CARVEL, There's no ice in this CREAM
Written: Sep 18 '04 (Updated Sep 20 '04)
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Fresh and smooth soft ice cream.
Cons: Sometimes slow service.
The Bottom Line: Carvel is the standard in soft ice creams. They have always been a good tasting, creamy product served fresh.
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| popsrocks's Full Review: Carvel Ice Cream & Bakery |
As a kid growing up one of my special treats was when we piled into my dads Studebaker and headed for a Carvel store. These stores dotted Long Island and were as familiar a site then as McDonald's are today.
Mom and dad would let us choose Vanilla, Chocolate, or whatever the special soft ice cream flavor of the day was. Most often we would choose the twist of chocolate and vanilla, with sprinkles of course!
BACK GROUND
Tom Carvel started selling his product seventy years ago in 1934. When I lived in NYC as a youngster, I never saw one. It wasn't until we moved to Long Island that I saw them everywhere in the Levittown/Hicksville area where I then lived. At that time all the stores were buildings set on a piece of land with parking all around. You would walk up to one of the windows in front and place your order. Over the years these fronts were closed in so you would be out of the elements. Though some of these are still around, the larger Carvels started to disappear and then I noticed them more in strip malls.
Now they are in almost 500 locations and the product is distributed to over 5,000 supermarkets. It is still a fast growing franchise with an excellent product that is well known. They are in an expansion mode now and franchises are available.
The PRODUCT
They offer four basic kinds of product. It's my feeling that Carvel has the best soft ice cream that is available. It is always rich and creamy and the flavor is consistently good. You know exactly what you are going to get with this stuff. I also feel that this is very fresh product. I like the creaminess without any icy pieces. The waffle cones and sugar cones are strong enough to hold the product and they are tasty too.
Carvel has had hand dipped ice cream in their showcases for years. I happen to like Carvel for the soft and I believe that the competition from places like Haagen-Daz and Ben and Jerry's always kept me from giving their hand dipped a chance. These are still very popular and that is still my wifes choice when we go.
More often than not we go to Carvel these days for their ice cream cakes. The cookie crunch inside them is always one of our favorites. The cakes come in a wide choice of shapes and design. Writing is done on the cakes at your request for any occasion and they are usually done well. We started using Friendly's a bit more often but I happen to like Carvel's cakes the best. Do you recognize the names of Cookie Puss and Fudgie the Whale? Those have been around for years. A new addition is the Hug-Me-the-Bear Cake. You can get these cakes and other shapes, even as a football, for that Sunday afternoon or Monday Night game.
The basic cakes are a 26 oz that feeds 4-6, a 60 oz, 10-15 and a sheet cake that is 80 oz and serves 15-20. The prices differ from place to place but I feel are a good value.
The last of the products that Carvel handles are the novelty ice creams. We have often brought home packs of Flying Saucers. These are terrific. They stay hard in the freezer and give that excellent Carvel creaminess once out. Brown Bonnets are another enduring favorite. They have many other choices and have a diet line of ice cream too. Thinny Thin Ice Cream was a staple for me a while ago. It was taken off the product list, but it is now being advertised again and is back in the line up.
Carvel also has always had a line of delicious Shakes and more recently Fizzlers and Smoothies.
The ATMOSPHERE
Most of the Carvel's I know of are in strip malls today. The stores are generally very bright with florescent lighting. The counters and freezers are kept very clean and the help is usually well trained. I have gone into some Carvel's on occasion, particularly when things are slow, and found that the help would be in deep conversation among themselves and not perk up and give attention to the customers coming in. I suppose this happens in many places. It seems the busier a place is, the better the service. I suppose this is all due to the laws of inertia.
Small tables for two are sometimes available. I haven't seen anything more than that. This is basically a take out product, though it is nice to sit down when having a Sundae and that sort of product. I will say that the hot fudge sundaes are excellent. Much of the soft ice cream melts down due to the heat of the fudge, but it sure is good!. I also like strawberries in these Sundaes.
IN CLOSING
The simplicity of Carvel is something I like. Though I will occasionally frequent places like Cold Stone, the lines are too long and the choices difficult to make. In fact if I was in position to purchase a franchise to either company, I would go with the Carvel.
This product has always been a good one. The soft ice-cream and the ice cream cakes keep us coming back again and again.
Cheesecake Factory Dunkin' Donuts / Starbucks / Ralph's Famous Ices / Cold Stone Creamery / CARVEL Ice Cream Waffle House / Krispy Kreme / Friendly's
Recommended:
Yes
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