Neighborhood ice cream shops that deliver on memories, community and taste
Charlotte's Ice Cream
Year opened • 2007 What You'll Find • This pastel pink and white, '50s-themed shop blasts Elvis, hosts classic car shows and serves 14 sundaes, classic soft-serve flavors, 16 milkshakes, seven slushies and more. most Popular Treat • Ohio State fans cheer for the Peanut Butter Buckeye parfait ($4.75), a skyscraping cup of ice cream full of buckeyes and slightly hardened peanut butter syrup. Most Creative treat • Ask for the Flavor Bomb ($4.25) and you'll get a large ice cream cone infused with all eight varieties of a Flavor Burst soft-serve machine, including blue goo, mocha cappuccino and mint. Why We Love IT • "They have the best sugar cones," says 10-year-old Megan Carroll. "And it's cool how the place is old-fashioned."
1250 Lost Nation Road, Willoughby, 440-946-3152, charlottesicecream.com
Avon Dairy Treat
Year opened • 1970 What You'll Find • This walk-up ice cream shop has enough picnic tables for a whole Little League team, which makes "The Lick" — as locals call it — the perfect postgame hang out. most Popular Treat • The orange sherbet vanilla cone ($1.95) is famous for tasting like a Creamsicle. Most Creative treat • Request the Spencer ($5.25) with vanilla and chocolate ice cream, marshmallow sauce, pralines, bananas and hot fudge served in a boat-style sundae cup and finished with two Rice Krispies treats placed on top. Why We Love IT • "There was a place just like this where we grew up," says Amy Gray, 39, a Bellbrook, Ohio, native. "Now we live in Avon Lake. It's a childhood memory." 37175 Colorado Ave., Avon, 440-934-6118
Zero Zest
Year opened • 1950 What You'll Find • From vanilla cones to chocolate shakes, this iconic place pumps out the classics with fun handmade posters of treats, sundaes and avalanches lining the glass windows. most Popular Treat • The Swiss Fudge Shortcake ($4.15) mixes whipped cream, butter pecan ice cream, hot fudge and the owner's house-made shortcake in a huge cup. Off the Menu • Order the S'mores Sundae ($4.15), and you'll get Mexican fried ice cream with marshmallow, hot fudge and graham cracker toppings. Why We Love IT • "Every time you come, the employees remember you," says Jackie DiDonato, 52. "It's neighborhood people, and it's just a nice neighborhood ice cream place." 6096 State Road, Parma
