Wednesday, June 11, 2008

This is what bliss is

Molly Moon Ice Cream
Good things come to those who wait. If you're craving the local artisan ice cream that's the talk of the town, Molly Moon Ice Cream, you might have to wait and wait and wait but you'll be richly rewarded.

On one of those rare warm and sunny spring days here, I braved the crowds of sun-starved ice cream afficionados lined up at the tiny Wallingford store spilling out onto the sidewalk; a melting drip of customers clinging tenaciously to the waffle cone of cool reward inside.

Go for the flavors you won't find anywhere else. In the Seattle P-I, Rebekah Denn writes about Molly's Thai Iced Tea (bottom right in the pic above), balsamic strawberyy (top center) and salted caramel (top right) in her story, Frozen desserts go organic, local -- and unusual (06-10-08). Other artisan ice cream confectioners are described as well, and a demographic tidbit I did not know: "Seattleites buy more ice cream than any other U.S. city except St. Louis and Portland." Hmmm, is it the trees? The half-year without seeing the sun?

Upon scanning the menu board, and tasting a few samples, I decided on the two-scoop combo dish of salted caramel and cardamon. The salty, sweet, made-from-scratch caramel hit just the right notes paired with the bits of blossoming cardamon spiking the rich, creamy texture; hints of the best creme-brulee paired with the best chai you've ever tasted.

On a sunny, shorts and sandals day, slowly enjoying every spoonful, this is what bliss is.

Photos: Meryl Schenker / P-I

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