There’s nothing like a sugar cone filled with flavored rich creamy goodness to cool even the hottest Georgia summer day. And since July is National Ice Cream Month, declared such in 1984 by then-President Ronald Reagan, that got us to thinking about some of our favorite ice cream stops around West Cobb County.
Now, we’re not saying this is a comprehensive list of ALL the best ice cream stops in West Cobb, but rather, a list of some of the favorites we frequent for frozen favors. And, though not technically ice cream, we’re going to include frozen custard and yogurt, too. If you can’t handle that inclusion, please stop reading now and go eat something sour to match your attitude.
We don’t proclaim to be ice cream experts, or to have sampled all the ice creams in West Cobb. So, we invite you to leave your favorites in the comments section so we can try them out, if not in July, then perhaps later in the summer.
Our West Cobb Favorites
As to our West Cobb favorites, here’s a list, in random order of my memory rather than ranked by preference:
Four Fat Cows, Marietta. If we had to pick a favorite, this might be it. Let’s start with the broad flavor choice of hand-dipped goodness. Operated by a mother and son duo from a family familiar with celiac disease, the store offers traditional flavors, some exotic options, and a variety of gluten free and diary free treats – all allergen free and perfect when your family includes lactose, gluten and (maybe!) fun-intolerant members!
Sarah Jean’s Ice Cream, Marietta. On Marietta Square, this family shop features 45 flavors, all available in an incredible array of frozen concoctions like shakes, malts, banana splits, sundaes, slushes, and more. We love eating in because we’re suckers for an establishment with an operating model train. But, we often carry-out because it gets just too crowded with discriminating ice cream aficionados.
Frozen Cow Creamery, Kennesaw. Just off Main Street near the Locomotive Museum, this hidden gem has served handmade, nitrogen-frozen ice cream since 2016. We’re often frozen in our decision making by the array of choices. Or, conversely, we get wildly cold-creative. For the less adventuresome, let the 32 “standard” options on the “classic” menu, be your starting point. Our favorite: bananas foster, with a touch of chocolate and coconut added.
Culvers, various locations. We discovered this Wisconsin-based frozen custard on trips to America’s dairy land when working for a Manitowoc, WI, based company named The Manitowoc Company. We celebrated when Culver’s opened outposts in Georgia. Here’s a little secret: $2 Tuesday! They pack some of their best flavors into pint servings, and you can take those home at a big discount.
Bruster’s, various locations. Yes, it’s a chain, but their hand-dipped flavors retain the freshness we love at local creameries. Bruster’s stores are franchised and locally operated, and each generally features at least two dozen flavors. A few standards are always available, then they rotate others in from 150+ options in the chain’s flavor freezer.
Dairy Queen, various locations. Tom Hanks was quoted famously that he gained lots of weight when filming the movie classic, “A League of Their Own,” because of trips to Dairy Queen. Over the years, the chain has narrowed its list of the mix-in Blizzard offer. But, when the line is short or we have a long-experienced worker, we still sometimes order — and provide instructions for making — the French Silk Pie Blizzard since all the original ingredients remain in-store for use in other treats.
Favorites Elsewhere
It’s hard to remember all the places we’ve enjoyed ice cream during our travels. But here are a few we’d recommend:
Goats on the Roof, Tiger, GA. Yes, there are actual goats on the roof. And their nitro ice cream was an unexpected treat.
Mt. Desert Ice Cream, Bar Harbor, ME. There are several around, but downtown Bar Harbor was the best for flavors, service and local scenery.
Mickey Mouse Bars, Disney World, FL. It’s a family tradition for our kids and grandkids, so it had to make the list.
Mr. B’s Ice Cream, Branson, MO. We probably could have listed lots of other choices here, but we only tried this one, old-fashioned location.
Georgia’s U-Pick Farms, various locations. Whenever we’re down on one of these farms, if ice cream is available, we get it. Strawberry at Southern Belle and peach at Lane are among our favs.
Gelato, Anywhere in Italy. Or, anywhere in Europe. Perfect for a quick cool-down on in virtually any European city.
Vivoli Il Gelato, Disney Springs, FL. This was a close copy of the authentic Euro experience.
The Hyppo Gourmet Ice Pops, St. Augustine, FL. Not really ice cream, but ice pops in a variety of unique flavors. Remember our statement about inclusiveness?
