Jeni's Splendid Ice Cream, Multiple Locations

Okay, I am going to preface this review to say stop reading, get online and open Jeni's website to start ordering some ice cream. Or, even better, if you live near a Jeni’s and have yet to go, stop reading, get in the car, drive to your nearest Jeni’s and read while you are waiting on line to get some ice cream. Okay, now into the review! Jeni’s Splendid Ice Creams is a chain of ice cream shops across the country, with locations in cities such as St. Louis, Atlanta, and Austin. But, if you do not have a Jeni’s in your area you can also order pints online from their website, https://jenis.com, or you can find their ice cream in select supermarkets. I am usually not the biggest ice cream fan. Don’t get me wrong I think ice cream is good, but it would definitely not be my first choice. However, Jeni’s ice cream is unmatched. The brand, chain, whatever you would call it, has redefined my ice cream standards. My aunt sent my family and I some pints for Hanukkah last December and it was truly one of the best gifts I’ve received. The flavors I got for Hanukkah were the Gooey Butter

Cake, Salted Caramel, Lemon and Blueberries Parfait, and one more that I cannot remember the name of (which means I probably did not try it). The Salted Caramel and Lemon Blueberry were all good, slightly above average but the Gooey Butter Cake was unlike anything I have ever had before. The ice cream was creamy and rich with cake and caramel like sauce mixed into the cream cheese base. This ice cream flavor was the definition of perfection. When I found myself at the Jeni’s ice cream shop location in Atlanta, I was tempted to buy a scoop of the Gooey Butter Cake, wanting to relive the first taste I had of this incredible flavor. But, knowing that it was unlikely that I would have a chance to go to another Jeni’s location anytime soon, I decided to take another route and try the Blamberry Crisp and the Almond Brittle, topped with their homemade cone triangles (I wanted a waffle cone but they were sold out😪). I have to say, I was a bit surprised by my opinions on these flavors. Knowing my love for all things caramel and toffee, I thought the Almond Brittle was going to be my favorite. However, I was blown away by the Blamberry Crisp and left underwhelmed by the Almond Brittle. The Blamberry Crisp was unlike anything I have ever tried before. It tasted exactly like a homemade blueberry crisp with vanilla ice cream that just got mixed up all together. The ice cream to crisp ratio was so perfect that I got a bit of everything in every bite. Both flavorful and rich, this flavor is defiantly one you must try if you are ever at Jeni’s!

The Almond Brittle was not bad, but it just was not nearly as perfect as the Blamberry Crisp or the Gooey Buttercake. The amount of almond brittle mixed into the ice cream was simply just too little. I had bites on end without even getting any almond brittle. Both the ice cream base and the almond brittle in the ice cream were good, but I just wish that there was more brittle - which is too bad because this flavor has a lot of potential. Did I walk out of Jeni’s regretting that I did not get the Gooey Butter Cake? Maybe a little, but I am glad I tried the other flavors to know where my feelings about Jeni’s lie. Although I would say that I am no expert on this ice cream chain, from my two experiences with it my guess is to go with the baked-good oriented flavors (Gooey Butter Cake, Blamberry Crisp, Lemon Bar - which I wanted to try but they were sold out, I’ve heard that the Lemon Bar is the best flavor- etc). My ice cream was also topped with their homemade cone chips. The cone chips were a nice little crunch which contrasted nicely with the smooth, creamy ice cream. They also had a nice structure so they were not crumbling and I could eat them with the ice cream almost like eating chips and guac.

In terms of environment and service, I can talk about the Atlanta, Decatur Square location

since that is the only one I have been to. Decatur Square is the perfect location for an ice cream shop, adjacent to a bunch of really nice restaurants. It is no surprise that Jeni’s was a little busy when I went. However, I do not think it was busy enough to make me wait as long as I had to - and this is coming from someone who is rather sympathetic to ice cream workers since I work in an ice cream shop. Three people were working behind the counter: one was at the register, and the other two were cleaning the shop and moving very slowly, almost unfazed by the line that was out the door. I waited a solid 15 minutes, maybe more, when there were only about 5 people in front of me, most of which were in the same party. Although the shop was really nice, well kept up, and the person at the cash register was extremely nice and friendly, I would just prefer ordering the ice cream online. The store also had a limited selection with most of the flavors in pint form which did not make sense to me because you don’t usually go to an ice cream store only intending to buy a pint. It’s always fun to go to an ice cream shop, and if you do not mind waiting and are very patient (unlike me) then go to the store!

In my opinion, if you choose your flavors wisely, Jeni’s is a must-try ice cream shop. And if I were solely rating it based on the positive experience I had with some flavors I would rate it a 10/10. However, since some flavors were a little underwhelming and the in-person experience I had was not exceptional I would balance the rating out to a more fair 8.9/10.