The Ice Cream Bar
| Address: | 815 Cole St, San Francisco, CA 94117, USA |
| Phone: | +1 415-742-4932 |
| Site: | theicecreambarsf.com |
| Rating: | 4.6 |
| Working: | 12–10PM 12–10PM 12–10PM 12–10PM 12–11PM 12–11PM 12–10PM |
Location
Photos 100
Reviews 8
CA
Carolyn Theriault
Toting one of the only old-fashioned soda fountains in the city, The Ice Cream Bar has more to offer than scoops of creamy bliss. I like to think that they offer the best of both worlds, namely their awesome root beer float! With the trifecta of their vanilla ice cream, cold-brewed sassafras root beer, and a torched toasted marshmallow, the treat is not only delicious but unique. Its incredibly easy to walk in for a scoop of ice cream and bounce, but their sodas are seriously worth a try! Its fun to watch them handcraft creative and cool drinks while you anxiously watch, perched on the little bar stools. I dont know about you, but wild cherry phosphates, blackstrap molasses malts, and Guinness stout caramelized honey ice cream floats sound good to me! Many of their ingredients are locally sourced and everything is made in house. Ill admit, The Ice Cream Bar doesnt have the most memorable ice cream, but it is still very good. Their soda fountain is what really makes them over-the-top special though. They have friendly service, average prices, and difficult parking. This place can get super crowded at night and they have limited seating. It can look seemingly disorganized at first glance, but they do have a number system to keep the mob in check, so make sure you grab a ticket when you walk in! Great place for a date and a popular neighborhood spot!
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Michelle Rowe
So Im at work and Im craving a milk shake. I went to Google and was lead here. Nicely played Google, nicely played! By the time I got off work I was craving a savory meal to precede my decadent meal. I mentioned I was going to a coworker, and they decided to join me. We walked into the bar and we were greeted by guys in white shirts and bow ties and the feel like you walked into a 50s diner. We decided to split sandwiches and got the pulled pork and the BLT. Both were delicious but when I got back Im definitely getting the pulled pork. (The BLT was a little low on the bacon for my taste. The heirloom tomato was awesome!) The sweet potato chips were unique. I didnt really care for the pepper on them while my friend helped himself to mine after finishing his. Then onto dessert! We ordered the brownie sundae and split it! Sharing that was a good call. We got to choose the two flavors of ice cream and decided on Hazelnut Brownie and Creme Fraiche (pronounced crem fresh). The caramel sauce was so amazing the I almost asked for more! The brownie was rich and warm. This is a great spot for a late night treat or a date night that you want to keep casual! #GoogleCityExpert #SFCityExpert
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Sonya Li
My friends and I sampled a lot of their ice cream and I was a little disappointed because some of the flavors were lack luster like cherry Morello, but mostly they were a touch too salty like the Matcha latte and caramelized honey. There were some standouts like strawberry lavender that melted in a light and sweet floral kiss on your tongue, basil that that felt fresh and intense, and the coffee studded with grounded beans that packed a punched. I ended up with an ice cream sandwich of coffee stuffed between two snicker doodles. The cookie wasn’t particularly amazing, but it was structurally sound for a big scoop of ice cream in warm hands. This treat was too big for me and halfway through, it wasn’t enjoyable anymore. Its not really a compliant, but its worth noting that two people can share these treats! This won’t be my to go spot for ice cream, but this place is too interesting to not come back to explore the rest of the menu. They make their sodas from scratch, their old fashion milkshakes are made with eggs, and they offer old school style sodas with acid phosphate and lactart!
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Zarina Zayasortiz
I remember when I first saw the signs for this place to open about two years ago. I thought to myself, "An ice cream bar? I dont get it." Boy, was I mistaken :) The Ice Cream Bar is fashioned after an old school ice cream shop with a 1950s feel and soda jerks. The area in the front carries various forms of homemade ice cream and, in the back, the adults can order some ice cream concoctions with alcohol. My staple ice cream flavor is the vegan coconut milk ice cream with almond chips, along with vegan chocolate sorbet. All of the flavors are really amazing though - I love the basil and banana puddin. If you have the tummy space, order your ice cream in a waffle cone, as all waffle cones are freshly made everyday. The brownie sundae and banana split dishes are also to die for - just make sure you split with another person (or two) because the portions are huge for these.
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Tim McAndrew
Have you ever wished you could go back to the 20s or 30s when sodas were made by chemists by hand and not by robots following a forumla? Well there is a place in the Cole Valley section of San Francisco were your dreams will come true. We went on a Saturday and this place was a mob scene. But here is the trick to The Ice Cream Bar, go to the back bar, you can sit down and have a float. Not just your run of the mill root beer float, Im talking hand made marsh mellows, hand made sodas, hand made ice cream. I ordered Russells Sassafras Root Beer float and it was nothing short of amazing. If you are thinking that this is just going to be A&W Root Beer and some ice cream you are wrong. This root beer had a nice hint of licorice and the ice cream was amazing. This place is one of a kind. Do your self a favor and go there.
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Jeff Aguero
I’ve been here twice and both times left feeling very full and satisfied. It’s a classic, old-time soda fountain theme, and they do a really nice job at executing on that. The first time I came was on a weekday evening and it wasn’t too crowded, but the most recent visit was on a Saturday afternoon and it was packed! Thankfully, they have an efficient take a number system and we only had to wait about 10-15 minutes to get served. They have a solid array of interesting and standard flavors and the portions are a good size for the cost. It was a good experience, though given how full I was when leaving I don’t think I could indulge in this treat more than once every couple of months!
WI
William Schneider
This is an old fashioned ice cream parlor that serves a yummy vegan dark chocolate sorbet, changing hand-scooped ice cream flavors, sodas, sundaes, shakes, AND alcoholic shakes. The atmosphere definitely makes the experience. This isnt a fast food ice cream shop, so expect a bit of a wait. You grab a ticket with a number at the counter and wait for your number to be called- usually no more than 10 minutes. Worth the wait! Hoping to up this place to 5 stars but unfortunately the past couple of times Ive been the staff has been unfriendly, short and memorably rude. That aside, theyve got a great thing going here.
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Kassaundra Gutierrez-Thompson
So the Ice Cream Bar has perfectly merged functional and cute with their retro design. More importantly it is home to the absolutely most delicious waffle cone I have ever tasted. Seriously. The guy behind the ice cream counter let some of us sample a broken one, and then I immediately ordered one for myself. I wish they were open later though, so many times my friends and I say to ourselves.."ooh ice cream bar would be good right now." and then we look at the clock and its 10:15 and they are closed. Dessert is always best after 10 pm, come on! Get the waffle cone, you will not be disappointed!
