What is a chocolate soufflé?Our souffle al cioccolato with a liquid centre at Fiena

A soufflé is a baked egg dish that began in France in the early 18th century. The name is the past participle of the French verb souffler, which means "to blow", "to breathe" or "to puff", and that's exactly what it does in the oven. The earliest mention is credited to the French master cook François Massialot, and the dish was developed and made popular by the chef Marie-Antoine Carême in the early 19th century.

A soufflé has two parts: a flavoured base, such as a crème pâtissière or a purée, and egg whites beaten to soft peaks. The base gives the flavour and the egg whites give the lift. Savoury soufflés are made with cheese, vegetables and herbs, while sweet ones use chocolate, fruit or lemon. They're baked in ramekins, often buttered and sometimes sugared, which some cooks believe helps them rise, and they start to fall after 5 or 10 minutes, so a soufflé waits for no one. Background from Wikipedia's soufflé page.

A chocolate dessert with a liquid centre has its own family history. The molten chocolate cake, also called chocolate fondant, lava cake or chocolat coulant ("flowing"), is a small chocolate cake with a runny core. The French chef Michel Bras said he invented it in 1981, after two years of experiments, inspired by a family warming up with hot chocolate after a day's skiing. In New York, the chef Jean-Georges Vongerichten said he created it in 1987 when he pulled a chocolate sponge out of the oven too early and found the middle still runny. Their recipes were quite different, but Vongerichten's simpler one helped make the dessert a fixture on restaurant menus in the 1990s.

The classic version uses five ingredients: butter, eggs, sugar, chocolate and flour. Like a soufflé, it's baked in individual portions, and it's often served with a scoop of ice cream. More on Wikipedia's molten chocolate cake page.

On our dessert menu, the Souffle al cioccolato is a rich chocolate dessert with a liquid chocolate centre, and it's vegetarian. Desserts are served all day. If you can't decide, there's plenty more on the list: Tiramisu, vanilla Cheesecake with forest fruit sauce, a warm Chocolate brownie with ice cream, Profiteroles with Chantilly cream, and a vegan and gluten-free brownie with blood orange sorbet. Or keep it light with three scoops of gelato or sorbet. See our posts on tiramisu, gelato and affogato and profiteroles.

Our desserts get a mention in the reviews too. James had the Linguine Fiena and the cheesecake: Both very good. (James, Google review) And Maria wrote, I never eat cheesecakes but this one is perfect. (Maria, Google review)

Chocolate and coffee are old friends, so try it with an espresso or a macchiato, or make it a dessert and a drink in one with an Espresso martini, made with vanilla vodka, fresh espresso, coffee liqueur and vanilla syrup. Wine lovers could try a glass of red with chocolate notes, such as the Sicilian Vitis Nostra Nero d'Avola or the Fidora Amarone, both described on our drinks menu with hints of chocolate. Our posts on Italian coffee and the wine list have more. Planning an evening for two? See date night at Fiena.

“The food was tasty, fresh, and really well prepared.”

Nasipa, Google review, 2025