While cheesecake may seem like an unconventional product for a food cart, local business Little Slice of Hell strikes just the right balance of originality and quality. After years of wanting to offer joy through endless flavors of cheesecakes, Julie Higgins, the owner of Little Slice of Hell, is thrilled about her position within the Central Oregon food cart industry.
After eyeing this food truck for a while now, I finally decided to stop in and see what the hype was about. Little Slice of Hell, formerly Little Slice of Heaven, has locations in two food cart lots — The Podski on Arizona Avenue in Bend and Century Commons Taps & Trucks in Sunriver.
The cart first opened at The Podski in 2020, offering a rotating selection of far-out flavors. From triple chocolate and bourbon praline to carrot cake and lemon, the options are extensive.
I went to the cart in Sunriver to see its newer creation, Baked! Looking to offer some hot food items for customers, Higgins opened her second food cart in July 2024, slinging her famous cheesecakes alongside an array of Texas-style comfort food, such as loaded baked potatoes, chili and gumbo.
For my cheesecake selection, I went with one of the cart’s most popular flavors: Marbled Marionberry. The cheesecake was everything you want in a dessert — sweet and velvety. Another favorite among customers is the Back Off My Butterfinger flavor. The cart also offers gluten-free and vegan cheesecake.
Little Slice of Hell doesn’t compromise on the quality of its ingredients, Higgins said, setting itself apart from others. Higgins is very careful about the sourcing of her products, while still maintaining the true taste of the creamy dessert. At $10 for a slice of cheesecake, Higgins wishes she could sell them for less but emphasizes the work and quality that goes into them.
“I will close the business before I ever get a cheaper ingredient,” she said. “We always joke that, you know, the secret ingredient is love. But we do put so much into these cheesecakes, it’s a huge amount of labor.”
The recipe that started it all first came from Higgins’ mother. Her mom began selling her cheesecakes back in Texas, where the family is from, but decided to stop after it became too expensive to operate. Realizing how many people appreciated the taste and quality of the desserts, Higgins wanted to fulfil her mom’s dream.
When Higgins and her family decided to move to Oregon in 2016, she began the business again and made it into four local stores. Soon after, when her son went off to college, she couldn’t keep up with orders and halted the business.
Then, in 2020, Higgins was diagnosed with cancer. While fighting the cancer naturally, Higgins still had the itch to make cheesecake, and customers continued to ask for them. She finally set her sights on a food cart and got a spot at The Podski.
“It just kept tugging at my heart over and over,” she said.
In March 2024, Higgins found out she was finally cancer free. After years of being mindful about the things she ate and put into her body, she decided to rebrand, changing the name of the food cart to Little Slice of Hell, promoting moderation.
“I learned that balance is so important in life,” Higgins said. “There’s got to be some joy, but we also need to take care of ourselves.”
This article appears in The Source Weekly January 23, 2025.
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