Looking To Enjoy The Last Days Of Summer? Try An Ice Cream Day!

Last Updated: 3 September 2021

Written By: Izabela Jaroszynski

A few weeks ago I told my kids the story of one of my most memorable days from childhood. I was nine and my mother and I were visiting my native Poland for a summer trip. One day we drove to a nearby town for some shopping with my aunt and uncle. While my mom and aunt shopped, my uncle took me on an ice cream tour of the historic town. We stopped for a cone at ice cream shop after ice cream shop. In my child’s memory, we ate 50 cones that day (in reality it must have only been five or six). But what a day it was! 

So when I asked my kids what they wanted to do for one last hurrah before school started next week, of course they said they wanted an ice cream day! Who am I to deny them such pleasure?

For our ice cream adventure, we headed to South Eastern Ontario’s Bay of Quinte and Prince Edward County. Renowned for wine, beer and farm-to-table foods, this is a popular destination in Ontario. I felt sure we wouldn’t be disappointed by the ice cream selection. We planned for an overnight adventure as there just seemed to be so many wonderful places to visit and many delicious ice cream parlours to try. We certainly didn’t get to them all!

Old Greenhouse Ice Cream Shop

Located in beautiful Wellington in Prince Edward County, the Old Greenhouse Ice Cream Shop was probably our favourite stop. The shop serves soft serve infused ‘Flavour Bursts’ (such as cool lemon, watermelon or English toffee) as well as scoops from Central Smith Creamery. The kids loved the different flavour options and enjoyed sitting out in the sun on the green loungers in the front of the store. A perfect place for a perfect cone!

 Slickers Ice Cream

It wouldn’t be an ice cream trip to Prince Edward County without a stop at Slickers Ice Cream. The county-based ice creamery now has two locations, the original iconic yellow building in Bloomfield, as well as the newer spot in downtown Picton. We decided to try the newer location as it fit in with the rest of our plans (mainly a stop at Angry Birds Rotisserie. Yum!). The ice cream selection here was amazing, with cool flavours like Apple Pie, Campfire and Jazzberry. Since there was no place to sit, we took our ice cream on a walk through pretty downtown Picton.

Reid’s Dairy

Reid’s Dairy is an institution in Belleville. The huge building houses Ontario’s largest locally owned and operated dairy. While you can buy milk and cream here as well, we came for the ice cream. This is a busy place but service was quick and prices were very reasonable. We all got tempted by the Loonie Shakes that come in chocolate, vanilla and strawberry (or as my son discovered, in Neapolitan, which is basically all three delicious flavours layered together). Located just off Highway 401, Reid’s is a great stop for antsy kids on a hot day.

Oh Dahlyla

A little outdoor shop in downtown Brighton, Oh Dahlyla serves generous scoops from Central Smith Creamery and Chapman. Flavours such as Reese’s Pieces, Lavender Lemonade and Monster Cookie (it’s blue, of course!) delighted the kids. There were plenty of shaded spots to sit and enjoy the creamy delights. The friendly lady behind the counter even allowed the kids to sample the ice cream before committing to a flavour, which is always a bonus when trying new places!

Sister Scoops

Bright pink and cheerful, Sister Scoops in Carrying Place serves Kawartha Dairy Ice Cream in a wide variety of flavours.  Huge portions made the kids smile and there was plenty of room outside to sit in the sun or shade. Carrying Place is the gateway to Prince Edward County and Sister Scoops is a great stop on your way in or out of the County.

There were so many more places on our list of ice cream stops but we couldn’t get to them all. What is your favourite place to get a scoop?