Tara's Organic Ice Cream Jasmine green tea ice cream: On the northern edge of the Elmwood district, at the border of Oakland and Berkeley, is a small ice cream shop called Tara's Organic Ice Cream. They feature a rotating menu of ice creams and sorbet. I was hoping they would have black sesame ice cream, but I was out of luck on the day I went and got a scoop of jasmine green tea instead. The texture was not as smooth as it could be, but the subtle herbal flavor was unique - clean but also very creamy. The type of ice cream that needs to be acc... (read more) 3.0/5.0
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Toscanini's Grapefruit Sorbet: I paid a visit to this Cambridge favorite on my visit back to MIT and purchased a mini-scoop of grapefruit sorbet. The portion was generous, and the ice cream had a fantastically smooth texture. A great palate cleanser and very fresh – acidic and slightly bitter, though it did have that slight metallic taste you sometimes get even with freshly squeezed grapefruit juice. Despite the cold, the shop was as popular as ever, and it felt good to be back. 4.0/5.0
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Gott's Roadside Chocolate and Vanilla Softserve: After a long rainy week, I was craving a warm baked dessert and thought for sure I could find one in the Ferry Building on my way home. Unfortunately, I wasn't interested in cupcakes, leftover bread, or gluten-free desserts, and the line for Humphrey Slocombe was far too long. I noticed that Gott's Roadside had a sign for Strauss Creamery, whose yogurt I had recently enjoyed, so i decided to give it a try. Unfortunately, I realized afterward that their soft serve isn't made using anything... (read more) 2.0/5.0
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Revival Ice Cream Pear sorbet: Ultra-creative yet accessible homemade ice cream from a James-Beard nominated pastry chef. Based in Monterey, Revival has about a dozen seasonal flavors, the most popular of which is one called the Beesknees, an ice cream studded with bits of honeycomb, broken into small enough pieces to add texture (both crunchy and soft). It's sweet but also has a slightly burnt flavor that's just a touch bitter to balance it out. I had their pear sorbet, which combines pear with celery juice. This is not ... (read more) 4.5/5.0
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Trader Joe's Joe Joe's 'n Cream Ice Cream: Available year round, Trader Joe's version of cookies and cream tastes very much like any other cookies and cream ice cream you might buy, with a classic combination of vanilla ice cream and chocolate cookies. It likely uses full-fat milk (as the amount of saturated fat is high) and has generous chunks of softened chocolate crumbs throughout. I generally stay away from rich ice cream, especially quart-sized containers, unless it's to be shared among a group, which was the case in this inst... (read more) 3.0/5.0
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Berkeley Bowl Pumpkin Ice Cream: Actually from Loard's Ice Cream, a chain based in Oakland, the Berkeley Bowl Pumpkin Ice Cream is sherbert orange with specks of brown throughout. If you let it sit out at room temperature, it takes on a whipped consistency almost like whipped cream cheese (I prefer this to the otherwise firmer, more dense texture). Sweet but endearingly so, like a dessert made with far too much cream but with a lot of love. 3.5/5.0
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