Restaurant Review: Mitchell's Ice Cream- You Scream, I Scream

The Mitchell family has had people screaming for their ice cream for almost 53 years, and all the screaming has not gone unnoticed. Mitchell’s Ice Cream has won dozens of awards throughout the years and has been featured on programs such as Food Channel’s “Roker on the Road.” Sure, they make it fresh daily in the store and use 16% butterfat cream, real fruits (for its fruit flavors), and actual Kahlua coffee liqueur in its Kahlua Mocha Cream, but can you taste a difference? Was it really worth all the screaming? Enquiring minds wanted to know, so Lucky and I decided to head on over to Mitchell’s (which is conveniently located a block away from Goood Frikin’ Chicken) to taste for ourselves.

We decided that the fairest way to evaluate the ice cream as a brand was to taste a variety of diverse flavors. It was difficult to pick from the more than 40 flavors available, especially since they were all so different and sounded so delicious. We decided the best way to hit the full spectrum of flavors was to pick one from their standard flavors, one from their seasonal flavors, and two from their tropical flavors. Now came the hard part- narrowing it down.

In the standard section we could choose from the typical (Vanilla, Chocolate, Coffee, Rocky Road) to the unique (Caramel Bliss, Deep Dish Apple Pie, Dulce de Leche, Mexican Chocolate, Kahlua Mocha Cream, Thin Mint, and so many more). After several samples, we settled on the Grasshopper Pie. The coolness of the mint was particularly fresh while the helpings of sizeable Oreo pieces and ribbons of fudge were quite generous. It was kind of like eating an It’s It (the San Francisco original), but more decadent and satisfying.

We chose the Pumpkin ice cream from among Eggnog, Peppermint Candy, and Spumoni available for the flavors available through February. It was like Thanksgiving all over again. Somehow, they were able to make it taste like a creamier frozen pumpkin pie. The texture was a bit grittier, but it didn’t detract from our enjoyment in the least. If you are looking for that special flavor to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day, try the Irish Coffee.

The tropical flavors are what Mitchell’s is particularly known for, especially since they import fresh fruits from the Philippines to capture the true flavors. Buko (young coconut), Ube (purple yam), and Langka (jackfruit) are some of the flavors that some may not be accustomed to. But don’t knock it till you’ve tried at least a sample. The friendly scoopers will let you sample as many as you like, but keep in mind that there is usually a line of people waiting for you to make a decision. A refreshing and unique taste will reward those adventurous enough to give these flavors a try. Lucky and I ended up with the Halo Halo, named after the Filipino dessert of the same name, consisting of buko, langka, ube, pineapple, mongo and sweet beans. Those familiar with the dessert will not be disappointed. My only complaint was that the frozen beans were too hard and tasteless unless I let them thaw in my mouth. Still the actually pieces of fruit mixed into the ice cream made it superb. The other flavor that we decided on was the Tropical Four, a mixture of banana, guava, mango, and pineapple flavors. Lucky was a bit disappointed because she was expecting a swirling of the four different ice creams. Instead, the four were blended into one, resulting in an ice cream in which the subtler guava and mango were not as apparent as the banana and the pineapple flavors. But still, with actual pieces of fruit in there, the flavors were still detectable.

Mitchell’s ice cream is quite affordable, with single cones going for $2.20, half pints going for $4.10 and 7” cakes going for $22.50. Yes, it was Lucky’s birthday recently and her sole wish was for a Banana ice cream chocolate cake. She was so excited to eat it that we didn’t even sing Happy Birthday. Now she’s looking for any reason to buy another ice cream cake. Even on rainy days, there can be a line of people, but it moves fast. And when you get to the counter, I’m sure you will think it was worth the wait.

Mitchell’s Ice Cream

688 San Jose Ave.

San Francisco, CA 94110

(415) 648-2300

Open daily 11am to 11pm