[Day 12] Don't be a Snob: Cucumber Ice Cream #20DaysofICECREAM

Special flavors change daily
As the Brown Paper roll is ripped & replenished

Some would say I have become kind of an ice cream snob. The other day someone offered me some store bought ice cream and I found out to be repulsive.

Naturally, when I visited à la minute, known for their handcrafted flavors made using the now infamous nitrogen liquid, I went with the quirkiest choice...the special of the day: Mint & Cucumber Custard topped with a finger lime simple syrup.

"Let me get the medium size," I cockily ordered.
"Are you sure you don't want the small just to try it out," the associate warned me.
"No, it's okay. I promise I will eat it all.."
"Okay, we can get you a different one if you end up not enjoying it."
"Don't worry, I can do it."


At this point you can take my presumptuous, self-proclaimed foodie title and throw it out the window. That cucumber stuff belongs on anything but ice cream. The flavor was comparable to cucumber facial masks. On that note, let's not try to pretend the cucumber and cream cheese sandwiches are the best part of tea time!

The syrup does nothing to strengthen the likability :(

Customer satisfaction is a high priority at à la minute, I was given the option to try another ice cream since I admitted defeat with the cucumber ice cream. I ended up with the Chocolate Lavender. The first spoonful gives your mouth an unusual reception of ice cream flavor. The lavender pierces through the chocolate and surprises the part of your brain that manages taste buds. After a couple more bites, the spiced chocolate flavor adapts to familiarize with the body and mind. Overall, it is just okay.

The Affogado is pretty neat for the coffee lovers out there! A scoop of vanilla bean ice cream floats atop à la minute's coffee beverage. My personal favorite is the Espresso Chip! Such a great texture mixed in with enjoyable crunchy cookie chips in every spoonful.

Although the Riverside location has been open since 2012, the Downtown Orange shop just opened this past June. For those further away from Beverly Hill's beloved Ice Cream Lab or Irvine's Creamistry, à la minute' definitely fills in the demand for liquid nitrogen ice cream for residents in LA's east side. 


--C.H.

Chocolate Lavender with liquid nitrogen brewing in the background

Espresso Chip

Affogato (Floating Ice Cream Scoop in Coffee)

For the Pretty Little Liar Fans out there

Downtown Orange Location

My Little Minions

à la minute
Handcrafted Ice Cream made with Frozen Liquid Nitrogen

117 N. Glassell Street

Orange, CA  92866

                &

19 E. Citrus Ave. #105

Redlands, CA 92373

Follow @FooodisGoood on Instagram
Tag #20DaysofICECREAM 

[Day 11] With A Honeycomb On Top #20DaysofICECREAM

I was a bit lost walking around in this plaza off LA's most congested main streets, Wilshire Boulevard, so I had to text a K-Town native friend to confirm I was in the right place.

FIG Tip: Ask for directions!

As I looked up from my phone, I see a buzzing little bee float in front of me. Yup, it's gotta be somewhere around here. Follow the march of the bumble bees!

My nails match my desert #winning

What is that on top you ask? Well, I can assure you this ain't no cherry on top sundae... 

"Pure Honeycomb"

HoneyMee is an ice cream shop that offers milk ice cream with a swirl of honey and a honeycomb on top. Now, I don't really care for honey that much, but I couldn't get enough of this pairing! The "True Milk" ice cream is HoneyMee's pride and joy, and with great reason so, because it really tastes like the milkiest milk served as a frozen treat. Apparently the milk is produced from a family owned, Kosher dairy factory in California. If you're a bit skeptical about the honeycomb topper, you can choose not to order one but, of course, that wouldn't be a very cool Instagram pic now would it? Just get the 100% pure honeycomb, it's kind of the main attraction.

FIG Tip: Check-in on Yelp to get $0.50 off

HELP! The bees keep coming near my ice cream!

HoneyMee
3377 Wilshire Blvd
Los Angeles, CA 90010



**CAUTION: When eating at HoneyMee, be aware of all the bees hanging out there. They really have a thing for the honeycomb on top. 

[DAY 10] Farrell's 5th Annual Ice Cream Eating Competition VIDEO #20DaysofICECREAM

*CUE DRUM ROLL*

DUNDUNDUNDUN...

I ATE 3 SCOOPS OF ICE CREAM WITH WHIP CREAM ON TOP IN 3:57 minutes. It's pretty slow compared to the other competitors, but seriously...you gotta be crazy to eat each scoop in less than 30 seconds. The fastest challenger in the woman's category got a time of 1 minute!

The Aftermath Commentary: 
Did I get brain freeze? Surprisingly not. I was shivering internally and couldn't stop smiling mostly because the muscles in my jaw were frozen. I have no idea why, but I didn't and I'm happy with it.

The inside of my mouth lost all feeling. Have you ever experienced burning your tongue on a scorching hot drink? That's how it was on the rooftops of my mouth for two days straight, except in this case it was freezer burn. I also noticed a super sensitive reception when cold products touched my teeth for three days.

I kept it all in. It was a total food/sugar high above anything I've felt before. I just let it sit in my stomach while I walked around a shopping center. Then, I ate a couple of fish cake sticks and took a long nap.

Join me next year? I already have a few brave souls willing to try it out next summer!

3 Scoops of Crazy

My Support Team!

Me & My #Selfie

Me & The Manager

Commemorative T-Shirt Woohoo!

Farrell’s 5th annual Splendiferously Superific Summer Spectacular Ice Cream Eating Challenge

+Benefiting Children's Hospital of OC (CHOC) and Make-A-Wish Foundation ...IT'S FOR THE KIDS!

--C.H.

Q&A: What's my favorite food?

P.S. I am halfway into my #20DaysofICECREAM. Day 10 post will be coming up soon along with a video of me eating Farrell's ice cream in 3:57 minutes. However, I had to take a brief break because I lost feeling in the rooftops of my mouth for a couple days. Not to make further excuses, but my teeth also grew super sensitive to cold temperature foods. Don't worry, I've recovered so I will be on more ice cream missions!

[Day 9] Gelatissimo #20DaysofICECREAM

Gelato is starting to give me the impression it is actually "designer ice cream." For one thing, many of these gelato shops are all structured like high end boutiques. Don't even get me started on the overblown price tags that goes with a small serving size. However, I still enjoy gelato because it comes in a more eclectic array of unique flavor creations.

"Gelatissimo" is owned by an Italian family. Just like Italian leather shoes are of high quality, I feel Italian owned places can boast such authenticity with Italian products such as the gelato.

Three words: WHITE. CHOCOLATE. NUTELLA.

...Absolutely heavenly! Swirled in the white chocolate Nutella are bits of chocolate with crisped rice, which are sure to make your taste buds jump up and down. What can be better than the chocolatey taste complimented with strawberry gelato to wash down that cocoa breath.

I also recommend the Roasted Almond and Pistachio as a combination! The two creamier flavors envelope each other very well.

For fruit lovers, check out peach and wild berries. Other exclusive flavors include Fig, Basil, and Tiramisu.

There's also a good selection of Italian desserts to check out!

Peach & Wildberries

For Whip Cream connoisseurs, ask for this free extra!

--C.H.

Trying to smile with gelato in the back

Gelatissimo 
(In the 85 Degree Bakery Plaza)
2682 E Garvey Ave S
West Covina, CA 91791

[DAY 8] An Unlikely Pair: Habanero Chocolate #20DaysofICECREAM

Laguna Beach - the TV show that brought fame to Miss Lauren "LC" Conrad. As of 2010, Laguna Beach is also home to the Habanero Chocolate gelato! You should definitely try out such an odd combination.

The first bite is chocolate....and then your tongue is left with a spicy sensation as if you just had a bite of scorching hot chili pepper. Honestly though, I didn't think I could handle a whole serving of Habanero Chocolate, so I settled for boring but super refreshing, Pink Guava. I was allowed two flavor choices, yet stuck with one because I don't believe gelato's mixes well with other flavors like regular ice cream does.

Stand out flavors I was fascinated with include Ferrero Rocher, Chocolate Sea Salt Truffle, Sangria, Fresh Sage, and Champagne Pear.

--C.H.


P.S. Eating gelato after a day at the beach is the best thing ever!

From the outside it looks like a shoe boutique!

Pink Guava

 

That's my mom and I

Dolce Gelato

247 Broadway Street
Laguna Beach, CA 92651



Follow #20DaysofICECREAM on @FooodisGoood 's Instagram

[DAY 7] The Cold Never Bothered Me Anyway #20DaysofICECREAM

No, I do not want to build a snowman!!!

Afters Ice Cream doughtnuts were all the rage at the beginning of this year, but as of two weeks ago, there is a new ice cream doughnut joint just a couple miles away...and they've named their creation "The Fronut". I had the opportunity to chat with the owner of Frozen Bar, the newly opened dessert corner in Garden Grove. Now, this part of the OC is heavily compacted with food options, so if you want to open a store here it better be good enough to keep up with the cut throat competition of surrounding peers. For instance, the ice cream doughnut phenomenon has taken the foodie world by storm.

Of course, by the time I finished my conversation with Mr. Frozen Bar, I lost my place in line. Since it was at the end of the night, I also lost the particular shaped gelato bar I wanted to some other customer in line while I was gibbering away. The kind girl at the counter, bless her heart, gave me a chance to order without standing back in line, so all was well in the land of FROZEN.

But I digress...

Frozen Bar offers ice cream filled doughnuts, gelato bars, and original ice cream flavors. They have preferences that are more for the cultural taste buds, such as durian ice cream in a Pandan waffle cone. I came for the gelato bars though because, quite frankly if you haven't noticed, I've had an ice cream overload so I thought I'd switch it up a bit. For those who are trying to stay away from too much sugar, Frozen Bar's selections are pretty light on the sweet. It is just barely open for business, so I can't make too many strong opinions because I believe you can't judge fledgling stores too critically. I do see a potential for the store to be a favorite this summer because of some of the more unique flavor concepts.

When you do visit Frozen Bar, let me know if you can't stop replaying "Let It Go" in your head over and over even after you leave the premises. Oh and do me a favor, please add #20DaysofICECREAM with your ice cream photo op.


--C.H.

Frozen Cheesecake Bar

Frozen Thai Tea Bar

She's my Foodie Guru

Frozen Bar
10130 Garden Grove Blvd, Ste 115
Garden Grove, CA 92844

*There's not a lot of info on the their website, but click if you want to anyways. I discourage the use of Yelp to make your final decision on a place, although I myself am guilty of being swayed by reviews as well. 

Don't rely on ratings to dictate what you eat. If you think a place is good, then try it and who knows, maybe you just have a different tongue for it!

[DAY 6] Anaheim Packing House: Be Careful Not To Eat Too Much Ice Cream #20DaysofICECREAM

The Anaheim Packing House has been only been open for a month and it has already made a splash in the OC. When I first tried to describe the place to people, all I could come up with was "a giant, fancy food court." Whoever thought of this concept really nailed the growing artsy-fartsy culture of food enthusiasts.

If anyone asks you out on a date to the Packing House, don't freak out when he takes you to a warehouse looking building in a relatively quiet area. (But in any other instances this might happen, you should run for help.)

So I guess this building has been built since 1919, but has recently been restored to what it is today. You can be sure not to expect any typical food court chain restaurants, though. The Packing House boasts 20+ merchants that provides a selection of authentic food and drink varieties. There are a couple vendors still in the process of being developed as well. 

Now on to my food focus: the two ice cream shops that have made their home in the Packing House. 

On your left is the amazing tasting product of the Popbar. According to popbar.com, this is what they've coined a "handcrafted gelato on a stick." But, in my own words:
"A green tea gelato bar partially dipped dark chocolate, drizzled with white chocolate, and embellished with hazelnut and caramel popcorn bits." 

There are a bunch of add ons you can choose from...whether gelato or sorbetto, pistachio or hazelnut...the possibilities are pretty much in your taste bud's favor.

I have to mention that there is one location in New York City and Mexico, two in Canada....and like FOUR locations in Jakarta, Indonesia!!! That's my birthplace, so how cool righttt. No?

Well, for those who are sizzling out in Indonesia this summer, Popbars are located in:

• Central Park Mall 
• Baywalk Mall 
• Lotte Shopping Avenue (2 stores in 1 mall...pretty intense!) 

Now moving on to the next ice cream stop at the Packing House...

Sundaes, shakes, and multiple scoops of ice cream. You know the drill! It's that old fashioned ice cream fix over here at Hans'.

With all your favorite flavors, ice cream lovers will get their money's worth with the quality ingredients Hans uses to create each small batch. Notable flavors offered are Rum Raisin, Nutella, and Blueberry Cheesecake.

Little tidbits: Add a sugar cone to your cup at no cost!

The scoop on the left is a single serving, so you can be sure Hans' provides a very generous serving. I ate this ice cream while waiting in line for Popbar. Then, I proceeded to eat a Popbar ice pop directly after.

Fat life, for sure.

Is your mouth watering? I hope so because I think I might go again real soon and I will need some help trying more flavors. Not to mention, you should really be careful not to eat too much ice cream in one sitting especially if you haven't had dinner yet. Parents were right to tell you not to spoil your appetite with dessert. Thereafter, my stomach was pretty weird during dinner, and I ended up only eating a couple stuffed mushrooms at Cheesecake Factory that night.

--C.H.

You can take photos here, shamelessly!

My Proof of #Wefie

For more info:
Anaheim Packing House
440 S. Anaheim Blvd
Anaheim, CA, 92805
*Live Music on weekends:
Noon-12pm (Sat & Sun)
7-9pm (Fri & Sat)


Follow #20DaysofICECREAM on Instagram @FooodisGoood


*Editorial addition:

Orange Chocolate Chip & Coffee Oreo
(I went again a week later and tried these 2 interesting flavors!)

[Day 5] More Than 31 Flavors #20DaysofICECREAM

Every time I drive around the San Gabriel Valley area (aka the infamous 626), I get transported back into my childhood. Apparently Fosselman's Ice Cream parlor has been around for 95 years, and only two days ago I found out I lived literally just around the corner as a kid. Once you walk in, there's a real old fashioned parlor essence about the place. From the jars of taffy and giant jaw breakers to the glass bottles of soda pop, the authenticity of old school ice cream is brought to life.  Move over 31 flavors of Baskin-Robbins! Fosselman's offers a way more eclectic selection of fun ice cream flavors. 

The double scoop cone was a big selling point for me...of course I was going for it! Mind you, before heading to Fosselman's I had a massive meal (all you can eat Korean BBQ), nonetheless this did not hinder me from enjoying my own order. I absolutely loved how the English Toffee had so much character in a scoop; it went deliciously with the Chocolate Rasberry Mousse. The chocolate rasberry was not as sweet as it sounds, the ingredients are well mixed in such a way that it didn't overpower the English Toffee scoop. 

Double the trouble: English Toffee + Chocolate Rasberry Mousse 

For the Taro lovers

The ice cream sandwiches come in a pack of six. I thought the cookies that shelled the ice cream inside were scrumptious! The texture is not soft like grocery store bought ice cream sandwiches, but a bit crunchier. As I munched on, I was delighted with the delightfulness of the cookie flavor. Seriously though, I kept raving about the cookies and kind of forgot about ice cream for a minute.

So side story, the guy who bought the ice cream sandwiches ate four all by himself. Cray, right? He ate KBBQ with me, too, so that is just double insanity!

Another side story, I actually got a big case of the "food high" in which one tends to fall into a state of euphoria from all the good food one has consumed. I thought everything was so funny and laughed by myself for a bit. No big deal. Just thought ya'll should know...don't consume KBBQ and then
two giant scoops of ice cream within a one hour time span.

--C.H.

Proof of #Wefie

For more info: Fosselman's Ice Cream Co.
1824 W. Main St.
Alhambra, CA 91801







Follow #20DaysofICECREAM on Instagram @FooodisGoood

[Day 4] Indie Ice Cream #20DaysofICECREAM

Dripp has been open for a little under three years, but has steadily become an indie favorite among coffee connoisseurs and ice cream zealots. Sure, it's not located in the hub of LA where most "trendy" joints of its kind operate, though that's what adds on to the allure of this hipster boutique coffee house. Come on really, what's more indie than contemporary downtown style? How about contemporary downtown style concealed in contemporary suburban style?
   
Ice cream is what these #20DaysofICECREAM is about, however, coffee is my vice. Dripp uses coffee beans that are roasted in small batches by Espresso Republic, promising each cup to be steamed with individuality.

Now on to the Ice Cream Bar. As you can see above, Dripp offers a selection of freshly baked cookies to go along with your desired ice cream. Seasonal flavors range from Blueberry Cheesecake to Lucky Charms cereal. Currently, they offer Horchata (Mexican rice drink) and Chai ice cream. Flavors curated on the daily include Static Espresso, Vanilla Bean, Strawberry, Mint Chip, and Nutella. The couple of times I went with a large group, there have been mixed opinions on the ice cream. While I do enjoy the generous scoop of creamy texture and hip flavors, the last morsels left behind just get a bit too sweet for my [already high] tolerance of sweetness.

 Chai Ice Cream - Season flavor
(1 VERY GENEROUS Scoop)

Look out, Fullerton, a new Dripp location is coming soon. I'm glad they found another low key suburb to serve ice cream in discretion, because eating ice cream in LA would just be too mainstream. 

--C.H.

For more info: Dripp 

13855 City Center Dr #3015

Chino Hills, CA 91709

If you visit make sure to tag @FooodisGoood on Instagram!