While July is National Ice Cream Month, every day is appropriate for a little (or a lot) of this cold dessert. We thought summer was the perfect time to focus our efforts on finding the best local ice cream and frozen treats. We rolled up our sleeves, loosened our belts, and began sampling ice creams and custards, sundaes and sorbets – all to create this week’s Patch Picks: The Best Ice Cream Shops Around.
Best Overall
Abbott's Frozen Custard, Shrub Oak
Chris Pietris of Shrub Oak stopped into Abbott's four years ago, right after the custard shop first opened. “I tried the cherry custard and it was unbelievably good so I asked (owner Bobby Joachim) for a job. I’ve been here ever since,” explained Pietris of his passion for Abott's Custard.
Pietris is adamant that the reason Abbott's is so much better than every other frozen treat around is because Abbott's sells custard, which, unlike regular ice cream, is made with eggs and real cream instead of frozen milk. “It’s much richer and creamier than the stuff made at other places,” he said.
We agree – Abbott's Custard is amazingly creamy, smooth, rich and delicious!
If you’re not in the mood for custard, Abbott's customer David Margulies recommends the chocolate covered bananas and coffee soda.
Best Atmosphere
, Peekskill
Nellie’s gelatos and sorbets are refreshing and delicious. Try Nellie's top seller - the dark fudge gelato, or one of our favorite summery flavors -the coconut gelato and mango sorbetto. If you're over 21, you can order up a champagne float (made with champagne and mango and raspberry sorbet). Virgin champagne floats are also available.
These treats are more than enough reason to check out Nellie’s Café. But what we really love about Nellie’s is the cool vibe and entertaining atmosphere that accompanies every frozen bite. Nellie’s offers 16 flavors of gelatos and sorbettos, public and private karaoke space, and a family friendly atmosphere.
Most Wholesome Ice Cream
, Croton-on-Hudson
Blue Pig Ice Cream is made from hormone and antibiotic free dairy products from the Hudson Valley Co-op and fresh, locally sourced fruits whenever possible. The Blue Pig offers only a limited selection of ice cream flavors daily, but this homemade ice cream has no artificial colors, flavors or high fructose corn syrup, and is naturally delectable.
Best Flavor Selection
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Although Baskin Robbins’ promises to have 31 flavors for the 31 days of the month, the company actually has thousands of flavors that are being constantly rotated in and out of stores. July’s flavor of the month is Super Soldier Swirl: vanilla ice cream swirled with blue chips and cherry flavored ribbons.
Best Sundaes
Cold Stone Creamery, Cortlandt Manor
At Cold Stone Creamery, choose from an in-depth menu of 25 signature creations (Cold Stone’s name for their super indulgent line of sundaes). Our favorite signature creation is the Birthday Cake Re-Mix, a sundae made of birthday cake ice cream, fudge brownie, and rainbow sprinkles.
Next week, we'll focus on the best burgers. Got a favorite burger joint? Email me at ajaxjoll@yahoo.com, or post it here and I'll be sure to check it out.
