26 in 2026: Visit a New Ice Cream Place -- Creekside Creamery

 A Facebook poll rated Creekside Creamery the best ice cream in Valley. It beat out Leon's and Frogg's.  I figured that was a good enough reason to try it. When the smoke was going to be a potential issue for the T-Rats game, I suggested getting drinks at the game and then celebrating National Ice Cream Day with some ice cream. She readily agreed and suggested Creekside Creamery. 

Creekside Creamery is just off downtown Hortonville on Nash Street. It is open 7:30-8 Tue-Sat and 11-8 on Sundays. They are currently closed on Mondays. There is small parking lot in the back. 

Creekside Creamery features natural ice cream and coffee meaning no artificial colors or flavors. They have unique flavors of ice cream as well as dairy free ice cream. You can sample all 24 flavors if you want before making a decision. The rotation keeps changing so you never know what they have.

Some of the unique flavors they had was Lemon White Chocolate Scone, Quinoa Sweet Cream, Lemon Poppyseed, Strawberry Rhubarb, Mojito and Rum. They had basic flavor as well such as Chocolate Peanut Butter Cup, Birthday Cake, Orange Dreamsicle, Sweet Cream, and Chocolate. 

Heather and I had lemon white chocolate scone. The hubby went with Birthday Cake. Her hubby had Lemon Poppyseed. I almost went with chocolate peanut butter cup but realized I wanted to try new ice cream flavors this year. I also almost got the quinoa but opted with the lemon white chocolate scone. 

My sample was fantastic. I was excited to get a scoop of it. I found the actual scoop disappointing. It lack lemon flavor through out. There was one or two burst of lemon flavor other than that, I felt it didn't have much flavor. The hubby said his birthday cake tasted like sprinkles and no real cake flavor. I think since it's natural flavor, it's not going to stand out as much as artificial flavors.

Overall I was kind of disappointed. I would go back but I'm not racing out to Hortonville when I get an ice cream craving. 

If you want to avoid artificial flavors/colors or need dairy free ice cream, this is the place for you. I definitely would recommend trying it. It is a popular place and I hope they make it. I would also like to try their coffee drinks. 

7470. Go to Rainbow Cone

 When Stacy mentioned this ice cream place that was coming to Wisconsin and had a location near Elmhurst, I knew I had to add it to the bucket list.

Rainbow Cone is a Chicago Tradition for almost 100 years. It now has locations in Il, WI, IN, MI, FL, CA, and TX for sure. We went to the Lombard, IL location about 5 miles from Elmhurst. They are open 11-10 Sun-Thu and 11-11 Fri and Sat. 

Rainbow Cone is famous for their sliced, not scoped ice cream. The original is 5 flavors -- Chocolate, Strawberry, Palmer House, Pistachio, and Orange Sherbet. You end up getting a nice layered look to your cone. They offer 4 other sliced creations. Besides sliced creations, you can get scoops of ice cream, mini donuts, and milkshakes. We all went with sliced creations.

We all had Original Slices. Stacy had the original. The kiddo had Cosmic Birthday Cake (Superman and Birthday Cake). I went with Minty City (chocolate and mint chip). Somehow I missed the chocolate obsession. I actually read the menu and saw had a junior cone while Stacy ordered regular for her and the kiddo.

I am definitely glad I went with the junior scoop because the regular was a lot of ice cream. 

The ice cream was very creamy and delicious. The mint was just the right level of mintiness -- not too minty.  I love the little cone holders so you don't drip ice cream all over the place.

Maybe next time I will try the original. I only didn't because I'm not a fan of strawberry or pistachio but it looked good enough to try. I am still not sure what exactly Palmer House is. Stacy mentioned it had nuts in it. 

If you ever find yourself near a rainbow cone, check them out. They are definitely on my list to hit again. As they say life is too short for just one flavor.

Dining Adventures: Magic Wand

 After we left the Studebaker Museum and was headed to find Johnny Appleseed's Grave in Fort Wayne, we headed towards Dayton. As we were driving the back roads of Indiana, it was becoming lunch time. We found a McDonald's. As we pulled in, I look across the street and said "or we could go there." There turned out to be The Magic Wand and it looked like a burger joint. It was a simple decision, we went across the street. 

The Magic Wand is a clown theme restaurant in Churubusco, IL  It is open daily 6 AM to 9 PM except Sundays when it opens at 7 AM. It is about 25 minutes northwest of Fort Wayne. 

Good thing we aren't afraid of clowns because there are clowns every where. Even the bathrooms had clowns If you are afraid of clowns, you might want to order take out.

The menu is mainly burgers and fried foods. It does have a daily special as well that is more homecooked. 

We both had burgers. I went with a bacon cheeseburger and waffle fries. Both were very good. They may look ordinary but actually very good.

They are also known for their ice cream. They had a whole page of sundaes. 

The hubby had a caramel sundae. I went with the Brownie Tornado -- Chocolate ice cream, hot fudge, brownies, and mini marshmallows. 

I was not expecting such a large sundae. It was two layers of ice cream, fudge, brownies, and marshmallows. I had to bring it with us to eat while we drive and still never finished it. It was amazing but it could have been my whole meal.

If you ever find yourself int the middle of nowhere Northeastern, IN and are not afraid of clowns, definitely stop at the Magic Wand even if it is for ice cream. We told the cashier if it wasn't so far, we'd be back. She was like "How far, Fort Wayne (16 miles away)?" We were like Wisconsin. Yeah that is a bit far for an ET Sundae. It is on my list of diners to revisit if we ever are back in the area. 

5742. Go to Door County Ice Cream Factory in Sister Bay

When we did our library road trip, I wanted to try Door County Ice Cream Factory if possible. Mainly because I wanted a picture by the ice cream mural. Since we had time to kill, I was able to do this.

Door County Ice Cream Factory is located on the north end of Sister Bay, almost as you head out of town. They are open every day during peak season 11-9 or later. 

Originally Door County Ice Cream Factory opened its doors in 1912 and has many owners over the years but one thing remains the same, they still make all their flavors in house. They also serve sandwiches and pizza.

There are about fourteen different flavors. I went with a new one called Brownie by the Bay which was delicious. Heather opted to find a treat elsewhere. She needed more than ice cream. I was too hungry to even take a picture of my cone

It is cute little place with rich history. The sandwiches looked good. 

I took a picture of the mural but didn't take a picture with it. Alas next trip. 

Wilson's is still my favorite door county ice cream place but Door County Ice Cream Factory does rate right up there. Door County does not lack ice cream opportunities. I think I have visited most of them and will eventually check them all out. 

If you find yourself in Sister Bay on a hot summer day, check out Door County Ice Cream Factory. You won't be disappointed. 

5897. Have ice cream at Belts' in Stevens Point

 The hubby said we could do whatever we wanted on the way back from Eau Claire. I wanted to get ice cream at Belts' in Stevens Point. We tried one other time and it was super busy. 

Belts' is a soft serve ice cream stand near downtown Stevens Point. It is a walk up and order kind of place. It is open 11-10 every day during the summer. They only take cash but do have an ATM on site.

They serve cones, dishes, sundaes, slushes, and shakes/malts. You can get vanilla, chocolate, twist, or the flavor of the day. Belts' is famous for their large cone. It is like a foot tall. 

The hubby got a vanilla cone and I got the flavor of the day -- Blue Moon. 

I will be honest this was not one of my better ideas. The ice cream was just so-so. I thought the blue moon had no flavor. Dairy Queen is better.  Neither of us were impressed. I am not a huge soft serve fan to begin with so that might be part of the problem. I also forget that blue moon really has no flavor. 

So it was a disappointing stop but it did knock off have ice cream in Portage County. I will have to find some better ice cream in Stevens Point. I might have to send my nephew on a mission to find some next year while at UW-Point. 

Even though we were disappointed, if you like soft serve and huge cones do check out Belts'. Maybe you will like it better than us. 

1203. Go to the Sugar Bowl in Scottsdale

 Every time we go to Old Town Scottsdale, I am like I want to go to the Sugar Bowl. Even Brenda Novak, one of the author's I follow, has spoken highly of this place. We usually hit the Old Town Scottsdale in the morning or early evening.. neither time we are hungry for ice cream. Jokingly I told the hubby we could have ice cream for lunch from the Sugar Bowl before going to the Giants game and he agreed.

Sugar Bowl is an ice cream shop in Old Town Scottsdale. It's been around since the '50s. It is open daily from 11-10 with the kitchen being open from 11-8. 

You walk in and it has the old school ice cream parlor feel to it. We sat at the counter. There are also several tables and booths scattered through the long building. The bathrooms are single stall bathrooms so you could be waiting for the restroom by someone's table. Luckily it was pretty empty when we were in there.

The ice cream menu is quite extensive everything from cones to shakes to sundaes and specialty creations. They also serve sandwiches and salads. It was ice cream for us. I had a hard time deciding what I wanted. I wasn't overly hungry but I wanted to try something unique. 

The hubby went with a butterscotch sundae. He got a cherry so I could have it. 

I went with a chocolate mint soda. It even came with extra seltzer on the side. The hubby was surprised I finished it all. It was amazing. Not quite as good as the one from J. Lauber's Ice Cream Parlor but that was lime not mint. I'm sucker for a good ice cream soda.

It was a good choice for lunch as it was light and refreshing. We just then needed beverages at the game. Saved us some money on food at the game. 

Sugar Bowl is a happening place the later in the day you go so it is best to go for an early lunch or mid-afternoon snack. The sandwiches looked good to. I'm sure we will be back on a future trip. 

Celebrating National Eat Ice Cream For Breakfast Day

 The first Saturday in February is informally known as "National Eat Ice Cream For Breakfast Day". I always wanted an excuse to eat ice cream for breakfast. This day usually lands on the same day as my niece's birthday party so it's hard to partake. This year I was determined especially when Sweet Lair kept teasing me with their ice cream for breakfast specials.

I decided to meet Andrea for breakfast. For what we could find, there was no place in Sheboygan that was having any sort of ice cream for breakfast special. So we decided to create our own. Donuts and ice cream.

Andrea ordered Sunday Donuts for us. I was in charge of the ice cream. I stopped at Walmart on my way and debated what kind of Ben and Jerry's to get. I never actually bought myself a pint of Ben and Jerry's. Remember I'm frugal. It was a good day to splurge. Besides I had an Ibotta rebate for it. Oh so many choices

I finally decided on The Tonight Dough

We went all out. We broke out the good dishes and fancy glasses. We had mimosas. Our donuts were hot chocolate donuts.

To fully partake, I decided to put a scoop of ice cream on top of my donut. This worked well until I got to the end of my donut. Then it became difficult to eat since ice cream is not ice bit into. It finally fell back on my plate where I finished it with a spoon. 

It was a fun morning. Next year though I'm kidnapping Heather and we are going to Sweet Lair. My family will just have to wait for me to get to the birthday party.

5236. Go to Door County Creamery in Sister Bay

No trip to Door County is complete without some ice cream. Wilson's is by far my favorite. However, there are still plenty of ice cream places up and down the peninsula that I have not tried. When Heather agreed to go with me on my Door County Library Road Trip, I told her an ice cream stop was on the list.

After checking out the Sister Bay Library, we had some time to kill before the Ephraim Library opened. I gave Heather the choice -- we could get ice cream in Sister Bay or we could go to Wilson's in Ephraim. She decided since we were in Sister Bay we might as well get ice cream here. Door County Creamery was a short walk from the library.

Door Country Creamery is more than an ice cream place. They have goat milk products, a wide variety of cheeses, and even sandwiches to order. I would definitely have this as a lunch spot for a girl's day/weekend to Door County. They are open 8:30-10 PM in the summer with the kitchen closing at 7.

The ice cream is not ice cream but gelato. Be still my heart. Gelato is even better than ice cream. I'm glad it is becoming more mainstream in the US. They have a dozen different flavors and is made with goat milk from their farm. I didn't even realize it was made with goat milk which means you can't tell the difference and it's tastes amazing.

Heather got Gingerbread Cookie which she said was amazing. It had the perfect sweetness to spiciness ration. Since there nothing overly chocolately besides straight up chocolate or hazelnut surprise (Ew.. gross), I went with Peanut Butter Stracciatella which was peanut butter with shavings of chocolate in it. Scrumptious. 

The only thing we said is we should have gotten the small instead of the medium and more napkins. It was hot and windy. The gelato melted faster than we could eat it even in dishes. Plus the tiny shovels didn't help. 

Door Country Creamery may have just surpassed Wilson's in taste but it is hard to beat the portions at Wilson's. It is definitely better than Grumpy's in Egg Harbor. I would drive the extra 10 minutes to get to Door Country Creamery for gelato. Definitely add Door County Creamery to your lunch or ice cream plans while in Sister Bay.

5526. Go to J. Lauber's Ice Cream Parlor in East Troy

 I was told we needed to go to the ice cream parlor in East Troy that is across from the train depot when we visit the East Troy Railroad Museum. One never to pass up an opportunity for ice cream advised the hubby of this and he agreed.

J. Lauber's Ice Cream Parlor is literal across the tracks from the museum. They are currently open Thursday-Sunday. 

I was expecting a small ice cream shop where I would pick my flavor from a list and get a cone. I figured they might have a few sundaes too. If that's what you are looking for then J. Lauber's is not the place.

J. Lauber is an old fashion ice cream parlor. You grab a table or booth or maybe a stool at the counter. Then a server will hand you a menu of all their ice cream specialties. They will then come back to take your order and deliver your ice cream treats.

Debating between the Chester Allis Sundae or the Sheltering Oaks Sundae, I went with the Chester Allis because just in case I couldn't finish, it was a safe bet the hubby could finish it. It is a more of a float than a sundae but it will make people look. It takes vanilla ice cream and layers it with Green River syrup to give it a green and white layered look. Then it's top with whipped cream, Jimmies (sprinkles for those not from Southeast WI), and 2 Kopps wafer cookies. This is the only other place that I've found the wafer cookies, Kopps tops their custard dishes with. When it showed up, I was like I'm not going to eat it all. Don't worry I did. It was amazing.

The hubby got a butterscotch malt and said it was better than Mickey-Lu Bar-B-Q which is saying a lot since we thought they had the best butterscotch shakes and malts. He had plenty of malt as well. No skimpy portions here.

The store is cramped so no strollers. There are a lot of fascinating relics from old soda fountains on display. There is also an old fashion candy counter too.

J. Lauber's is definitely worth a visit to East Troy. It will bring you back in time. Just make sure you are hungry when you go there. It was our lunch. 

Ice Cream at The Pearl

 When Stacy wants to add something to the Girls Weekend agenda, it is usually some place good. The text I got saying we need to add this to the list was for an ice cream place in La Crosse. I am not one to say no to ice cream.

The Pearl Ice Cream Parlor has been around since the 1930s. It is downtown La Crosse, a short drive from the Friendship Gardens. When booking the ghost tour, we had to confirm how long it was so we knew if we needed to get ice cream before or after. The Pearl is open until 10 pm so we were good going after the tour.

The Pearl is an old school ice cream parlor with 30 different types of ice cream and homemade waffle cones. There is no freezers to look at the ice cream. Instead there are menu cards and a chalk board with all the flavors. This was a hard for me since I like to see the flavors before I pick one. 

I went with Mississippi Mud in a waffle cone. With all the time we spent on or crossing the Mississippi, I thought it was an apt flavor besides it is loaded with chocolate. It was very good. 

Besides an ice cream parlor, The features a confectionary, coffee shop, and soda fountain. We peeked in the confectionary while waiting for our cones but since they were closing for the night didn't buy any.

The Pearl is a definite stop while in La Crosse. The old school charm makes it worth the stop even if you don't get any ice cream. There aren't too many places left like this any more and we have to patronize those that are still around.

4953. Go to the Twist in Greenville

 Like Charlie's Drive-In, The Twist in Greenville has been on our list of places to try for awhile but why would we drive 20 minutes to get ice cream when we could get it down the street. 

After looking at used cars for the hubby at All World Ford, the hubby asked where I wanted ice cream from. I said since we are here we might as well try The Twist. 

The Twist is not just ice cream. They have burgers, coffee, and other baked goods. I thought it was just ice cream. Maybe they first started out as an ice cream shop but quickly expanded. They feature local businesses in their other products.. the Meat Block, ACOCA Coffee Beans, and Bakery on the Terrace.

With many good options, it was tough to decide what I wanted. I was going with a brownie sundae until we got the second menu screen -- the one that actually worked and then I saw it. A Raspberry Dole Whip Sundae. It was Raspberry Dole Whip with hot fudge, white chocolate, and brownie pieces. The perfect sweet/sour combination. 

It was as amazing as it sounded. The hubby had a butterscotch sundae which he said was good. 

We will be back for more when we are in the area. It looks like they serve coffee and sandwiches year round and ice cream from March to October. If you are in the area, it is checking out.

#3991. Have a sundae at the Washington House in Two Rivers

One of the things that I’ve wanted to do for years now is go to the Washington House in Two Rivers for an ice cream sundae. The Washington House is the birthplace of the ice cream sundae. Granted it Two Rivers is only about an hour away but that’s a bit far for ice cream. Usually the hubby is in Two Rivers for basketball so that doesn’t really work either. When I saw he was in Two Rivers for softball on Saturday, I was excited… until I realized I had to work. Luckily he was also at the same tournament all day on Sunday so I planned on walking to get my ice cream sundae.

The walk to the Washington House was about 1.5 miles from the tournament. 3 miles for ice cream…. It was a nice walk. If I had more time and planned my day better, I would have stopped at the Rogers Street Fishing Village Museum or explored the Lakefront some. However, all I planned on doing at this point in time was walk the 1.5 miles, eat my sundae, and walk back.

This was someone's lawn ornament

The Washington House is an old immigrant hotel in 1850s. The ice cream shop in the back is a replica of Ed Berners' Ice Cream Parlor, where he invented the ice cream sundae. When I walked into the Washington House, there were old ladies playing cards in the parlor. You could take a self-guided tour, which I may do another day. You could also dress up and they would take your picture behind the bar. I definitely need Stacy or Danielle for that. Dress up is no fun by yourself.

The original ice cream sundae comes in a souvenir plastic bowl. You get 2 scoops of vanilla ice cream, hot fudge, whipped cream, a cherry, and nuts. It was very good. I thought since I was getting a take home bowl, I would have gotten a plastic spoon but I still had a real spoon to eat it with. After I was done, I could either have my original bowl washed out or just get a new one. Because there was a line, I opted for a new bowl. I didn’t need my exact bowl that I had my ice cream sundae in.

Besides ice cream sundaes, you could have one of 18 different Cedar Crest ice cream flavors or a root beer float. If you wanted water it was served in a glass. The ice cream parlor wasn’t very big but it was cozy. It reminded me of an old fashioned ice cream parlor.

I’m sure if we were done with softball before 8, we would have stopped again so the hubby could have had some ice cream. I will be back. It is cute and charming and definitely reasonable. My sundae was only $2.50. I just hope it won’t be another 35 years before I get back.