Saturday, May 30, 2009
I scream, you scream
Now that Memorial Day is in the rear view mirror and June is right around the corner, we can start thinking summer thoughts. One of the best things about summer -- at least, in the Mid-Atlantic region and in New England, where I tend to spend most of my summers -- is going out to your local ice cream stand for a treat.
With the assumption that Thomas Sweet is ground zero (since it is in TigerHawk's home town), and using this list as a starting point for reference, please submit the name and location of your favorite place to go for premium ice cream in the United States. While I like Baskin-Robbins and Ben & Jerry's, I am generally looking for ice cream stands that are not part of national or super-regional chains.
32 Comments:
By 
, at
Sun May 31, 12:49:00 AM:
There was a good one at the Disneyland Hotel years ago, but it was removed in the Downtown Disney remodel. I like Baskin-Robbins because I get a free pint of ice cream every time I donate blood, which is usually about every 60 days or so. We do have a local Italian ice stand, Joe's Italian Ice
on Harbor Blvd. in Garden Grove, CA that is fantastic.
By 
D.E. Cloutier, at
Sun May 31, 01:06:00 AM:
Does frozen custard count?
If so, Ted Drewes, St. Louis, Missouri.
Wiki: "In a poll of St. Louis citizens, 96% reported that they would go to Ted Drewes for frozen custard over any other establishment."
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ted_Drewes
P.S. No, I don't live in Missouri. But I used to live in Newport Beach, CA, Tyree.
By , at
Sun May 31, 01:11:00 AM:
It took some searching but I found the link.
http://www.joesice.com/index.html
Worth the trip if you are visiting Disneyland.
DEC- Newport Beach! We were practically neighbors! I grew up in Garden Grove and now live in Anaheim.
By , at
Sun May 31, 03:58:00 AM:
Whitey's, in downtown Iowa City was a favored stop while I was in grad school.
By , at
Sun May 31, 05:35:00 AM:
not exactly ice cream, but my kids vote for pinkberry in So. Cal.
By , at
Sun May 31, 05:48:00 AM:
Maybe I can touch off a Princeton ice cream war here...
Back in my undergrad days, it was the big T Sweet vs. Halo Pub question (I leaned Halo). Today, this question is irrelevant thanks to the fine folks at The Bent Spoon. If you're in Princeton, don't miss it... best stuff going and they're incredibly friendly too.
By TigerHawk, at
Sun May 31, 06:19:00 AM:
Agreed. In Princeton, the competition is indeed fierce. I passed up T Sweet yesterday because I had been to the Bent Spoon before the P-Rade. For those who do not know, the Bent Spoon is pretty authentic Italian-style ice cream.
By , at
Sun May 31, 08:55:00 AM:
Applegate Farm, Montclair, NJ.
Gelotti, Caldwell, NJ.
By , at
Sun May 31, 09:05:00 AM:
Ted Drewes in St. Louis definitely! And the favorite in Denver is Bonnie Brae Ice Cream. www.bonniebraeicecream.com The Peppermint with its multi-colored peppermints is a fav!
By Viking Kaj, at
Sun May 31, 11:29:00 AM:
The frozen custard stand across from Columbian Park in Lafayette, IN.
It is, quite simply, the best frozen custard in the world.
By Viking Kaj, at
Sun May 31, 11:35:00 AM:
www.originalfrozencustard.com
2319 Wallace Avenue
Lafayette, IN 47904
Wallace Avenue is named for Lew Wallace, Civil War Brigadier better known today as the author of Ben Hur.
By Viking Kaj, at
Sun May 31, 11:37:00 AM:
2d nomination:
House of Flavors
110 N. William St.
Ludington, MI 49431
The Black Sweet Cherry is delicious.
By Viking Kaj, at
Sun May 31, 11:40:00 AM:
Hawaiian Shaved Ice
Belmont Park
Pacific Beach, California
By Viking Kaj, at
Sun May 31, 11:45:00 AM:
Lejonet & Björnen (the Lion & Bear)
Danska Vägan 74
Gothenburg, Sweden
http://www.lejonetochbjornen.se/
Everything is good here.
By Eowyn, at
Sun May 31, 01:19:00 PM:
It's been five years since I've been there (moved out-of-state) but Sourdough Fuel in North Pole, Alaska had the best ice cream in town. It's just a gas station, but they keep 8 flavors out and rotate them weekly. And it was a buck a (gigantic) scoop. I remember digging through couch cushions and between car seats with my Mom and sister trying to track down $3 one (relatively) hot night. It really was that good.
Plus, one block east and a couple blocks south of Pike Market in Seattle, there is a KILLER gelato shop.
By SR, at
Sun May 31, 01:23:00 PM:
It is around here everywhere now, but Bud's Ice Cream started on a corner in the Castro district of SF.
Every evening (summer evenings in San Francisco are pretty chilly) lines would form around the block.
Speaking of lines for ice cream. I once noted in St. Petersberg Russia that folks would form lines for three things: bread, cigarettes, and ice cream. And this was in February.
By , at
Sun May 31, 01:34:00 PM:
In Annapolis, it's Storm Bros. on city dock. Beaucoup flavors and the ambience of the whole thing. We think that the ice cream they use is from Hershey's.
TH, are you going to post some reunion pix for those of us who missed it?
JLW III '67
By Anthony, at
Sun May 31, 02:05:00 PM:
Tucker's Ice Cream in Alameda, California.
By , at
Sun May 31, 03:05:00 PM:
The Chocolate Bar is our favorite in Houston. They make all their own.
My favorite is Orange Sunrise, which pretty much has whole oranges ground up in it, and is great!
By , at
Sun May 31, 04:13:00 PM:
A few:
1. In Yardley, Pennsylvania, the Yardley Ice House off Main Street in Yardley. Great water ices and soft ice cream are available.
I'd also have to give a shout out to the Baskin & Robbins in the Oxford Oaks shopping center in Yardley. Rob, the owner, is a great guy.
2. In Ocean City, New Jersey, there's a great gelato place near 12th and the Boardwalk. I can't remember what it's called, but the gelato is delicious.
3. And, in Princeton, Thomas Sweet and Halo are excellent. The day I was at Bent Spoon I thought the flavors a bit too electic, and Ricky's Candy Bar appeals to the kids. Also, the Whole Foods on Route 1 has great gelato also.
The Centrist
By , at
Sun May 31, 04:32:00 PM:
Locally ... Maple View Farms in Orange County, just outside Chapel Hill, NC ain't too shabby. They make their own.
By nucint, at
Sun May 31, 05:27:00 PM:
Babcock Hall Ice cream on Univ of Wisconsin - Madison campus
http://foodsci.wisc.edu/store/icecream.php
Hands down best ice cream in the world. Sitting on the Memorial Union Terrace eating a cone of Babcock Hall ice cream is not to be missed.
By , at
Sun May 31, 05:31:00 PM:
Filley Hall (Dairy Science Bldg) Univ of Nebraska-Lincoln East Campus.
By Mr. Apropos, at
Sun May 31, 07:45:00 PM:
Another +1 for the Halo pub.
If you're up in New Hampshire, go to the Kimball Farm.
http://www.kimballfarm.com/
My wife and I stopped (at the urging of a friend who used to live near there) and it completely rocks. Overly generous cones. Amazing variety.
By Viking Kaj, at
Sun May 31, 08:21:00 PM:
Ferdinands
WSU Campus Creamery
Pullman, WA
By , at
Sun May 31, 09:02:00 PM:
Emack and Bolios in Orleans, MA. Very good ice cream, not the best in the whole world, but very good indeed, and it's on Cape Cod. That ought to count for something.
Capogiro in Philadelphia for excellent gelato. Again, not the world's best, but very fine.
By , at
Sun May 31, 09:25:00 PM:
The Frieze on Michigan Avenue in Miami Beach, just south of Lincoln Road. The mint chip is excellent, as is the chocolate sorbet.
By La Cot, at
Mon Jun 01, 12:45:00 AM:
In P'ton, Halo Pub has always been my Number One.
For those headed up Route 1 into Maine, stop off at Big Daddy's in Wells. It's been a family favorite & summer tradition for years. (Shameless local business plug: try the subs at Bennett's Store in K'bunk, too!)
TH: Hope you had a wonderful time during Reunions! I actually spent the weekend in Iowa City, but still managed a mini-Reunion while there.
By , at
Mon Jun 01, 10:11:00 AM:
Bonnie Brae in Denver, CO
http://www.bonniebraeicecream.com/
By Georg Felis, at
Mon Jun 01, 10:18:00 AM:
I have to put in my plug for Call Hall ice cream at Kansas State University (my home). But for grab-and-go I still have a soft (and chocolate covered) spot in my heart for Arby's Jamocha Shake. Mmmmmm, chocolate *and* coffee....
By , at
Mon Jun 01, 12:00:00 PM:
If you are on the Jersey Shore, try Strolo's in Point Pleasant, the ice cream is good, but the Italian Ices are unparalleled. If you must have ice cream and are in Point Pleasant, then it's Hoffman's on route 35.
By John, at
Wed Jun 03, 12:06:00 AM:
Definitely Ted Drewe's Frozen Custard in St. Louis. It's got to be special when a crowd forms outside in the middle of winter to stand in line for frozen custard.
