National Dessert Day: Pittsburgh Ice Cream Tour

It's National Dessert Day! Everyone knows pie is my favorite dessert, but ice cream is most definitely a close second...and it just so happens to go great with pie.

Ever since Jon and I started dating, we would go get ice cream quite frequently. Our favorite spot back home was right across his high school at a locally owned shop called, The Ranger. We never missed opening day in April and we never missed closing day in September. We'd go multiple times a week and even twice a day when they opened or closed sometimes.

When we officially moved to Pittsburgh this past summer, we wanted to be sure to try a bunch of the local ice cream shops to see if anything compared to our favorite place back home. The verdict: nothing even came close! However, there were a couple that stood out to me that we went to quite often and will continue to go to when we crave ice cream. Please note: each shop I list below only allows a certain amount of people in at a time and you must wear a mask due to the pandemic. If it's a place with a walk-up window, you must wear a mask and maintain social distance in line.

Kip's Ice Cream This place was by far my favorite and the one we went to the most this summer. Most of these places I have heard about from co-workers and this was one of them. It's not far from our apartment, which is also convenient! They have a bunch of different options on their menu, but it's all about the special flavors for me. They rotate out their special flavors each week and post them to their Facebook page. Some are seasonal and don't come back until the following season, but they are open all year. The special flavors (and some of their everyday flavors) are named after dogs and they have a bunch of dog memorabilia all over the shop - so fun! This one doesn't have a walk-up window like most places. It's really small inside, but we've never had to wait super long and they were only allowing a couple people in at a time anyway. Some of my favorite flavors have been: apple pie, pumpkin pie and german chocolate cake. The pie flavors have actual pie crust mixed in...so if you know me, you know why these were some of my favorites!

Millie's Homemade Ice Cream This one I had come across on instagram seeing some of my friends tag it or share that they were there, so I figured it would be a good one to try. We went there two different times and after trying a couple flavors I can say I like their dairy free ice cream, but not their regular ice cream very much. I'm picky about consistency when it comes to ice cream and this one was to icy (if that makes sense?) LOL! This place also has seasonal flavors and they rotate flavors out. One I was excited to try was caramel corn (pictured) - but unfortunately it wasn't very good. Millie's just didn't live up to the hype in my opinion.

Klavon's Ice Cream Parlor Another recommendation from my co-worker. This place had the best atmosphere of all the places we tried! It was full of vintage vibes equipped with old photos, pharmaceuticals, a phone booth and old fashioned candy for sale. It was SO cute! We only went there once, but I'd like to go back to try more options. Their special was a pumpkin roll sundae that I had to try - but it wasn't the best test of the ice cream since it was just plain vanilla on top of the dessert.

Scoops & More This one is also close to our apartment and is my second favorite overall. We've been to this place multiple times and it's another one we'll keep going back to. Not only do they have ice cream, but they have a variety of food options as well. One time I got their fries and they were delicious! Nothing better than ice cream and fries, amiright? They do special sundaes they rotate out and they also have a Dole Whip (pictured) which is delicious!

Antney's Ice Cream This one was also on the list given to me by my co-worker and is one of my favorites as well. We only went once, but I would definitely go back! They are known for their rotating flavors as well and have a big list of them that change constantly. The main reason I really liked them is that they have the option to get three taster scoops of three different kinds all in the same bowl or cone. I'm one to mix flavors in a cup, it doesn't bother me and I'm usually indecisive when it comes to choosing flavors of ice cream - so it's perfect! I got pumpkin gob, coffee bean and almond joy. All were very tasty!

Happy Day Dessert Factory We came across this one since it was right next to Nicky's Thai Kitchen (highly recommend) where we went for dinner. We both got a coffee flavor and it was so, so good! I'd go back again if we were in the area. Jon and I both love coffee flavored ice cream and this one was top notch! It also smells amazing in there.

Page Dairy Mart This one was recommended to me by my co-worker as well. I really wanted to try this place before they closed for the season and because they had a pumpkin roll arctic swirl that looked really good. Unfortunately this shop was my least favorite. There was barely any parking since it's in Southside and the line wrapped the entire way around the building and took us about 45 minutes to get through. People had masks and were socially distant, but I still felt uncomfortable with that many people there. The wait wasn't worth it either. Going back to the consistency thing, their ice cream was really melty. Like, it was melted as soon as they handed it to us. Yuck! This is the only one I wouldn't go back to.

Sugar & Spice Ice Cream Parlor This one I found on my own and we actually ended up driving past it on our way to a sunflower field/farm so we decided it was the perfect time to stop and try it. It's right along the highway and has a very small parking lot, so it's hard to get in and out of. I wouldn't go back to this one unless we were out that way again. I got something called the Pittsburgh scoop (or something along those lines) and it had strawberries and pretzels in it. Not bad, but not amazing either.

Graeter's Ice Cream Another place recommended by my co-worker and also one of our favorites. This place also has seasonal flavors and rotates special flavors out every so often. We went here twice and I would go again (every time we want to go to Trader Joe's since it's very close to it). I tried pumpkin, blueberry pie, black raspberry chocolate chip (pictured) and a bite of Jon's Vienna coffee flavor and loved them all! I definitively want to try more flavors. This place isn't just in PA and they also sell pints in grocery stores if you see it!

Dave and Andy's Homemade Ice Cream I've been to this place before YEARS ago to visit my sister when she was in college at Pitt. Jon and I wanted to go back and it didn't disappoint this time around. Their options are customizable and are known for their "mix-ins" - we just go for vanilla and get some kind of candy mixed in. I got Nestle Crunch mixed in. Their waffle cones are homemade - they smell and taste amazing and put an M&M at the very bottom of the cone. It's unique and also one of my favorites.

Sewickley Confectionary This one we also happened to stumble upon when going to Slippery Mermaid for our anniversary sushi dinner (also highly recommend). I got coffee flavored ice cream here too (of course) and Jon got chocolate chip cookie dough (his favorite). It was really good, but I'd only go back here if I was out that way though.

That concludes the Pittsburgh ice cream tour! We went to all the ones I had on my list. If you're into trying different flavors like me, I recommend Kip's, Graeter's and Antney's. If you're looking to have dinner and dessert or a good Dole Whip or seasonal sundae, I'd go to Scoops & More! Those were my top picks.

Happy National Dessert Day! I won't be having ice cream today, but I made a batch of pumpkin scones the other day and had one for breakfast this morning to celebrate.