Austin, TX (The Joy of Food) — To visit Amy’s Ice Creams is to buy ice cream from Cirque du Soleil, a place famous for their high-flying ice cream acrobatics, where team members (‘ice cream heroes’) are trained (yes, paid) to do things like hurl balls of ice cream into a waffle cone and then stand posed like the Statue of Liberty.
The customer service model promises to delight and entertain you and make your day, all of which is lost on a cranky pants like me. The best way to make my day is to hand me my cup of ice cream without dropping any of it on the floor first.
Amy’s Ice Creams is a small Texas ice cream brand headquartered in Austin. There are now 14 locations scattered throughout Austin, Houston, and San Antonio. If you’re in Austin, everybody and their mother knows and loves Amy’s.
The product here is similar to any ultra-rich luscious small-batch locally made and sourced ice cream. There are straightforward and simple flavors, but most veer into whimsical territory. A total of 150 flavors are in rotation at a time, most of which are creative, a little quirky, and no doubt delicious. Think All Thai’d Up (ginger, basil, coconut cream, rum, lime juice, and toasted coconut) or Snowball Fight (vanilla, coconut, and marshmallows). Mix-ins further amplify the roster of choices and range from cookies and candies to fruits and nuts. If you’re part of the lactose-intolerant crowd (I’m sorry), there are also fruit ices available.
I’ve passed up delightfully named things like Shiner Bock and After Dinner Mint to order the simple and the plain, such as strawberry ice cream with strawberries on top. The ice cream itself is fresh, creamy, ooey-gooey, lightly sweet, and thoroughly scrumptious and served at a slightly more elevated temperature to release the flavors and promote a creamier texture. A relatively high butterfat content also ensures that you walk away both fat and happy, with emphasis on the fat part.
I haven’t personally experienced a wait here, but I’m told there are often long lines in the hot Austin sun due to the popularity of this place, so plan accordingly for your combination ice cream and circus act.
Written by Joy
Thanks for reading. The Joy of Food blog celebrates eating well, traveling often, and living la dolce vita. San Diego, California is home base, but thoughts are from all over. Reviews and photos help to highlight wonderful (or not) food experiences from around the world.
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Wow! Amy’s looks great! Wish they had one here.
Yes! Amy’s is definitely in that vein of ultra-luscious creamy ice cream like Salt & Straw, Cali Cream, etc. Just another reason to visit Austin, in addition to Franklin!