This really isn’t bad…

On the way home from the Trumbull Mall we took a diversion and traveled to Plasko’s Farm and Creamery. Plasko’s is an active farm that has a corn maze, pumpkin patch and creamery and the place was hopping this Sunday afternoon.

Plasko’s makes their own soft serve and hard ice cream and offer cups, cones, enormous sundaes and ice cream sandwiches and cakes that look delicious!

Nothing at Plasko’s seemed standard except for the tradition soft serve flavors chocolate, vanilla and a twist. There were about 15 hard ice cream flavors that all seemed to be original. My soft serve aficionado, Mighty Mo, had a twist on a gourmet cone with chocolate chunk.

I had to modify my standard and had the double chocolate milk shake as they didn’t have coffee ice cream. They did have coffee Oreo ice from but I was skeptical of that in the shake. My shake was great, rich and creamy and thick-thick-thick as Dan Connor would say from the television series Roseanne.

If you’re looking for some ice cream that “isn’t that bad” head to Plasko’s this fall.

Lots of surprises in Norfolk!

On our way home from a trip to the northwest we stopped for coffee at Berkshire Country Store in Norfolk. We have traveled through this town on several occasions but this was the first time we stopped and what a pleasant surprise.

We were met by two staff who were friendly, charming and very helpful. They had a small freezer with standard commercial ice cream products, but they also sold gelato and sorbet from Cold Fusion from Westport. They were out of a few flavors but had about six or seven options available.

I opted for the Belgian chocolate that had a rich, strong flavor that was creamy and tasty! Maureen passed on any ice cream of her own but as my official chocolate aficionado thought the Belgian flavor was insane!

If you’re passing through the northwest or out leaf peeping this fall check out the Berkshire Country Store for some gelato, a sandwich or both. I know we will be back!

Fore!

Spent a rainy Sunday afternoon on a drive to the northwest part of the State in search of ice cream and mini-golf! In the town of Canaan is a rustic ice cream place called Caddie Shack that also has a challenging mini-golf course.

Caddie Shack offers a variety of one of Gifford’s ice cream flavors plus soft serve. They make cups, cones, shakes, sundaes and a variety of hamburgers, hot doggies, and sandwiches and everything was very reasonably priced.

I had the usual…coffee milk shake with a scoop of chocolate. Maureen had wafer cone with a single scoop of fly fishing fudge! My shake had the consistent flavor of Gifford’s ice cream and was well made and thick throughout! MO’s cone was a bit in the sweet side which is amazing for this choc-o-holic!

If your out leaf peeping this fall head to the charming northwest part of the state., swing by Canaan and Caddie Shack for some ice cream and mini-golf. You can’t go wrong!

Around the world…

We are back from our trip to Japan. We started with a three-day layover in Tokyo where we visited some former students from Yale and a whirlwind tour of Tokyo with our friend Makato. After Tokyo we traveled to Okinawa for the 39th annual SPNHC meeting, which was incredible. Even a rain storm during our beach party banquet couldn’t damper the spirits of these hardy SPNHC members.

We enjoyed ice cream at a couple of places. Blue Seal, a brand that has been around Japan since 1947 and is very popular choice in Okinawa. Much to our surprise we found a Baskin Robbin’s at a mall close to our hotel in Naha.

Thanks to Erika Gardner, a friend from the Smithsonian and Lilli Cooper and her colleagues from Picturae, we found a nice small eatery near Tsuboya Pottery Street that served a delicious vanilla soft serve that hit the spot on a hot Friday afternoon of shopping with our friend Sue Ryder from the The Natural History Museum in London.

On some level this might be considered a “work trip” although that’s hard to say as I am retired. But on the other hand I have known many of these attendees for many, many years so it’s more like a family reunion.

Keep traveling, enjoy some ice cream and remember to smile!

Since 1959…

Been waiting for the chance to get ice cream in the beautiful, rural town of Lebanon and it did not disappoint. Today we traveled to the Lebanon Country Fair and our fair share of ice cream choices.

There were four options for us. The Future Farmers of America operated by the Lebanon High School, a Hawaiian “Shaved” ice, a soft serve operation and a booth selling frozen bananas and smoothies.

Since Maureen began her career in Hawaii I am very familiar with “shave ice” and her love of soft serve. The frozen smoothies were tempting as today was a bit warm.

But you know me…I have a hard time passing up a milk shake, especially one that’s supporting a local high school and the local farming community. Yup, I had a coffee milkshake with a scoop of chocolate that was thick and tasty as we toured the fairgrounds.

Connecticut has several agricultural fairs all over the state. I urge you to check one or two out and enjoy the some good local dairy products.

On the road again…

On my way back from playing golf in northeastern Connecticut, I stopped in the town of Killingly at a place that is celebrating their 20th anniversary Ra Ra’s ice cream shop. Ra Ra’s is situated near a sports complex in the town and seems to do a very good business even in the middle of the day when there were no ball games underway.

As I was solo, I had my usual… a coffee and chocolate milkshake that was made with Big Dipper Ice Cream. Big Dipper is a well known product from Prospect. They offer both hard ice cream and soft serve, in cups, cones Sundays, and shakes or floats. My shake was well prepared, thick and creamy and tasty to the last drop.

If you’re on a road trip looking for a place to stop in eastern Connecticut, we looking to check out a ballgame, stop and have some ice cream at Ra Ra’s. You won’t be disappointed.

Three for the money…

On a warm sunny afternoon I drove up to the town of Avon in west central Connecticut to meet my good friend Annette Fortin and her adorable daughter Jordan. Avon is known for many things including Avon Old Farms School, which two of my friends attended, and Dom’s. On the north side of Main Street is Dom’s Coffee, Dom’s Cheese, and Don’s Creamery.

Don’s Creamery is a craft ice cream establishment that has a wide variety of flavors, some standard and some rather unique. They offer cups, cones and shakes, along with cakes and pints. Their prices are on the higher side but it is fresh made in the store.

I had a honey latte milkshake which was well-made, tasty and with crunchy honey flakes! Annette had a cup with two scoops of honey vanilla and dulce de leche, while Jordan had a cup with pistachio, one of my faves, and honey latte. All of these flavors were simply delicious and breathtaking.

Next time you are passing by Avon stop by Dom’s whether you are looking for coffee, cheese or ice cream!

Finally, success!!!

I have tried a number of times to sample the ice cream at Wittemore’s but they always seem to be closed when we were passing by. From the outside, Whitmore is a very unassuming place. But once you get inside, they have a very interesting selection of ice cream products. They offer cups, cones, shakes, and sundaes.

We were the first customer for the day and I decided to go back to my old standard a coffee milkshake with a scoop of chocolate ice cream. However, they didn’t have standard coffee, but had coffee caramel crunch, which made a very delicious milkshake with a scoop of chocolate.

The shop is under new management, and they do a great job of serving you. The facility is actually quite charming and feels somewhat historic. If you’re in the area, don’t hesitate to stop. You won’t be disappointed.

Something special…

It started off as a cloudy, raining Sunday so what else to do…we headed off to da valley for some ice cream. On the eastern side of the Housatonic River are a series of small town known for various industries that utilized the water power from the river. One of these towns, Ansonia, is well known for their high school football team that just wins and wins and wins.

On Main Street is an interesting place called The Sweet Eats Company that offers a wide variety of soft serve ice cream and frozen yogurt and lots and lots of fixins. You pick your cup size and go to town on your choice of flavors and and enjoy the sweet, delicious dairy products that are made on the premises. Maureen had a mixed cup with chocolate and vanilla soft serve. Since they don’t make milkshakes, I opted for some chocolate soft serve with coconut flakes which made it just sparkle.

If you’re looking for something special, look no further. The Sweet Eats Company is the place for you!

Strike out!

Canterbury is one of those small charming towns in eastern Connecticut but part of that charm is very little commercialism.

On our way home from our mini-golf search, my buddy Jim and I stopped at a Cumberland Farms in Canterbury and you know what that means! Yup, I took the opportunity and purchased one of my favorite dairy products, a Klondike Bar.

There are a few towns in Connecticut that lack an ice cream parlor or general store. But luckily there is often a Cumby’s in many of these towns. Cumby’s has been around since 1939 and was founded in Cumberland, Rhode Island.

Let’s just hope we don’t strike out too often!

Fore!

After driving around looking a mini-golf place with my buddy Jim and striking out, we headed to the border town of Plainfield and an ice cream establishment that has been around since 1957. To say Hank’s Dairy Bar is a legend would be an understatement. We arrived around 1:00 pm on a Friday and the place was hopping with multiple people enjoying lunch and ice cream.

Hank’s is far more than just an ice cream place. They have a full compliment of hamburgers, hotdogs, sandwiches, fries, and more. They have a wide variety of ice cream choices with shakes, cones, cups and sundaes with all the toppings and offer a wide variety of hard ice cream flavors and soft serve. And they are very moderately priced.

Their staff is friendly and helpful. As the place was hopping we had to wait about 10 minutes for our ice cream but their staff was entertaining. I had a coffee milkshake with a scoop of chocolate and Jim (AKA Molesley) had a strawberry shake that was rich in color and fruit. Both were delicious!

Regardless of whether you missed your tee time or are just looking for a pleasant place to stop when exploring eastern Connecticut, Hank’s is your place. Fore!!!

50 years and still and going strong!

We have tried for years to make it to Popey’s and today was our lucky day! Popey’s is one of the older ice cream establishments in Connecticut. They began scooping in 1972!

On a cold, rainy afternoon we were heading toward Morris and made the decision to stop at Popey’s to warm up. Mighty Mo wanted some soup but was swayed by the fried cauliflower with a tasty ranch dressing. As the ice cream connoisseur of the family I went with my usual, a coffee milkshake with a scoop of chocolate.

Popey’s serves Gifford’s hard ice cream and an unknown soft serve product. They have a wide variety of flavors and toppings and offer cones, cups, sundaes and shakes. They have indoor and outdoor seating and have a grill attached for those needing fried cauliflower, burgers, fries and sandwiches.

If you’re heading to Litchfield County, don’t miss out on a stop at Popey’s. You can be part of the second 50 years!

No, George Washington did not have ice cream here but…

In beautiful northwest Connecticut the town of Washington that has several hamlets and villages. Washington Depot is the center of town with a dozen or so businesses including the local Washington Food Market that seemed to have everything anyone would want including a wide variety of ice cream selections

They offer ice cream in pints and half gallons and a variety of local products including Arethusa from neighboring Litchfield. They also offer a large selection of single serve flavors for those needing a fix when on the road.

Today I went with a small cup of Haagen-Dazs coffee while Mighty Mo had Ben & Jerry’s Cookie Dough. We had a guest with us today, our pup Sheldon Copper who enjoyed a small cup of Haagen-Dazs vanilla.

We met two very helpful staff at the check out counter and even though they can’t say George Washington sampled the ice cream here, they can say Sheldon Cooper did!

A great day for a safari!

Today we set off north in the Connecticut Valley to the town of Newington to a long-time Connecticut establishment, Mortensen Dairy & Ice Cream on the Berlin Turnpike. Mortensen’s is the real deal with their many homemade hard ice cream flavors and their own soft serve product. The establishment is on the smaller size but has four or five tables and a bench outside.

We were met by Cici, a very pleasant and helpful staff person at the counter. They have an abundance of flavors, and specials each day. I had my usual, a coffee milkshake, that was anything but usual. This was a Brazilian coffee milkshake with a scoop of dark chocolate and this was insanely good! Mighty Mo had a peanut butter, hot fudge sundae with vanilla soft-serve.

On our way home we stopped at one of our favorite places, Safari Mini-Golf. Maureen came out on top this time but I suspect we will be back for seconds at Mortensen’s and Safari this summer.

Fresh vegetables, honey and ice cream…what’s not to like!

On our way home from a riveting game at Matterhorn Mini-Golf, we searched the town of neighboring Burlington for ice cream. Not to be denied we stopped at a farmer’s market called Tonn’s Marketplace.

We have been to Tonn’s before for fresh vegetables but never tried the ice cream. Tonn’s sells ice cream pints from Arethusa, a creamery in Litchfield, ice cream sandwiches from Blue Chip Creamery from Glastonbury.

We opted for a “Thiq Mint” ice cream sandwich which was made with mint chip ice cream and chocolate chip cookies. Mighty Mo and I split the sandwich that was large, frozen solid and delicious.

If you are traveling around the western part of the state check out Tonn’s Marketplace for fresh vegetables and some ice cream.