by erin thursby scopes1925@msn.com
The heat lately has been absolutely oppressive. On the upside—that just makes us love ice cream, gelato and milkshakes all the more. Here are just a few of the places where you can enjoy the frosty, cold confection of your choice.
1635 Wells Rd in Orange Park (904) 541-0200
Creamy ice cream goodness is just one of the things they serve at our local Ben & Jerry’s, using rBGH-free milk. This means that the Vermont cows that produce Ben & Jerry’s aren’t injected with Bovine Growth Hormone. They’re also sensitive to the needs of the huge population that’s highly allergic to nuts by guaranteeing that flavors without nuts in the ingredients will not even contain a trace of nuts.
They do serve plain vanilla ice cream, despite the fact that they’re famous for wacky flavors like “Wavy Gravy” and “Phish Food.” Their ice cream has been popular from the start, perhaps because they stick to natural ingredients. You can only get a Ben & Jerry’s Sundae at one of their scoop shops, so it’s worth going to Orange Park. It comes with small, fresh-baked cookies, a dollop of whipped cream and the customary chocolate syrup. Our local Ben & Jerry’s is east of the Orange Park Mall on Wells Road. They even have a drive-thru, if you’re in a hurry. Have a taste of what happens when hippies make ice cream.
4268 Oldfield Crossing Dr in Mandarin (904) 292-9000
They are the U.S.’s oldest ice cream franchise. They’re especially known for their ice cream cakes (like Fudgie the Whale). They sell them at Publix sometimes, but it’s just not the same as getting them fresh from a Carvel store. They do custom ice cream cakes of all kinds and ice cream by the scoop. Most people don’t realize that they have a location in the Mandarin area of Jacksonville. They were the innovators of the industry, as the first to make ice cream cakes and all their ice cream is completely kosher.
Post St & Edgewood Ave in Murray Hill
This is THE classic soft-serve ice cream shop, at least for the Murray Hill area. The Jacksonville band Crowsdell even named their debut album after the place before Shannon Wright transcended the Jacksonville scene. They’ve been serving up deliciously creamy soft-serve ice cream in Murray Hill for almost 60 years. You can also get a super-thick milkshake or let them mix candy or flavor into it for a unique dessert, but most folks stick with a classic soft-serve chocolate, vanilla or combination swirl. Their sundae’s are also a favorite on a hot day. The quickest way to make a kid of any age happy is to make their Dreamette come true.
9 Locations in and around Jacksonville
It’s a chain, yes, but what a chain. Part of the appeal is choosing what will be going into your ice cream. Instead of simply sprinkling your pistachios and chocolate crumbs onto your ice cream as they do at most places, they mix it into your flavor of choice right there on a marble slab (hence the name). It’s like having a custom-made ice cream, every time. They bake their waffle-cones onsite, so you’ll sometimes catch the lovely aroma. They also have a great variety of stuff to throw in your ice cream—bits of candy bars, chopped up when you order, gram cracker crumbles, gummy bears, tiny cookies, M&Ms and much more.
The flavors are fairly unique for ice cream, with such flavors as cheesecake, key lime, bubble gum, maple, birthday cake, all the standard flavors and much more. They’re definitely different than your typical ice cream shop because of the mix-ins. You can find a Marble Slab at the St. Johns Town Center, on Baymeadows, in 5- Points and near Julington Creek on San Jose.
134 Atlantic Blvd (904) 220-9030
This is a family-run establishment on Atlantic Boulevard near the Intracoastal. They’re situated in the relatively new Harbor Village Shopping Center, notable for its Stein Mart and decorative, beach-inspired fountains. This same center also has a Cobblestone’s and Zaitoon Mediterranean. The gelato is made fresh everyday, using a technique the owners learned in Italy. Try their incredible, bursting-with-flavor cantaloupe gelato, made with fresh cantaloupes. Whatever your flavor, one taste is sure to make you a devotee.
Despite the fact that Gelato has less fat in it than traditional American ice cream, it tastes richer, with fuller flavors. Gelato is denser, with less air whipped in it than ice cream and it’s stored at slightly lower temperatures than ice cream is. Serving the product a couple of degrees warmer tends to intensify the flavor.
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