The Penny Ice Creamery
| Address: | 913 Cedar St, Santa Cruz, CA 95060, USA |
| Phone: | +1 831-204-2523 |
| Site: | thepennyicecreamery.com |
| Rating: | 4.6 |
| Working: | 12–11PM 12–11PM 12–11PM 12–11PM 12–11PM 12–11PM 12–11PM |
Location
Photos 100
Reviews 6
CO
Cory Ban
I dont come here too often, but when I do it is an enjoyable experience. The lines can sometimes be unpleasantly long, but that is something that happens when you are at a popular location and sell a magnificent product. I ordered a two scoop in a cone with fluff. The flavors I ordered were mascarpone & hazelnut, and chocolate bergamot. Like what everyone else says one of the main reasons this place is so popular is their fluff and of course I ordered it with mine as well. As for what their fluff is it is basically just marshmallow creme and burned similar to when you burn marshmallows for smores. They put it over whatever your top scoop of ice cream is and use a small torch to burn it. It is very sweet, so if you arent looking for something sweet and sugary I do not recommend it. I on the other hand like the texture and flavor it adds to the ice cream. Their waffle cones are also good. They have a nice flavor and crunch to them, which is nice considering some ice cream shops have stale cones. I havent ever had a stale cone from them myself, mind you I wouldnt recommend a place that sells stale food in general. I will go ahead and make sure I mention that they rotate their ice cream options/flavors fairly often, and may not have what you liked on a previous visit the next visit. I believe this can be a good thing, but sometimes it is a bit of a let down. That being said their flavors are generally pretty good, and often intriguing. This also encourages you to explore more flavors then going with the usual sometimes you discover something even better this way. As for the flavors I ordered, Chocolate Bergamot and Mascarpone & Hazelnut, I enjoyed both quite a bit. I do not think the two flavors mesh well exactly, but they were the flavors I wanted at the time. The chocolate bergamot had an interesting sour and sweet taste. I found the sourness in this flavor of ice cream to make the flavor much more enjoyable, and more creative then using raspberry for a similar effect. The texture of it was closer to the creamy side of things rather than ice-y. I do feel the flavor would have been slightly better with a more bitter chocolate, but this form of it is better for not aiming too deep into the niche. I believe the flavor contrasts did well enough with how they made it mind you I am just sharing my 2 cents on what may have made it slightly better. Again I did order the fluff, so there was added sweetness to it, but when I tested it on its own I still felt that way. I would probably be willing to order this flavor again. The mascarpone & hazelnut was a simple, but enjoyable flavor. I adore hazelnut in general, and believe that mascarpone has a mild enough flavor that it wouldnt detract from the other flavor I ordered. Hazelnuts also go well with chocolate in general, which is part of why I wanted both. As for what the two flavors, mascarpone and hazelnut, combined was like it was a delicate yet strong enough to stand out flavor. The texture was creamy with a quite few crunches from actual crushed hazelnuts, which they did not skimp out on. I was of course satisfied by this ice cream. The service was friendly and patient, and were okay with basically everyone in my group trying various flavors of their ice cream. They also made some recommendations when asked, and were patient and kind while explaining what certain flavors were. They also did not portray themselves as being overwhelmed despite having so many customers before and after us, which is something I appreciate. I definitely feel this place is worth visiting again, but I feel bad for the people who visit with the over-hyping some people give it. It is a great place without a doubt, but living up to a fantasy is difficult. I believe it can stand toe to toe with various great ice cream shops, but it is not undisputed. That being said this is one of the two ice cream shops I recommend to people who visit Santa Cruz to try while they are here.
EL
Elizabeth Tseng
When in Santa Cruz, ALWAYS stop by The Penny Ice Creamery!! The first time I came here was about 3 years ago and it was within a week after I dined at the French Laundry and had Thomas Kellers famous signature buttered popcorn ice cream. By happy coincidence, Pennys also had buttered popcorn as a flavor that day so I decided to give it a try. Wow! Dare I say it was better than a 3 Michelin starred restaurant that was once ranked number 1 restaurant in the world?!? YES!! Since then I have stopped by whenever I could and send everyone I know here. I lived in Santa Cruz for years before and never liked Mariannes (Sorry guys, Im just not a fan of their flavor or icy texture). Im so happy that Pennys came along to change up the scene. Bonus points for being across from Atlantis Fantasy (best comic shop in town!!)
PH
Philip Dawsey
Best ice cream Ive had and Ive tried many of the top rated places in the area from bi-rite to ici. Got a three scoop bowl with roasted marshmallow topping. The topping was probably unnecessary because the ice cream was so good. The lemon shortbread actually had almost a shortbread texture but melted in your mouth like ice cream, it was amazing. The strawberry peppercorn was also amazing but there was no peppercorn flavor, which is probably good for most but I love pepper. Lastly, had the pralines & cream and it was heavenly - really tasted like pralines! Overall, unique flavors that are super deep in flavor and amazing in texture. Definitely try this place!
A
A Private User
Seriously the best Ice Cream I have had. You cant beat the quality. I couldnt believe what a good deal it was for ice cream MADE FROM SCRATCH and a waffle cone. $3.50 for a generous sized cone that features locally farmed and organic ingredients. If you were elsewhere that would cost you $6.50, easy. Not sure how anyone can complain about the price OR compare this to Rite Aid ?! (see review from Cat below). So, not only do you get fantastic tasting, quality ice cream but you get it from the nicest people in the cutest little shop. Congrats to the owners for making such a nice shop! Good thing I dont live in Santa Cruz - I would be here every day!
CA
Carly Doi
This place probably has the best ice cream Ive ever had. The flavors are so unique and the texture of the ice cream is so creamy. I love how all of the ingredients are sourced locally, and everything is made from scratch. They have your standard chocolate and vanilla, but also unique flavors including basil, cardamom and raspberry, and hazelnut mascarpone, all of which were delicious. I gave it 4 stars because the place itself is very small, there is usually a line out the door (although the line moves fairly quickly), and it is on the expensive side. Overall, I highly recommend
CH
Christopher Druck
Not really sure what all the fuss is about. The ice cream was very basic and there arent very many flavors to choose from, and most of the flavors they do have are very off-the-wall. To be honest, the waffle cone was my favorite part. It was very good and tasted home-made. To me, the ice cream was just not very creamy and did not taste memorable. I think this place gets a lot of attention in Santa Cruz, being that it is a smaller community, but once you venture out of Santa Cruz there are many more places that taste a lot better.
