Ice cream always sounds like a great idea. In 1984, President Ronald Reagan proclaimed July as National Ice Cream Month and established National Ice Cream Day as the third Sunday of July. Reagan described ice cream as ‘‘a nutritious and wholesome food enjoyed by over 90 percent of the people in the United States.’’
The good news is that great ice cream is readily available, and here’s the scoop on where to get the best.
Blue Bell is as Texas as barbecue. Stop by their creamery in Brenham, halfway between Austin and Houston. See how they make their ice cream from the observation deck and then enjoy a scoop in the retro ice cream parlor. The two new flavors of Blue Bell Ice Cream are Gooey Butter Cake and A&W Root Beer Float.
H-E-B Creamy Creations ice cream is proudly made in San Antonio with fresh cream from H-E-B’s local creamery. Over 100 varieties include options for sugar-free, reduced-calorie/fat and Kosher diets. Vanilla and chocolate lovers are both covered. There’s 1905 Vanilla — named for the year H-E-B was founded — and Texas Starry Night is a combination of rich chocolate with big chunky swirls of chocolate sandwich cookies.
Every downtown square needs at least one ice cream parlor.
Scoops is located in the All Things Kids toy store. A selection of 42 flavors includes French Toast and Amaretto Cheesecake. Add a scoop of Gummi bears, sour worms, taffy, gum balls, jelly beans, chocolate raisins, lollipops and lemon drops for endless combinations.
Kilwins Georgetown is located on the corner of Austin Avenue and Eighth Street. The chocolate shop offers thirty six ice cream flavors made from original recipes. The creamy consistency is due to a low air content. Sea-Salt Caramel combines swirls of salted caramel with chocolate-covered caramel candy.
The Baked Bear is just off the Square at 109 East Seventh Street. Ice cream is sandwiched by fresh-baked cookies and brownies. Sandwiches can be rolled through toppings for a bit of crunch. The “have it your way” options makes Baked Bear special. A rotation of Ice cream flavors come from Wisconsin dairy country. Cookies and brownies are baked daily on site.
The Yard milkshake bar at 940 West University Avenue offers ‘over the top’ extravagant milkshakes. The Yard was featured on Shark Tank where a deal was made with Mark Cuban. Expansion of the specialty franchise led to the opening of The Yard at Wolf Crossing in 2020. Yard shakes are a feast for the eye as well as the tongue.
Baskin Robbins in Georgetown is located at 3303 Williams Drive. In 1945, Burt Baskin and Irv Robbins were big ice cream people. Other ice cream shops stuck with vanilla, chocolate and strawberry, but Baskin and Robbins decided to go big with 31 flavors. It’s definitely the place for celebration ice cream cakes.
Dairy Queen offers world-famous soft serve ice cream. The signature treat, The Blizzard, is a blend of soft serve and mix-ins. A new summer offering is the Peanut Butter Cookie Dough Party Blizzard filled with delicious chunks of chocolate chip cookie dough, swirls of creamy peanut butter topping and peanut brittle crunch with sprinkles. DQ is located at 1000 Williams Drive.
The Frozen Flamingo at 1208 Williams Drive is for you if frozen custard is your favorite. The Peach Cobbler Concrete is peach filling and graham cracker swirled with vanilla custard. Other summer offerings include the Peaches & Cream Shake and the Strawberry Shortcake Sundae.
Happy National Ice Cream Day! Beat the heat with an ice cream treat!