version of this trademark dessert to the menu—The Frrrozen Haute Chocolate ice cream sundae.

The 'most expensive desert' by Guinness World Record

This ostentatious drink currently holds the Guinness World Record as the ‘most expensive desert’, which it claimed in 2007 and continues to hold, despite its discontinuation the same year. It included a blend of 28 kinds of cocoa, including 14 of the world's most expensive varieties.

It came decorated with five grams of edible 23-karat gold and truffle shavings and was served in a crystal goblet lined with an 18-karat gold bracelet with 1-karat of white diamonds. The dessert was served with a gold and diamond spoon, which you got to keep after, perhaps as consolation for burning a $25,000 hole in your pocket.

No records exist of others purchasing this lavish drink, except for one indulgent mom who splurged on it to celebrate her daughter’s sweet 16, as stated by Stephen Bruce, owner and co-founder of Serendipity 3 in an interview with CNN.

Who created the most expensive desert at this NYC food-joint?

The Frrrozen Haute Chocolate was created by chef Joe Calderone, who has been at the helm of Serendipity 3 for over 37 years, and throughout his career, has created other Guinness World Record dishes like the world's largest wedding cake.

The establishment’s proclivity for ridiculously priced menu items goes beyond frozen desserts. They also hold eight other Guinness World Records, including the World's Most Expensive Fries and the World's Most Expensive Milkshake.