You Can’t Miss These Decadent Matilda Cakes in Abu Dhabi
Article by
Danika Star
-
February 20, 2026
This month, we’ve taken on the difficult task of rounding up the best Matilda cakes in Abu Dhabi - so don’t say we don’t look after you! We’re on a mission to find the most decadent, gooey, rich chocolate cake that will blow your socks off - and there are some seriously strong contenders!
So what exactly is a Matilda cake? Surely you’ve seen the classic 1990s movie, starring Mara Wilson as the adorable - and magical - Matilda? Or you’ve read Roald Dahl’s classic book - the inspo for the movie and the musical? Welllll you’ll probably remember another sleeper star of the show - Bruce Bogtrotter! He’s maligned for apparently eating a slice of Principal Trunchbull’s chocolate cake - and punished in front of the whole school by being forced to eat an entire - massive! - chocolate cake, which the school cook has purportedly poured her ‘blood, sweat and tears’ into (a line that’s haunted me ever since The Trunchbull first uttered it).
Poor Bruce makes a gallant effort, looks set to be defeated, before Matilda and her classmates cheer Bruce on to cake-eating victory! Quite the folk hero, I can sort of understand these cakes not being christened ‘Bruce Bogtrotter cakes’ - not quite as catchy - but the sentiment is the same: a decadent, rich chocolate cake that threatens to defeat you!
Can you rise to the chocoholics’ ultimate challenge - and polish off any of these Matilda cakes, just like Bruce? Solo, you might not manage it - but take along your best, sweet-toothed mates and you’ll be in with a shot!
Take a look at our round up of Abu Dhabi’s best Matilda cakes - and let us know if we’ve missed your favourite!
Parker’s | Umm Al Emarat Park
The OG | AED97
The OG home of the Matilda cake in Abu Dhabi? You can’t go past Parker’s - and they nail everything from the presentation to the taste. Delivered with a flourish, a glorious pour over of chocolate before the metal shell is whisked away and the chocolate oozes across the plate - wow! This combo of chocolate sponge cake, crunchy chocolate flakes and chocolate sauce is a winner - and we guarantee you’ll keep eating, even when you think you can’t take another bite.
Really want to push the boat out? You can takeaway a BIG Matilda cake for AED250 - good luck with that one! Keep in mind, Parker’s is inside Umm Al Emarat Park, so you’ll have to pay AED10 entry per person - but the grounds are lovely, so you can walk off your cake-induced food coma afterwards.
Contact: 600 555551
B.Laban | Al Danah Area
Matilda to Go | AED25
You’ve probably seen B.Laban crop up on social media - their videos regularly go viral, with crowds of people lining up for these decadent desserts. Prepare yourself for a little chaos if you go during peak hours - but it’s manageable, and once you’ve ordered it’s just a little waiting game until your number is called. Their Khalty Matilda is pocket-friendly - AED25! - and comes all packed up in a cardboard box, with chocolate sauce on the side for you to pour over yourself. You can try to nab a table outside, or take your Matilda home. Taste? It’s good - especially for the price! - with a nice consistency and gooey sauce, although for the size of the cake slice it didn’t have as high a sauce-to-cake ratio as some of the others. We added a couple of scoops of vanilla ice cream (fearing the richness would defeat us) and ended up being defeated twice: by both cake and ice cream. Most embarrassing part? There were three of us - so it’s a hefty dessert, and if you can finish it alone, I tip my chocoholic hat to you!
Contact: 02 884 7834
EL&N | Marina Mall
Matilda - with a Twist | AED65
Trust EL&N to level up the Matilda with their own twist! The home of one of the best cake displays in the city, avert your gaze from the gorgeous cakes in the window and order this bad boy! The Bogtrotters chocolate & caramel cake is topped with vanilla gelato, served with a pourover of warm salted caramel sauce with Lotus biscuit crumbs for a little crunch - and wowwwww it’s a winner! Ok, it’s not purely chocolate-on-chocolate if you’re a Matilda cake purist, but we’d argue this is actually better: the caramel breaks it up a little - making it easier to eat more - and the classic cold ice cream/hot dessert combo is never not amazing.
They also have a Bogtrotter’s Chocolate Cake (AED50), which is an all chocolate affair - but we love the salted caramel version for something a little different.
Contact: 02 517 6901
Meltoz Cafe | Al Falah Street
Budget Choice | AED25
Ok, maybe this Matilda cake won’t change your life, but it’s a solid option if you’re on a budget - or if you have little chocolate cake fans with eyes that are MUCH bigger than their stomachs, and a more expensive Matilda cake will be wasted on them. Meltoz Cafe is pretty small - two tables - and their Matilda cake is available for eat in only, but we think it would be perfect for an afterschool treat. It’s still got the pour and lift action for the chocolate sauce, and some chocolate flakes grated over the top at the table. You can grab a coffee, drink or other treats for cheap as well - so for a budget Matilda, it’s not bad.
Contact: 056 567 2732
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