READER REVIEW: Omari's Review of Market Pantry Caramel Waffle Cone

One of my favorite ice cream novelties is Sundae Cones. I just love a good crispy waffle cone with the inside lined with bittersweet chocolate with scoops of vanilla ice cream. Let's get this straight. This ice cream is literally a deconstructed sundae cone novelty. If you were to go to the store and buy a pack of sundae cones with a caramel swirl then this is what you are getting here. Here is the description on the box, "Caramel Waffle Cone Ice Cream: Vanilla Flavored Ice Cream with Caramel Swirls & Fudge Covered Waffle Cone Pieces."

The ice cream based has a nice vanilla flavor that could be enjoyed on its own and definitely blends well with the other ingredients. It is not the best vanilla ice cream out there but it is nowhere near the worst. This has the same rich and creamy caramel that I have come to enjoy from other Market Pantry selections. When I decide to eat ice cream in a cone, I want the cone itself to be delicious. To me cones are not just containers for ice cream but are meant to add flavor and texture to the ice cream experience, These fudge cone pieces do not disappoint (blah, blah, blah...I would buy them separately) and the majority of them were crunchy and even the ones that were moist were still good. To me it seems that the Market Pantry ice creams has a focus on making the mix-ins flavorful and pairs it with a mild flavor ice cream that is good enough but not just grand. That is not a bad strategy for a low price ice cream that can definitely compete with some name brands.

Where Omari Found It: Target
Omari's Grade: A

REVIEW: Steve's Sunday Morning

As I tried to decide which pint of Steve’s Ice Cream would be my first, fate intervened and effectively picked for me. After waking up from a nice long slumber this morning, the thought of buttered maple syrup ice cream with crispy waffle pieces seemed like the ideal way to start off my day. Sunday Morning has taken the taste of breakfast and transformed it into an interesting concept for an ice cream flavor. Although the description was more than enough to convince me to try this one first, the dark splotches of maple syrup cascading down the sides of the transparent pint really sealed the deal. Steve’s, much like Jeni’s, fills their pints all the way to the brim; which leaves an impression of the lid on this glorious looking first layer.

Considering Sunday Morning tips the scales at 300 calories per serving, there is no doubt that this is a super-premium product. My first taste of Steve’s ice cream comes in the form of the buttered maple syrup ice cream that I manage to secure on my spoon. This unique base is dense, thick, and full of flavors. It begins with a mild, buttery richness and slowly incorporates the taste of maple syrup. This results in an accurate impersonation of the flavors you’d find when letting a melting square of butter and syrup fuse together on top of a fluffy waffle. Although it isn’t listed in the description, the maple syrup is so thick that it not only infiltrates the taste of the ice cream, but also acts as its own swirl. The sticky syrup remains in a liquid state and strings up from the pint to my spoon nearly every time it’s involved in a bite. This combination of buttered maple syrup ice cream and an authentic syrup swirl would have been enough to secure a high grade, but the remaining crispy waffle pieces just push Sunday Morning over the edge.

These pieces of golden waffle are plentiful and remain constant from top to bottom. Although each chunk varies in size, the taste and texture provided are unprecedented. They aren’t quite resistant enough to be crunchy, but come off as crispy; just as the description suggests. After the initial bite, these porous mix-ins start to release some of the maple syrup they’ve soaked up and eventually break down into the soft, chewy consistency you’d expect from a waffle. Each beautiful bite combining all three maple-infused ingredients exemplifies all the reasons why we love this popular breakfast fare. Steve’s Sunday Morning, a flavor that easily entered the upper echelon of ice creams, deserves kudos for both creativity and execution.

Where I Found It: Steve's Ice Cream Online Store
Grade: A