15 Monstrous Desserts From Around America

For some people, dessert is an afterthought. It's a few bites of something sweet after dinner. But for others, dessert is a way of life, and an enormous slice of cake or mountainous sundae is the greatest thing on the planet. For those serious dessert lovers, we've tracked down 15 absolutely monstrous desserts from around the country.  

Ben & Jerry's Vermonster sundae is a behemoth bucket full of 20 scoops of ice cream (your choice) plus hot fudge, sliced bananas, chocolate chip cookies, brownies, and all the toppings your heart desires. You'll definitely want to invite a gaggle of friends to enjoy it. 

This sundae from Cabot's Restaurant in Newton includes 60 pints of ice cream scooped into a mountainous pyramid formation and covered with 12 quarts of whipped cream, nuts, cherries, and other toppings. Each pyramid is served in an extra-large metal bowl with your choice of ice cream, which includes everything from apple crisp and frozen pudding to a Mounds candy bar.

A Boonville landmark, Carrie Lyn's serves one of the largest desserts anywhere, the Boonville Bellyache Sundae. It's a huge bowl filled with 16 scoops of ice cream, 10 brownie bites, two chocolate chip cookies, every single topping that they offer, and a big pile of whipped cream. Down it in 30 minutes and it's free, and you also get a t-shirt and a photo on the wall of fame. 

A Boonville landmark, Carrie Lyn's serves one of the largest desserts anywhere, the Boonville Bellyache Sundae. It's a huge bowl filled with 16 scoops of ice cream, 10 brownie bites, two chocolate chip cookies, every single topping that they offer, and a big pile of whipped cream. Down it in 30 minutes and it's free, and you also get a t-shirt and a photo on the wall of fame. 

This crêpe shop challenge isn't just a dessert, it's two breakfasts, lunch, a snack, and two desserts, all in one meal. You get 30 minutes to eat a Belgian waffle, an omelette crêpe, a Thanksgiving crepe, a tropical passion smoothie, three scoops of ice cream, and a Nutella-strawberry-banana crêpe. If you can finish it, it's free of charge. 

Harold's Deli is legendary for their monstrous sandwiches, but they're also known for their enormous cakes, which are on display in a revolving display case by the front entrance.. Options include chocolate fudge layer cake, carrot cake, chocolate mousse cake, and black and white cake.  A single slice is enough to feed a family. 

This cozy diner has no shortage of massive desserts (including what's essentially a giant pile of waffles, whipped cream, and ice cream cones), but their most monstrous offering is The World, with two and a half gallons of whipped cream, your choice of toppings, waffles, and whipped cream. It costs $75, and nobody's ever finished it. 

The biggest ice cream sundae in Chicago can be found at the famed Lindy's Chili & Gertie's Ice Cream, which has several locations in town. $50 will get you a traditional (albeit enormous) sundae dish filled with 18 scoops of ice cream, two apples, six bananas, brownies, vanilla wafers, sauces, whipped cream, and cherries on top. 

Mallie's Sports Bar & Grill is home to a number of oversized specialties (including the largest commercially-available hamburger) and their Colossal Ice Cream Sundae. The frozen treat includes one-and-a-half gallons of ice cream (a combination of chocolate, vanilla, and strawberry) topped with Hershey's syrup, whipped cream, chocolate chip cookies, nuts, sprinkles, and cherries.

Éclairs tend to be small and dainty, but not this one from popular old-school Palm Springs deli and bakery Manhattan in the Desert. This huge éclair is dipped in chocolate and filled with whipped pastry cream, and is a meal unto itself. 

Round Rock Donuts serves some of the best doughnuts, anywhere, and their plain glazed doughnuts are especially renowned (they get their trademark orange color from the high-quality eggs that go into them). If you can't eat just one, their "Texas-sized" doughnut is absolutely massive; it's larger than your head and is probably the equivalent of a dozen standard-sized doughnuts.

The centerpiece of a particularly infamous episode of Man v. Food, The Kitchen Sink from San Francisco Creamery is eight scoops of ice cream with three sliced bananas, eight servings of toppings, a huge pile of whipped cream, toasted almonds, and cherries. It costs $47.95, but if one person can put it away, they win free ice cream for a year (it's suggested that it's shared between six guests, however).

This charming Louisville ice cream parlor is home to the Comfy Cow Challenge, which starts with 15 scoops (more than five and a half pounds) of ice cream. That's topped with a handful of maraschino cherries, chopped nuts, whipped cream, and four additional sides or toppings. You get an hour to complete the challenge, and so far only one brave soul has been able to do so. 

Those deep-dish pans at Uno's don't just make pizzas; they're also used to bake up giant deep-dish chocolate chip cookies. Order an Uno Deep Dish Sundae and you'll get one that's topped with vanilla ice cream, chocolate sauce, and whipped cream. You might want to share, however; at 2,700 calories and 130 grams of fat, it's quite possibly the unhealthiest dessert at any chain restaurant.  

The Whistle Stop is famous for its frozen custard, and if you just can't get enough of it you might want to consider tackling the Train Wreck. It's made with a whopping 13 scoops of frozen custard, which is then topped with two pounds of toppings and whipped cream. Finish it all in 30 minutes and you get it for free, along with a $25 gift card and your name on the wall of fame.