Definitely a birdie!

Spent an overcast afternoon in a light rain at Safari Golf in Berlin, followed by a stop at Praline’s Ice Cream in the Kensington section of Berlin.

Praline’s is a nice small place in a strip mall on Farmington Avenue in Berlin. This is a charming place with a spectacular selection of ice cream including all the basics and their own particular concoctions. Praline’s has been franchised but they make their own product and they all have their particular varieties. Priced very reasonably and portions are generous. I had the old standby, a rich dreamy coffee milkshake with a scoop of chocolate. Both the coffee and the chocolate ice cream are some of the most flavorful products we have had. The shake was excellent, creamy delicious and thick yet drinkable without clumps of ice cream. Maureen had a kiddie cone of Coconut Bar with “shots” (sprinkles for most of us) that was crunchy and tasty beyond belief.

If you are looking for a fun afternoon, try Safari Golf and Praline’s in Berlin. Both are definitely a birdie!

We do li kit!

Over the past year I have had several people suggest We Lik It Ice Cream in Pomfret and it did not disappoint! The place is not much of an establishment with only a takeout window and a couple kids behind the windows but they know their stuff.

This is a working farm that creates their own ice cream weekly. In addition to sugar and waffle cones, cups and shakes or frappes they also make ice cream cakes and sell their product by the pint or quart. They have a variety of flavors, all of the basics and their own exotic concoctions. I had the old standby, coffee milkshake with a single scoop of chocolate to add a little zip. The shake was rich, creamy, thick, let me repeat thick, and gooooddd! Maureen had something called Cricket Crunch, which was vanilla ice cream with mint cookies and giant chocolate chunk. Totally delicious!

If you are in the quiet corner of northeast Connecticut I strongly suggest you check out We Li Kit. You won’t be disappointed! I know I will be going back.

“Best ice cream in the Milky Way”

Spent the day with my good buddy Bill Colehower from Marblehead, Massachusetts. We have an annual golf outing at the end of August and we ended today’s round with a trip to a quirky ice cream shop at Fort Hill Farms in the quiet northeast corner of Connecticut. Fort Hill is an active dairy farm, that also sports a corn maze, some games, and an ice cream shop.

There are ten flavors on the menu but none of them are anything near traditional or common. Bill had raspberry beret which he described as refreshing, fruity, creamy and not the least bit sweet. On the other hand I had the PumpkinCream which was rich in flavor with a granular, icy texture.

According to the owner, Fort Hill Farms makes their exotic flavors weekly and one patron described this as the best ice cream she had in 57 countries and as the “best ice cream in the Milky Way.” I would have to agree.

A family owned place…

To call this place “old school” is a misnomer for sure. Vecchitto’s is a classic! They have been in this location and family owned since 1930…that’s 89 years.

On one hand the establishment doesn’t look like it has had an update in years but in the short time we were there five families with lots of bubbly kids came and went. It was quaint and charming for a Saturday night.

I tried their raspberry Italian ice, which was tasty and delicious but not the least bit sweet, which I found very refreshing. Their most popular flavors are lemon and watermelon.

Maureen had chocolate almond gelati which was was a scoop of almond and a scoop of chocolate with crushed almonds and maraschino cherries in between. I must say the chocolate gelato is the best chocolate product I have had on this “knights of the roundtable” quest.

Both Italian ice and gelato are made fresh, on the premises every morning. And they have two trucks that are available for special occasions.

For a refreshing treat, try Vecchitto’s in Middletown.

100 degrees and counting!

Maureen and I decided to venture out this afternoon and drove up to Cromwell, which is a nice small town on the Connecticut River in the northern parts of Middlesex County. The Subaru showed 100F as we pulled onto West Street in Cromwell.

The Cromwell Creamery is in a small strip mall on the west side of town. Takeout only but they have a couple tables and chairs for guests. I suspect the heat scared people away as as we seem signs up to 103 F!

Once again I had a nice thick, rich creamy coffee milkshake with a scoop of chocolate that was fantastic! Maureen had her old standby, chocolate soft serve with chocolate sprinkles, which collapsed in the heat and landed on a cup. They served both Gifford’s and Ashley’s hard ice cream. Both were delicious for a Sunday afternoon.

If you live in the middle of the State, the Cromwell Creamery is a nice place for a Sunday afternoon drive.

…since 1956!

Dip Top is a classic soft serve ice cream place serving the Orange community since 1956. A smallish place that serves both soft-serve and hard ice cream, this place has a strong local following. Situated on the Boston Post Road in a small strip mall, this place can’t be missed. They serve the traditional chocolate, vanilla and combo soft serve with all the trimmings, hard ice cream, shaved ice and ice cream sandwiches and cakes.

They had a variety of hard ice cream flavors but oddly not chocolate nor vanilla so had to pass on my usual milkshake. Maureen had a chocolate soft serve with chocolate sprinkles (do you detect a theme here?) and I had a mint chocolate chip on a sugar cone. They sell Gifford’s hard ice cream, a fine high quality product which I thoroughly enjoy. Cones and cups were reasonably priced. We were joined by our good friend Renee Leary, who had a vanilla soft serve with chocolate sprinkles on a sugar cone.

A nice lunch time break but all things considered nothing special.

It was bound to happen…

Marvin and I spent the morning with my brother Fred and we drove to Thomaston, a small quaint town on the northern parts of the Housatonic River. Well known for the Seth Thomas clock factory, Thomaston was the center of clock making it the 1800s.

There are three ice cream establishments in Thomaston and it seems all three are closed which left me with no option but to visit a Cumberland Farms. I had a Luigi’s mango flavored Italian ice, which was nice soft, fine grained Italian ice while my brother had a Nestle’s chocolate and vanilla drumstick.

All in all this was a beautiful day for a drive. Hopefully Marve and I can find a nice creamery for our next trip. Happy summer all!

Since 1935

We had a nice dinner tonight with our niece Lauren and her beautiful wife Pierina. Happy couple celebrating their one-year anniversary!

After dinner Maureen and I drove to North Haven to have some ice cream at Friendly’s, an old time establishment that was once popular across many towns in New England. Friendly’s was established in 1935 in Springfield, Massachusetts and there are still 177 diner style restaurants in southern New England.

I had my typical coffee milkshake with a single scoop of chocolate, while Maureen had hard chocolate ice cream with chocolate sprinkles on a sugar cone. While Mo’s cone was satisfying the milkshake was thin and lacked any real taste, which is odd since Friendly’s ice cream is a rich, creamy commercial brand.

Welcome to summer 2019!

Line out the door…

First of the season! Okay maybe second or third. Jennifer’s Ice Cream was recommended by Timmy and Debbie Henley. It’s smaller with limited seating and there is nothing really fancy about this place but the ice cream is great. They have parking for about 20 cars but people were lining up on the street. Surely this was a good sign. Owned by father and son, Frank and Franz Trinkhaus and opened in 1993. They take a short hiatus around Christmas thru early January, otherwise they are open year round.

The ice cream is a home grown product, made fresh every morning by father and son. Multiple flavors, some standard some unique. Soft serve as well and they also serve Libby’s Italian Ice, a New Haven staple. But what seems unique are the other products: ice cream sandwiches, cakes and pies! All the prices seemed very reasonable.

I had a coffee crunch, chocolate milkshake that was highlighted by the rich creamy ice cream, nice and thick and tasty. I was skeptical about the crunch part but it added a nice kick. Mo had a small chocolate soft-serve on a wafer cone with chocolate sprinkles, although the cone was a little flimsy at the bottom.

The line was long, really long out the door. The staff of three young women were efficient, patient with all the little kids…and the big kids, and you never felt like you were waiting that long.

Jennifer’s is definitely a place we will come back when we need an ice cream fix. See you next time Timmy and Debbie!

You can have anything want, chocolate or vanilla!

My good friend Rich Boardman would say to his daughter…”come on Kym, you can have any thing you want, chocolate or vanilla? After a nice dinner at Michael Jordan’s Steakhouse, Maureen and I stopped at ColdStone Creamery in Clinton for dessert. Ironically Rich’s daughter Kym worked at this ColdStone when in high school.

I had a thick coffee milkshake with a scoop of this tangy chocolate that added some zip to this shake. The coffee ice cream was rich, creamy and tasty and I actually asked if the attendant used any Milk! 3 ounces to be precise but it was “thick, thick, thick” as Dan Connor on Rosanne would describe his concoctions. Maureen passed on anything but later regretted her choice when she saw a big old ice cream sunday on the counter.

ColdStone was hoping tonight for a late day in March but it won’t compare to the coming months this summer.

We went this evening with my nephew Jon and his kids Kiki and Spencer to a really cool place called Holey Scoops (@holeyscoops). Family owned and operated by a very charming brother and sister team and their 14-year-old doggie.

Had the old stand by, coffee milkshake with a single scoop of chocolate to jazz it up a bit. Kiki and Spence had cups of mint chocolate chip, while Maureen had a mint chip sugar cone and Jon had a chocolate dipped banana…yes chocolate dipped banana!

Nice location in a strip mall next to an Albertsons grocery store on CA highway 111 in Palm Desert. They serve a commercial product (sorry didn’t catch the name) ice cream, which is a good product, rich and tasty. The milkshake was well prepared thick and creamy throughout and the mint chip was tasty too. Guess I have to go back for the chocolate dipped banana!

#holeyscoops

We spent this afternoon at our good friend Mark Simon’s annual New Years Day Leftover Party and I had a chance to taste Mark’s homemade ice cream, which was better than I have heard and a great way to kickoff 2019. Thanks Mark!

After numerous trips to 26 towns around the state, here is the best of 2018. All of these trips and town visits were special, regardless of whether I was visiting with a good friend like Jae Lorenzet or a having a milkshake at my local joint in Stony Creek. Below is the best of the best for 2018!

HAPPY ICE CREAM!

BEST MILKSHAKE: Thimbleberry’s, Branford. It is all in the preparation and this was the best ice cream I had last year.

MOST NOVEL PRODUCT: Thai Ice Cream, New Haven. In the words of my generation, this is very cool. A close second as The Scoop in Ellington which make a mean Mexicali Chocolate.

BEST CREAMERY: Salem Valley Creamery, Salem. It’s all in the butterfat!

BEST COMMERCIAL ICE CREAM: Gifford’s Ice Cream, multiple locations.

Not just any quest, we’re talking Knights of the Round Table Quest!

I spent the day with my good friend Jae Lorenzet. Jae and I grew up together in Stafford and shared an apartment in college. Jae was the first follower of this blog and continues to give me constant encouragement in this quest. In fact he put out a call on Facebook for recommendations for his friend on a quest.

After a nice hike up Soapstone Mountain in Somers, we enjoyed some spectacular ice cream at “The Scoop” in Ellington. Lots of history in this beautiful farm town. The Scoop is a nice place in a small strip mall in the center of Ellington but this is not your typical ice cream place. It’s open year round and has a nice following. They sell hard ice cream and sorbet, but nothing standard in this place. Their “ice cream” product is from a place called SoCo Creamery in Great Barrington, Massachusetts and none of the flavors I saw were typical…all are somewhat exotic.

I had a Mexicali chocolate milkshake that was thick, creamy and very tasty. This is a lite cocoa ice cream with a mix of cinnamon, cayenne, mint, and espresso, which is a really nice combo. My friend Jae had three scoops…mocha chip and strawberry jam which was also insane.

I have to admit it my quest will be taking me back to Ellington…and not just to see my buddy Jae!

Ding ding ding….

A classic chain, Ben & Jerry’s is a well-oiled machine with lots of options but they are a bit on the pricier side. They have all the basics, albeit with their twist, and some exotic concoctions too. They serve ice cream and frozen yogurt with a variety of toppings, waffle cones, waffle cups, and the standards cones and cups too.

Maureen and I stopped at a Mohegan Sun on our way home from Stafford where I grew up and developed my passion for ice cream. Maureen passed on ice cream today and headed right to the slots while I must admit the attraction for me was an early winter ice cream break. I like Mohegan Sun. I find something about the architecture warm and inviting, there are some good restaurants, live music, and it’s great people watching too.

I opted for an old standby, a coffee milkshake which I must say was quite disappointing. I was hopeful as the gentlemen behind the bar seemed knowledgeable. He warned me Ben & Jerry’s coffee ice cream has chocolate bits floating in the ice cream but I went for it anyway. Not only was the coffee flavor overwhelmed by the chocolate bits, the preparation was inconsistent and poorly executed…watery in place, thick in others, overly chocolate tasty throughout, and overall very unsatisfying.

The moral of the story is if at first you don’t succeed, go back for seconds! There’s always another ice cream place around the corner.

A late entry for 2018…

My buddy Jim Fregeau, my trusty companion Marvelous Marvin and I stopped at the legendary Connecticut establishment, Guida’s in Middlefield. Guida’s opened in 1946 and is well -known for their famous 10-inch-long hotdog on a grilled bun. The restaurant has a nice counter with red vinyl stools and about ten tables.

Jim had two doggies, much to Marvin’s dismay, and a vanilla milkshake, while I went for a chocolate shake. Guida’s serves Gifford’s ice cream, a very nice, rich- tasting commercial product. They have a small ice cream bar with all the basic flavors, but it is well equipped and they weigh the ice cream going into a shake, the first time I have encountered this technique anywhere.

Both shakes were very good, rich tasting with a granular, icy texture. They were thick and very satisfying! I highly recommend Guida’s if traveling through Middlefield for a taste of nostalgia and rich creamy ice cream.

Happy Thanksgiving all!