Just wanted to summarize some of the findings from the other ice cream thread, in case you don't have time to peruse through the nearly 200 responses logged so far.

The Boston-Cambridge area was pretty much the hands-down winner as the Ice Cream Capitol of the nation. Oft-mentioned sweet shoppes included:
Herrell's, Kimball Farms, Toscanini's, Cabot's, Richardson's and Ron's Gourmet.

Other great ice cream stops across the country include:

University Creamery at Penn State;
Babcock Hall @ Univ of Wisconsin;
Blue Bell Ice Cream in Texas;
Graeters in Louisville/Cincinnati;
Deitchs in Findlay Ohio;
Dairy Barn in Durham N.H;
Tom's Ice Cream Bowl, Zanesville OH;
Whitey's in Rock Island Il;
Central Dairy in Jeff City, Mo;
Mr G's Flavor Freeze, Gettysburg PA; Storr's @ Univ of Connecticut;
Ray's in Royal Oak Michigan;
Jaxson's in Dania Beach, Fl;
Danielle's in Las Vegas, NV;
Tillamook Cheese Factory, Oregon;
Kimball's in Jaffrey N.H;
McConnell's in Santa Barbara, CA;
Fossellman's in Alhambra, CA;
Bennett's in Hollywood, CA (farmers market at CBS TV on Fairfax);
Bert & Rocky's in Upland Ca and PalmSprings (try the cream cheese chocolate chip!);
Dr. Bob's in Upland , CA; .
Amy's in Houston, TX.

and for frozen custard:
Ted Drew's in St Louis, MO;
and Carl's in Fredericksburg, VA.

Each summer my cousin Kimmie and I go ice cream touring, generally in New England, and these are the results of our taste tests:

Grand Prize Champion Best Ice Cream Overall:
Benson's Homemade Ice Cream in West Boxford, MA ( near Andover).
recommended flavors: Coffee Fudge Brownie; Coconut; Fresh Raspberry (in season); Peanut Butter Cup
It's worth the trip! But don't order anything larger than a "small" !!!!!!!

Honorable Mentions:
Richardson's, Middleton MA (toll house cookie);
Ron's Gourmet, Hyde Park MA (chocolate peanut butter);
Herrell's, Cambridge MA (chocolate pudding);
Bedford Farms, Bedford MA (chocolate explosion);
Meletharbs, Wakefield MA (oreo cookie);
Rancatore's, Belmont MA;
North Street Dairy Cone, Waterville, Maine ( peanut butter chocolate chip, mocha chip, grapenut);


P.S. At the website icecreamsource.com, you can mail-order several different ice creams from all over the U.S.

joesource, just wanted to say thanx a mint!! I've copied it already and with weather like this, I'm lookin' forward to tasting! =)

What about Brigham's Chocolate Chip?????

I was in New England last fall, in Vermont, Montpelier to be exact, is the home of Ben and Jerry's. You tour the factory and receive free samples of the newest flavors. The "out in the country setting" has the B&J cows around the property. Worth the stop on any ice cream tour.

Linda,

The best part of Brighams were the pointy scoops (on cones) that they rolled in the big bowl of jimmies.

Star Market sells "Original Brigham's Hot Fudge" ...but's not very good.

The mellow fudge(milk chocolate based) at Cabot's is tough to beat

Mmmmmmm.....now that would be a good thread to start......Where to find the best HOT FUDGE in the U.S.A. !!!!!!

Mare,

That's a great idea!.

I'll start the thread

I'll be happy to do some research on THAT topic!

Anybody else out there like Hot Fudge even WITHOUT ice cream!????

I would like to add:

Velvet in Utica, Ohio. Actually in an old mill and
Toft's-Sandusky, Ohio.

Joe, I liked how you managed to plug icecreamsource.com and make it seem reputable. Save your money, everyone, it's a scam.

It's a scam?? How so? Rated "best overall ice cream site" by the Wall Street Journal.

Yes, having ice cream shipped in dry ice across the country is expensive, but a "scam" ?

Many people have placed orders at the site and never received any ice cream. Be careful plugging these web sites. You never know who's behind them.

Can anyone still get Mikes Cheesecake Ice Cream in your stores? They've taken it off the shelves around here. And the cheesecake ice cream bars coated in graham crackers??? Mmmmmm......

How about Mitchell's Ice Cream in San Francisco? They have both tasty and interesting flavors.

They have one that tastes like coffee cake. It's delicious!
The interesting flavors include avocado, and corn and cheese. The avocado is actually good. I couldn't get myself to try the corn and cheese.

Tried garlic ice cream at the Garlic festival once, never again. Anyone know where to find licorice ice cream. Had some black-as-night and delicious in Maine once but the place is gone.

Had avocado ice cream at the Avocado festival one year and enjoyed it. They also had avocado brownies (chocolate brownies with mashed avocadoes substituted for the oil in the recipe). They were rich and delicious.

For those of you traveling the coast of Maine this summer, don't miss the Ice Cream Factory in Boothbay Harbor. SO good!

Build your own sundae and heap on the hot fudge!

Sloan's Ice Cream Parlor in West Palm Beach is a real throwback with great ice cream (my local favorite), but I think Graeters in Ohio is the best in the country. They rotate some of their flavors and have a website where you can order dry ice delivery.

Just a warning--stay away from icecreamsource.com. It's a waste of money.

McConnell's Ice Cream in California is definitely one of the best of the store-bought brands. I love their "Island Coconut".

Other favorites are "Deep Dish Apple Pie" from Dreyers Dreamery, and Haagen Daz Pineapple Coconut. And Breyers Peanut Butter Fudge. Oh, and Dreyers Tagalong Girl Scout Cookie Flavor.

I could go on and on!

I tried using icecreamsource.com a couple weeks ago, but never received anything. Trying to get a refund now. What a rip off!