Photo / Alexis Wells
The Mainebiz staff members and guests taking part in the ice cream taste test.
July 19, 2024
Friday Food Insider: Ahead of National Ice Cream Day, here’s the scoop from our tasting crew
Photo / Renee Cordes
Kettle Cove Ice Cream and Shack is a creamery, lobster, clam and burger shack located at 2 Bowery Road in Cape Elizabeth.
The weather's been sweltering, Sunday is National Ice Cream Day, and so the Mainebiz staff decided it was time for a cold, refreshing treat. Let's have another taste test, we said — with ice cream.
Nine members of the Mainebiz staff and two guest tasters tried frozen confections from 10 local shops across Maine. We all screamed for ice cream — from Saco, Skowhegan, Bar Harbor, Hollis, Rumford and plenty of other places, and the finale was on Tuesday.
Team members had gathered two varieties from each shop: a pint of vanilla and a pint of a signature flavor or top seller. We noted the prices for everything, with the highest cost for the two pints totaling $36.29 including tip. The lowest price was $12.80.
Here's the scoop.
It's time for the taste test
Giffords, headquartered in Skowhegan at 307 Madison Ave., offers a variety of ice cream flavors. For this taste test, we tried the toasted coconut, which is a fan favorite, according to the Gifford’s staff members. Various Mainebiz staff members thought the flavor was spot-on, light and refreshing. A few thought that the coconut taste was too overpowering.
“I love anything with toasted coconut,” said Kerry Rasor, who is on the Mainebiz sales team.
The flavor we tried from the Mosquito Ice Cream Shop, at 1333 Roosevelt Trail in Raymond, was called Milky Way. Although the ice cream was nice and creamy, the Milky Way flavor itself didn't suit everyone.
“It was good, but the flavor wasn’t quite there,” said Mainebiz intern Boden Terry.
Willard Scoops is a family-owned ice cream shop at 429 Preble St. in South Portland, in the heart of the Willard Beach neighborhood. We tried the shop's salted caramel, which was creamy, very sweet and had a great caramel flavor.
“A little too sweet,” said Katie Rooks, a guest taster. But still, she said, "The caramel flavor was great.”
We tried the lemon poppy jam flavor at Mount Desert Island Ice Cream, which has an outlet at 51 Exchange St. in Portland. Our testers found the flavor unusual.
“Like the lemon; not a fan of the seeds,” said Senior Writer Renee Cordes.
The coffee Oreo flavor from Beal’s Old Fashioned Ice Cream at 12 Moulton St. in Portland quickly became a favorite. Everyone thought it had a great coffee flavor.
“It tastes like real coffee, I love it,” said Terry.
At Kettle Cove Ice Cream and Shack, a creamery, lobster clam, and burger shack located at 2 Bowery Road in Cape Elizabeth, we tried the blueberry pie ice cream, which the majority found too sweet.
The ladybug flavor from Smiling Hill Farm consisted of strawberry ice cream with chocolate chips. We were expecting fresh strawberries, but instead, the ice cream was strawberry milk-based. It was an average strawberry ice cream.
“Nice and light, “ said Cordes. "I liked the berry and chocolate combo.”
At Big Daddy’s North, in Hollis at 22 Hollis Road, there are 30 flavors of homemade ice cream. We tried the peanut butter Oreo. Everyone found that this had great flavor and was simply delicious.
“Oreo was very good,” said Mainebiz Editor Peter Van Allen. “I even went back for more.”
Photo / Alexis Wells
Garsides Ice Cream, in Saco
At Garsides, located in Saco at 320 Ferry Road, we tried the blueberry cheesecake, another customer favorite according to the Garsides staff. We found it average and felt it didn't have the strongest blueberry flavor, but was very creamy.
The Hakuna Matata flavor at Saco Scoop, which offers over 30 flavors of Shaker Pond Ice Cream, also received mixed reviews among the group. This variety is a chocolate ice cream with a caramel swirls and chocolate chips. Everyone found it chocolaty and very creamy.
“It was an incredible example of a rich, creamy, and classic chocolate,” said Ken Hanson, who is on the Mainebiz sales team. “It was simply fabulous.”
In the vanilla sampling, the vanilla from Giffords was the pick of our panel. The second-favorite was the vanilla from Willard Scoops.
National Ice Cream Day facts
- National Ice Cream Day sprinkles on an extra excuse to indulge in frozen goodness. Whether you want to chase down your neighborhood ice cream truck or venture out for freebies, this is the go-to day to support local ice cream shops.
- President Ronald Reagan created National Ice Cream Day. He proclaimed July as National Ice Cream Month and established it on the third Sunday in July.
- A Google search conducted by Cookie Rookie investigated to see which ice cream flavors were the most loved in each U.S. state. The results showed Moose Tracks was the second-most popular variety across the country, and was favored by four states including Maine. The top ice cream from the data was Neapolitan. Moose Tracks ice cream features vanilla ice cream swirled with fudge and peanut butter cups.
What else is up in the foodie world
After nearly 40 years, Big G’s Deli in Winslow — a storied go-to for generations of Colby College students — is closing. The restaurant posted on its website that it would close on July 14.
Walter’s Cafe has opened its doors in Brunswick at 149 Maine St. The cafe offers a variety of salads, soups, sandwiches and breakfast items, all made from local ingredients. The menu changes regularly to highlight what is in season. The cafe is open Tuesday through Saturday, from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m.
What is your go-to Maine ice cream spot? The Mainebiz Food Insider wants to know! Contact Alexis Wells at awells@mainebiz.biz
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