Six places to go for ice cream in honor of National Ice Cream Day, and top flavors in Ohio

In 1984, President Ronald Reagan demonstrated that he could make fine use of his time by declaring July to be National Ice Cream Month. That widely embraced political action — talk about a rarity — had a byproduct: The creation of National Ice Cream Day, which falls on Sunday this year.  

With so many great ice cream shops around town, we have a wealth of places and flavors to celebrate with. Here are a few cool standouts guaranteed to sweeten your day (regardless of your politics).

Jeni's Splendid Ice Creams

(multiple locations, www.jenis.com)

During what could be called a more vanilla era in Columbus (the 1990s), I remember being wowed at Jeni Britton Bauer scooping basil ice cream in her original little North Market spot. Still, I didn’t foresee that she’d become a multistate mogul whose approach to ice cream would move the local culinary culture further than most chefs. Yet that’s exactly what she’s accomplished by offering seasonally changing menus full of creative flavors made with local-leaning good ingredients and sold in chic shops. Current hits such as Wildberry Lavender and Sweet Cream Biscuits And Peach Jam practically scream summer, but don’t sleep on the Savannah Buttermint or Jeni’s classic Salty Caramel.

Johnson’s Real Ice Cream

(multiple locations, www.johnsonsrealicecream.com)

Johnson's tagline — “Est. 1950” — is short and sweet. And it neatly communicates this is an iconic company with a long history. Most of Johnson’s time was spent in Bexley, where the ever-popular flagship shop evokes something from a vintage photograph. Add contemporary-looking spinoffs in Dublin and New Albany, though, and it equals a company in a sweet spot between old-fashioned and up-to-date.

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That also describes some of Johnson’s seasonal sensations, such as peach-pocketed A Little Peach of My Heart ice cream and the Red, White and Blue sundae — a salute-worthy combo of vanilla scoops, blueberry and strawberry toppings, warmed-to-order white cake plus “Old Glory”-tinted sprinkles.

Mardi Gras Homemade Ice Cream

(1947 Hard Road, 614-766-2020)

You won’t find any eggs or gelatin in the luscious ice creams at Mardi Gras. But you will find guava, lychee and betel nut occasionally enhancing the 48 flavors in this long-beloved northwest shop festooned with photographs of grinning customers.

“I make all of the ice cream here and use fruit from all over the world,” owner Mita Shah recently told me. Shah added that several of her Mardi Gras all-stars are animated by flavors reminiscent of her native India, such as fragrant Kesar Pista (with saffron, cardamom and pistachios) and Falooda — a classic-dessert-inspired ice cream made with rose tea, chia seeds and wispy noodles.  

Dulce Vida Ice Cream Factory

(multiple locations, www.dulcevidaoh.com)

Growing from one to four locations somewhat quickly, Dulce Vida Ice Cream Factory is a local success story. The company’s attractions include cheerily unsubtle shops that look about as much like a factory as Willy Wonka’s chocolate factory did. Dulce Vida’s Mexican-style treats — “Dulce Vida” is Spanish for “sweet life” — are frequently even more colorful than its shops. Among the 40 ice creams featured are tropical fruit intensities like Guanabana (think citrus-meets-banana) and Prickly Pear, but Dulce Vida also offers paletas (vibrant ice pops) and over-the-top delights such as the Mangonada — a mango ice cream-based parfait that’s tangy, salty, sweet and spicy.

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CRMD Ice Cream

(1190 N. High St., 833-438-2763, www.getcrmd.com)

With its spare, black-and-white Short North space, hip-hop-friendly soundtrack and flashy-colored matter under glass, CRMD might initially seem like another neighborhood art gallery. But it’s a cheeky ice-cream parlor where vanilla scoops are black, most other flavors are vividly tinted, and everything’s better in a cooked-to-order “puffle” — a bubble-textured, crinkly-yet-airy waffle cone inspired by Hong Kong-style treats. Some must-try ice creams: Fruity Pebbles — hued like Flamin' Hot Cheetos, but tastes like tangy and addictive “cereal milk”; Cookie Budder — rich, buttery, evocative of the lovable Biscoff cookies in it.

Double Happy

(1280 Brown Road, 614-974-4144, www.doublehappy.com)

Soft-serve isn’t a hard sell when it’s so good and soothing, house-made with milk from a sustainable local farm and is graciously dispensed from the window of this endearingly quirky Hilltop-adjacent dairy bar. Belgian chocolate swirled with vanilla is the go-to cone and the milkshakes are among the best around. Feeling frisky? The chocolate brownie waffle sundae — an ice-cream sundae presented atop a gooey-centered brownie cooked to order in a waffle iron — is worth a splurge.

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At a glance

According to the Ice Cream Index — a study on consumption preferences and trends in the Americas conducted by market research Top Data — there has been a significant increase in the demand for ice cream in the country. With an increase of 29% compared to last year, the highest consumption figures in the country were reported between June and July.

So what are the favored flavors in the Buckeye State, according to the research?

1. Rocky Road

2. Neapolitan

3. Cooking dough

4. Strawberry

5. Coconut

https://topagency.com/report/most-popular-ice-cream/

This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Six places in Greater Columbus to celebrate National Ice Cream Day