Only one of the previous 78 posters mentioned the Creamery at Penn State U. in University Park, PA - which is surprising because it is truly the best anywhere - made fresh daily with fresh ingredients (the cows at the Ag. School do their part) and really high in milk fat content. Ben and Jerry themselves studied ice cream making at Penn State as have many other purveyors. Visitors can get a cone and then order half-gallons to go, which are packed in dry ice by the student workers for your trip home. I'm going up there this Wednesday and intend to come back with some Peachy Paterno and their pure chocolate, which is 100% self-indulgence. <BR>

Obviously, this is a question aimed at adults with quite a sweet tooth. Ask any kid what their favorite ice cream is and they might say 'chocolate'. As far as I'm concerned, any double scoop on a hot summer day is the best ice cream around. Heck, even a Bomb Pop or an Alexander the Grape Otter Pop will do. If I have to throw in a vote, Matsumoto's near the North Shore is worth a plane ticket. The red bean ice cream sitting under the Hawaiian Shaved Ice is awesome. Scenery isn't bad either.

On Cape Cod, Sundae School and especially the Four Seas near Hyannis (supposedly a Kennedy family favorite). I can't imagine better ice cream.

In my freezer: Breyer's Vanilla Ice Cream. Tastes like homemade vanilla ice cream.

Arwen.. <BR> <BR>I take it you have never made ice cream using an old fashioned paddle mixer....surrounded by ice...there is a difference...you should try it sometime. <BR> <BR>Meanwhile..I miss ice cream in Hanalei with the shave ice and syrup on top.

Boston is certainly high on the list as Ice Cream capitol of the US. I too have heard the stats about highest consumtion per person. Back during the famous blizzard of '78 there were lines to get into the Ice Cream Factory in Brookline! <BR>Well, in case any of our plan to be in Boston during Sept. you might consider attending the annual Ice Cream Fest at WGBH (our local, though nationally known public TV outlet). Here's the copy from their own web site: <BR> <BR>Sweet September <BR> The WGBH Ice Cream FunFest, an annual tradition for 'GBH member-families, features more <BR> than 50 flavors of ice cream and frozen yogurt and entertainment by Rick Goldin, Jah Spirit, <BR> Mickey Bones, Dollee the Clown, plus guest appearances by Wimzie (Wimzie's House), Noddy <BR> (Noddy) and many more. <BR> When: Saturday, 9/18-Sunday, 9/19 from 12-4pm each day <BR> Where: WGBH parking lot, Allston <BR> Tickets: Two free admissions with MemberCard; $10 for non-member adults, $5 for children <BR> Info: 617-300-3300 <BR> <BR>Many of the above mentioned New England ice cream outlets participate, and you can do your own taste testing all day! It's lots of fun. The studio is a manageable walk from Harvard Sq. and I think they run shuttle buses from Cambridge as well.

Dick, <BR> <BR>Actually we have made homemade ice cream the old fashioned way. We had to take turns cranking the maker because it was too hard on the old arm. The Breyers vanilla tasted just like the homemade ones. Breyers might make several types of vanilla ice cream, but the one I'm talking about contains only cream, vanilla, and sugar. <BR> <BR>I tried the shaved ice in Kuaui and yes, it was DELLICIOUS!

Happy with the island breezes blowing through here :-) And I'll definitely refer to this thread when traveling on the mainland! <BR>

Kalena, You're in the land of Lapperts! Lucky girl! Their Hula Pie is worth flying to Hawaii for - coffee ice cream, coconut, fudge sauce, macadamia nuts - to die for! And a mango ice cream, which is extraordinary! Here in Raleigh, I go for Edy's (Double Chocolate Chunk is THE BEST), and Ben & Jerry's alway comes through! <BR> <BR>What a yummy thread! Oh, yes, that Creamery at Penn State can really churn out good stuff, too!

Kalena, You're in the land of Lapperts! Lucky girl! Their Hula Pie is worth flying to Hawaii for - coffee ice cream, coconut, fudge sauce, macadamia nuts - to die for! And a mango ice cream, which is extraordinary! Here in Raleigh, I go for Edy's (Double Chocolate Chunk is THE BEST), and Ben & Jerry's alway comes through! <BR> <BR>What a yummy thread! Oh, yes, that Creamery at Penn State can really churn out good stuff, too!

Dan! I was waiting for someone to agree with me on the Creamery at Penn State! It is second to none! (Are you an alum, too?)

K. Aikin, I missed your post about State College my first time through. I'm not familiar with Meyer's Dairy, but it sounds great. Where is it?

WE ARE...PENN STATE! <BR>(that's for all the PSU alums on the board) <BR>I do agree that The Creamery has excellent ice cream. The $1 cones are especially welcome on those hot Arts Fest nights. I prefer Meyer's because it is a bit less sweet than The Creamery, and they will make milkshakes in any flavor they have ice cream. Meredith- you can find Meyer's Dairy on South Atherton, across the street and just south of the Bi-Lo (on the right as you're going toward Boalsburg).

Thanks, K.! I'll be in State College for a game in September, and I'll definitely have to visit Meyer's! I take it you are an alum, too. I'm so happy to see other Penn Staters on this site!!! (By the way, we're going all the way in football this year, right?) :) :) :)

Thanks, K.! I'll be in State College for a game in September, and I'll definitely have to visit Meyer's! I take it you are an alum, too. I'm so happy to see other Penn Staters on this site!!! (By the way, we're going all the way in football this year, right?) :) :) :)

(oops, didn't mean to post twice!)

Try the Creamatorium in Blackwood, NJ.

Jaxson's Old-fashioned ice cream parlor on Federal Highway in Dania Beach, FL. (near Fort Lauderdale). Best stuff you'll ever have.

A hot fudge sundae at the ice cream parlor at Sarris Candies in Canonsburg, PA (south of Pittsburgh). I also like their chocolate almond ice cream. (And they have the best dark chocolate covered pretzels in the candy part of the store.) Uh oh, I'm getting chocolate cravings!!

Three great places for ice cream that rank as regional favorites: <BR> <BR>UConn Dairy Bar ice cream in Storrs, Connecticut. It's part of the agricultural program. The freshness (and the views of cornfields and cows!) can't be beat. <BR> <BR>Mystic Drawbridge Ice Cream in Mystic, CT. One of the most unusual buildings in which to sample GREAT homemade ice cream. <BR> <BR>Ashley's Ice Cream--a couple of locations in the New Haven, CT area. It's a local phenomenon that students in the area return to whenever they can--even after they graduate. The flavors are excellent and the rich texture is indescribable.

Heartily agree on Kimball's (northwest of Boston) and on Whitey's (Quad Cities). <BR> <BR>Does anyone remember Marble Slab in Ames, IA, or Boyd's? <BR> <BR>Laughed when I came across this topic, as we are planning a Kimball's run for tonight. The place is over an hour from our house, but we still make several trips each summer. Great BBQ fest in the fall also. <BR> <BR>If you live down our way, Crescent Ridge in Sharon, MA is great (complete with cows), as is Dave's in Mansfield.

I live in Dallas, and always thought it wierd how few ice cream places we have with it being as hot as it is. But I have found a place. The Marble Slab Creamery. Ice cream is made on the premises, and you have a wide variety of mix ins to put in your ice cream, it's to die for. The best choice is sweet cream mixed with kit kat pieces. It's delicious.

Another vote for the University of Connecticut at Storrs Dairy Bar. <BR> <BR>Also, fond memories of Springer's in Stone Harbor, NJ <BR> <BR>And out here in Southern California: Fosselman's in Alhambra.

Dan - Apple Pie is one of my favorites too. Edy's had it and I saw it at some of the shoppes either last summer or the summer before. Haven't had it in a while. Wish I knew where to get it too. <BR> <BR>When we were in San Diego I had some Apple pie ice cream at a shoppe downtown San Diego at ______ and ________. It was on one of the main streets. It was a husband and wifes name I think. Anyone know the name? They even put hot apples on top of it. My husband had jalepeno ice cream which was pretty good too. <BR> <BR>MMMMMMMM! I think I've got to get some ice cream today. <BR> <BR>

Best thread I've seen in a while. <BR> <BR>My vote goes to Big Dipper Ice Cream in Missoula, Montana. I always got the Vanilla Bean flavor, unless they had whipped up a batch of Irish Whiskey. No kidding. It's great.

Gibson's in downtown Oberlin, Ohio (just near Oberlin College) had great eggnog ice cream years ago. Wonder if they are still there?

Update on Ted Drewes in St. Louis: I live a block from the Chippewa shop, and <BR>I can tell you that they are now open from Feb 1 to Jan 1; the owners take <BR>vacation in January. The original shop <BR>on Grand is only open from May-Sept. <BR>I love Drewes custard, but it's true, <BR>it's not ice cream. <BR> <BR>For my vote on real ice cream: any ag school with a dairy science program. I went to LSU, and the stuff at the dairy science counter was superb. <BR> <BR>In New Orleans, my vote goes to Angelo <BR>Brocato.

Does anybody in San Antonio Tx know <BR>where on the river walk they serve <BR>MANGO VANILLIA ice cream. When Hillary <BR>Clinton was down here she took two gal. <BR>with her.

Far Far's on Front Street in Issaquah, WA, just a block south of I-90. Used to be a chain, but this is the last surviving location. It's owned and operated by a wonderful Korean couple. <BR> <BR>They make all the ice cream on the premises. They have lots of the usual flavors, but they also have a lot of Asian-influenced flavors. The sour plum is my favorite, but they also have jackfruit, taro, ginger, green tea, and lots of other interesting flavors. <BR> <BR>The one flavor that stands out, however, is durian. It's a fruit that's popular particularly in Asia, but its powerful aroma definitely takes some getting used to--an acquired taste, as they say. (They keep it in a freezer and only sell it in quarts to prevent the aroma from chasing off the customers.) I think a local paper described the smell as something like sweaty athletic socks. I could eat only one bite of it myself, but I've been in the store when lots of Asian-ancestry people came in and ordered it. <BR> <BR>Anyway, great question here. Can't wait for my next visit to some of these locales so that I can try some of these places out.

Jeez, am I the ONLY person from Michigan to post to this thread? Otherwise I'm sure the places I lised below would surely have been mentioned: <BR> <BR>Ray's in Royal Oak - makes outstanding Mackinac Island Fudge ice cream. You order a single and they give you what must be a pint of ice cream on a sugar cone. Homemade and family owned for generations. Nothing better, well, that is, except for ... <BR> <BR>Kilwin's - there's one of these in Traverse City, Charlevoix, Petoskey, Mackinac Island, basically if you go up north, you'll run into one. They too make a wonderful Mackinac Island Fudge ice cream and it has to be in one of their fresh, still-warm waffle cones. Nothing better, well, that is, except for ... <BR> <BR>Lastly, Edy's makes a flavor called Thin Mint that's only available around Girl Scout cookie selling time. It's a chocolate mint ice cream with pieces of Thin Mint cookie mixed in. It is the absolute creamiest, yummiest grocery store ice cream I have ever had and each year I have to get a half gallon just for myself. If you see it at the store, you must try it. It is great stuff.

The first poster is right. Blue Bell vanilla is as close to home-made as one will ever get. Unfortunately it's available only in north Texas. That's the only kind in my frig. <BR> <BR>At Blue Bell they "eat all they can and sell the rest".

If you ever find yourself travelling on Rt. 15 through central Pa., stop at Bechtel's, right along the highway in Lewisburg. Just look for the big black and white cow on the roof. Homemade, creamy, delicious. <BR>Chocolate marshmallow and butter brickle are my favorites.

I love Starbucks Java Chip. Especially when I just get it home from the store and its very soft around the rim of the carton.

Second vote for Graeter's. They have a couple of shops in Louisville now and make fresh peach only in the summer when a certain variety of Georgia peach is ripe. It is wonderful. They also have a coconut chocolate chunk that is to die for. Rather than using chocolate chips, they coat their ice cream maker with chocolate and let it fall off during the freezing process. <BR>

Bertillon in Paris (how anyone could be disappointed, I do not know) <BR> <BR>Coffee Ice Cream at the airport in Madrid <BR> <BR>Gelatto anywhere in Rome

<BR> <BR>This one is second-hand information--rather, the place was recommended to me by practically everyone I met during the year I spent doing contract work in eastern Virginia. It's called Carl's, and is located in Fredricksburg, Virginia. I also saw it featured on a PBS show about ice cream. As I understand it, it's not really ice cream, but a soft-frozen custard, if that makes sense. It's in a building that looks like an old Dairy Queen. It's locally owned and locally famous. The people I was working with would drive fifty miles just to get a cone. I went once, but the line of customers was wrapped around the building, so I decided just to take their word for it.

In my home town (Vancouver), Mario's is probably my favourite. They're known for having 400 flavours... 72 flavours to choose from at one time. The other day I had Pumpkin Pie icecream - it was great! <BR> <BR>http://www.mariosgelati.com/cafe/amato-flavours.htm gives you an idea of the list of their flavours... <BR> <BR>In Oregon, the tradition is to have a large ice cream at the Tilamook Cheese factory - yum!

Can anyone tell me PLEASE where I can find peppermint stick ice cream? Not the pink glue Swensen's sometimes has, but the _real_ thing, white (ok, pink if necessary) with chips of real peppermint candy. Every so often at Christmas, the local Baskin Robbins has something like it, a good enough version. But otherwise, I can't seem to find it anywhere. Anyone out there know?

Kansas City (sorely underrepresented in this forum) has some of the best ice cream and frozen custard! <BR> <BR>#1. Murray's -- in Westport, lots of fantastic traditional flavors and some scrumptious originals. Examples: cherry limeade sorbet, green tea sorbet, root beer float (ice cream, not the drink, yum!), and malt bodiene (named after a local radio personality). All INCREDIBLY TASTY. <BR> <BR>#2 -- Foo's Frozen Custard in Brookside. Yum. <BR> <BR>#3 -- Sheridan's Frozen Custard. (I think it's part of a chain.) Very rich and delicious. <BR> <BR>I think I'm going to skip dinner and head straight for some desert after work. <BR> <BR>Great post.

Although I am a die hard Ben & Jerry's fan (love that Chunky Monkey), I would have to say that the best ice cream I ever ate was in a little gelato shop in Sonoma, CA. I don't remember the name of the parlor, but it was located right near the town park and town square. Fabulous!