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Sure, we can eat ice cream year-round. But nothing compares to the heady, delicious joy of a trip to an ice cream parlor to get a scoop (or three) on a hot summer day. The lines can be long, and sometimes we must wait outside in the muggy, buggy air, but that just gives us more time to read and reread the list of flavors. Anticipation builds. When our turn comes, we step up to the glass window, ready to feel the whooshing burst of frosty air on our hot faces when it slides open — the portal to sweet relief and just rewards. From the first taste off the top of a sweet scoop to the final crunch of a crisp cone, ice cream is pure delight.
DOLLY’S DAIRY BAR AND GIFT SHOP
PISGAH FOREST
Located within steps of Pisgah National Forest and within a few miles of dozens of storied sleepaway camps in the Brevard area, Dolly’s sits at the crossroads of many summertime comings and goings in the mountains. The shop is a well-known local landmark for hikers, campers, and cyclists headed into or out of Pisgah, and for many families as they launch and close camp week. A field trip to Dolly’s has been a special and spirited outing for generations of campers, who clamber aboard buses and bellow out songs the whole way there and back. Many beloved flavors are named for those summer camps (like Camp Highlander, aka coffee cookie fudge), providing another chance to proclaim our loyalties to our camp and affection for our favorite cone. Dolly’s stickers dot the back windows and bumpers of family cars and minivans across the state, the tastiest badge we earned all year.
128 Pisgah Highway, (828) 862-6610
Enjoy a sweet treat at this pastel-colored pit stop. photograph by Matt Ray Photography
TWO SCOOPS
CHARLOTTE
Many of us have gone out with friends to get some ice cream, but these three best friends — Marques Johnson, Jae Hatchett, and Rich Moyer — combined their skills to share their love of ice cream with us. It’s a tasty strategy to make new friends all the time. Since opening their first shop in Plaza Midwood in 2016, they’ve opened two more colorful and family-friendly locations in Charlotte’s South End neighborhood and in Mooresville. Johnson, who learned to make ice cream from his family in Florida, dreams up playful creations like Krazy Kake, Bartman, Wake Up Call, Dabba Doo, Papi Crunch, and Not Your Mama’s Pumpkin Pie. Check out their double-wide ice cream cones, designed to hold — you guessed it — two scoops.
913 Central Avenue, (704) 900-5792
twoscoopscreamery.com
BEACHES-N-CREAM
SUPPLY
On the Holden Beach Causeway — gateway to many a family beach trip — sits Beaches-N-Cream. Their nearly 200 flavors in regular rotation, plus another 30 seasonal favorites, are made with local ingredients from contented North Carolina cows. Two hundred flavors — including Beach Sand, made with honey and brown sugar, and Turtle Tracks — is a lot to choose from, but if a cone or a bowl just isn’t enough, try the “Bad Decision”: If challengers can eat 16 scoops of various flavors, plus toppings, in 40 minutes, their ice cream is on the house.
3316 Holden Beach Road, (910) 842-7326
hbbeachesncream.com
THE HOP ICE CREAM CAFÉ
ASHEVILLE
The Hop has been an Asheville icon since 1978. Current owners Greg and Ashley Garrison continue the tradition with three locations and flavors as artistic and creative as the city itself. Try blueberry kale or a vegan flavor, like strawberry pepita milk.
640 Merrimon Avenue No. 103
(828) 254-2224, thehopicecreamcafe.com
JACK THE DIPPER
SYLVA
At the “Home of the Warm Waffle Cone,” the aroma of made-to-order vanilla, chocolate, and cinnamon cones greets you at the door.
170 East Sylva Shopping Center
(828) 586-9441, jackthedipper.com
BOOMBALATTI’S
WILMINGTON
Plenty of places make ice cream cakes. Boombalatti’s is famous for its towering ice cream pies. At the flagship location, choose any combination of the shop’s 24 flavors with fudge or caramel, all nestled in a homemade cookie-crumb crust.
1127 Military Cutoff Road No. B
(910) 679-4955, boombalattis.com
SUNNI SKY’S HOMEMADE ICE CREAM
ANGIER
Founder Scott Wilson loves to experiment with flavors — the Cold Sweat, made with hot peppers, has earned national publicity — and he has about 130 in rotation, from apple pie to White Russian. Fortunately, he’s happy to let you sample a few to find your heart’s desire(s).
8617 NC Highway 55 South
(919) 427-7118, sunniskys.com
ANDIA’S HOMEMADE ICE CREAM
CARY
Andia Xouris and her husband, George, both grew up in traditional Greek homes centered on food and family. Flavors like baklava and rose pistachio are inspired by Andia’s childhood on the island of Cyprus, and George’s family-heirloom ice cream scoop — inherited from his pappou — holds a place of honor in their shop.
10120 Green Level Church Road No. 208
(919) 822-1866, andiasicecream.com
SURFIN’ SPOON
NAGS HEAD
The “ice cream” this shop is best known for is frozen yogurt. In the 1960s, when the building housed Jockey Ridge Restaurant, people stuck change in the ceiling to tip the servers. Owners Jesse and Whitney Hines — a professional surfer and an artist — kept that tradition and donate the money to a good cause: Surfing for Autism.
2408 South Virginia Dare Trail
(252) 441-7873, surfinspoon.com
LUMPY’S ICE CREAM
WAKE FOREST
Founder Buck Buchanan started making ice cream for his kids, upgraded to a shed behind his house, then expanded to an ice cream shop. Now, his long list of inventive flavor combinations includes Buchanan’s Black and White (whiskey ice cream mixed with chocolate chips) and Wired Hippy (coffee ice cream with trail mix).
306 East Wait Avenue, (919) 878-7700
lumpysicecream.com
TWO ROOSTERS ICE CREAM
RALEIGH
Before opening their North Raleigh shop (and a second one on Person Street), Jared and Kelsey Plummer served ice cream out of a turquoise-and-white camper and at Durham Bulls games, building a following with “forever flavors” like coffee bourbon and blackberry hibiscus. The name is a tribute to Jared’s granny’s farmhouse, where two black wooden roosters kept watch over family gatherings. Which included ice cream, of course.
7713 Lead Mine Road No. 49, (919) 803-9369
tworoosters.com
GOLDEN COW CREAMERY
CHARLOTTE
Alex and Liz Hannah met growing up in Cary, graduated from Appalachian State University, and wound up opening a South End ice cream shop, plus a second location in South Park. Scratch-made flavors like fresh strawberry and salted Oreo are not only delicious, they also support the growth and prosperity of the Hannahs’ community: A portion of their monthly profits, which they call the Queen’s Share, goes to various local charities.
170 West Summit Avenue, (980) 938-0925
goldencowcreamery.com
MAPLE VIEW ICE CREAM
HILLSBOROUGH
Finding the way to the rocker-lined front porch of Maple View Ice Cream is easy: Just follow the cyclists on surrounding country roads each weekend, zipping along in lines like ants to a picnic. This working dairy offers milk and other products, but it’s the sweet treats that draw most people for a big cone or a pint packed in Maple View’s signature Holstein-spotted cartons.
6900 Rocky Ridge Road, (919) 960-5535
mapleviewfarm.com
Western
Alexander County
16/90 T’ville Scoops
604 West Main Avenue
Taylorsville, NC 28681
(828) 471-5255
taylorsvillescoops.business.site
Avery County
Locus Post
2043 Tynecastle Highway
Banner Elk, NC 28604
(828) 963-0394
locust-post.business.site
Buncombe County
The Hop Ice Cream Café
640 Merrimon Ave #103
Asheville, NC 28804
(828) 254-2224
thehopicecreamcafe.com
Burke County
Toasted and Rolled
109 North Sterling Street
Morganton, NC 28655
(828) 475-6889
toasted-and-rolled.business.site
Caldwell County
Corner Cremery
808 West Avenue NW
Lenoir, NC 28645
(828) 754-2173
Catawba County
Udderly Delicious Ice Cream
1006 Conover Boulevard West
Conover, NC 28613
(828) 465-1070
udderlydelicious.com
Cherokee County
Scoops
915 Main Street
Andrews, NC 28901
(828) 516-9662
facebook.com/scoopscreamerync
Cleveland County
Uptown Sweets & Treats
221 South Lafayette Street
Shelby, NC 28150
(980) 404-0167
facebook.com/uptownsweetsandtreats
Gaston County
Tony’s Ice Cream
604 East Franklin Boulevard
Gastonia, NC 28054
(704) 867-7085
facebook.com/tonysicecream
Graham County
Pop & Nana’s Kitchen and The Scoop
52 Rodney Orr Bypass
Robbinsville, NC 28771
(828) 479-8461
Haywood County
Log Cabin Frozen Treats
2052 Dellwood Road
Waynesville, NC 28786
(828) 400-7596
logcabinfrozentreats.com
Henderson County
Mills River Creamery
4193 Haywood Road
Mills River, NC 28759
(828) 891-4007
millsrivercreamery.com
Iredell County
Mooresville Ice Cream Company
168 North Broad Street
Mooresville, NC 28115
(704) 746-9371
deluxe1924.com
Jackson County
Jack the Dipper Ice Cream Parlor
170 East Sylva Shopping Center (near Quin Movie Theater)
Sylva, NC 28779
(828) 586-9441
jackthedipper.com
Lincoln County
Morgan’s Ice Cream Parlor & More
1619 East Main Street
Lincolnton, NC 28092
(704) 748-2599
facebook.com/morganslincolnton
McDowell County
Jack Frost Dairy Bar
2449 Sugar Hill Road
Marion, NC 28752
(828) 652-1178
jackfrostdairybar.com
Mecklenburg County
Two Scoops Creamery Plaza Midwood
913 Central Avenue
Charlotte, NC 28204
(704) 900-5792
twoscoopscreamery.com
Golden Cow Creamery
170 West Summit Avenue
Charlotte, NC 28203
(980) 938-0925
goldencowcreamery.com
Polk County
The Ice Cream Barn
567 East Mills Street
Columbus, NC 28722
(828) 802-1149
facebook.com/theicecreambarn
Rutherford County
Scoop Rutherfordton
286 Chimney Rock Road
Rutherfordton, NC 28139
(828) 980-5675
facebook.com/scooprutherfordton
Swain County
Soda Pops Ice Cream Parlor
125 Everett Street
Bryson City, NC 28713
(828) 488-8456
sodapopsicecream.com
Transylvania County
Dolly’s Dairy Bar & Gift Shop
128 Pisgah Highway
Pisgah Forest, NC 28768
(828) 862-6610
facebook.com/dollysdairybargiftshop
Union County
Waxhaw Creamery
109 East North Main Street
Waxhaw, NC 28173
(704) 843-7927
facebook.com/waxhawcreamery
Watauga County
King Street Creamery
595 West King Street
Boone, NC 28607
(828) 262-4622
kingstreetcreamery.com
Wilkes County
Igloo Ice Cream and Sandwich Shop
4337 NC Highway 16
Millers Creek, NC 28651
(336) 667-5461
Yancey County
Cool Catz Candy & Cream
110 West Main Street
Burnsville, NC 28714
(828) 536-5180
Central
Alamance County
Smitty’s
300 North Main Street
Graham, NC 27253
(336) 350-9946
Cabarrus County
Cabarrus Creamery
21 Union Street South
Concord, NC 28025
(704) 784-1923
cabarruscreamery.com
Caswell County
Busy Bee Coffee Company
118 Main Street
Yanceyville, NC 27379
(336) 459-6099
busybeecoffeecompany.com
Chatham County
S&T’s Soda Shoppe
85 Hillsboro Street
Pittsboro, NC 27253
(919) 545-0007
sandtsodashoppe.com
Davie County
Hillbilly Diner & Holy Cow Ice Cream
4395 Highway 64 Alternate West
Mocksville, NC 27028
(336) 492-3173
Durham County
The Parlour
117 Market Street
Durham, NC 27701
(919) 564-7999
theparlour.co
Forsyth County
Black Mountain Chocolate
732 Trade Street Northwest
Winston-Salem, NC 27101
(336) 293-4698
blackmountainchocolate.com
Guilford County
Homeland Creamery
6506 Bowman Dairy Road
Julian, NC 27283
(336) 685-6455
homelandcreamery.com
Lee County
Yarborough’s Homemade Ice Cream
132 McIver Street
Sanford, NC 27330
(919) 776-6266
yarboroughs-homemade-ice-crm.business.site
Montgomery County
Speckled Paw Coffee
104 North Main Street
Mount Gilead, NC 27306
(843) 384-6972
speckledpawcoffee.com
Moore County
The Ice Cream Parlor Restaurant
176 NW Broad Street
Southern Pines, NC 28387
(910) 692-7273
facebook.com/icecream.parlor.3
Kalawi Farm and Ben’s Ice Cream
1495 NC Highway 211
Eagle Springs, NC 27242
(910) 673-5996
facebook.com/kalawifarm
Orange County
Maple View Ice Cream
6900 Rocky Ridge Road
Hillsborough, NC 27516
(919) 960-5535
mapleviewfarm.com
Person County
The Ice Cream Shoppe
126 South Madison Boulevard
Roxboro, NC 27573
(336) 599-5770
Randolph County
Bangkok Street Fare Ice Cream
1512 Zoo Parkway
Asheboro, NC 27205
(336) 864-1793
bangkok-street-fare.business.site
Richmond County
The Berry Patch
351 Cargo Road
Ellerbe, NC 28338
(910) 652-3276
worldslargeststrawberry.com
Rockingham County
Mayberry Restaurant Ice Cream Parlor
698 South Scales Street
Reidsville, NC 27320
(336) 342-3277
mayberryreidsville.com
Rowan County
The Sweetest Thing Ice Cream Shoppe
823 West C Street
Kannapolis, NC 28081
(704) 298-4422
thesweetestthingicecreamshoppe.com
Scotland County
Scoop N Dip
1025 South Main Street
Laurinburg, NC 28352
(910) 506-4363
Stokes County
The Milk Bar
213 North Main Street
Walnut Cove, NC 27052
(336) 591-9262
themilkbarnc.com
Surry County
Miss Angel’s Heavenly Pies
153 North Main Street
Mount Airy, NC 27030
(336) 786-1537
missangelsheavenlypiesinc.com
Yadkin County
Alex’s Grill and Ice Cream
119 Pauline Street
East Bend, NC 27018
(336) 699-5000
facebook.com/pages/alexsgrillicecream
Eastern
Beaufort County
Dairy Palace
120 Bridge Street
Washington, NC 27889
(252) 946-1894
facebook.com/pages/dairypalace
Brunswick County
Beaches-N-Cream
3316 Holden Beach Road
Supply, NC 28462
(910) 842-7326
hbbeachesncream.com
Carteret County
Sweet Spot
8201 Emerald Drive
Emerald Isle, NC 28594
(252) 354-6201
sweetspotei.com
Happy Cow Ice Cream
404 Evans Street
Morehead City, NC 28557
(252) 269-9890
Chowan County
The Freeze
320 West Queen Street
Edenton, NC 27932
(252) 482-2402
Columbus County
The Creamery at Daddy Joe’s
626 Richard Wright Road
Tabor City, NC 28463
(910) 653-2155
taborcityjellystone.com/amenities/the-creamery-1
Craven County
Bear City Fudge Company
236 Middle Street C
New Bern, NC 28560
(252) 636-1360
bearcityfudge.com
Cumberland County
Gillis Hill Farm
2701 Gillis Hill Road
Fayetteville, NC, 28306
(910) 867-2350
gillishillfarm.com
Currituck County
The Chill Spot
610 Currituck Clubhouse Drive
Corolla, NC 27927
(252) 597-3311
thechillspotobx.com
Dare County
Donutz On a Stick and Ice Cream
1216 Duck Road
Duck, NC 27949
(252) 261-0484
donutzonastick.com/facebook
Surfin’ Spoon
2408 South Virginia Dare Trail
Nags Head, NC 27959
(252) 441-7873
surfinspoon.com
Edgecombe County
Tarboro Coffee House
439 North Main Street
Tarboro, North Carolina 27886
(252) 563-6510
Granville County
Southern Snow Company
935 College Street
Oxford, NC 27565
(919) 906-1372
southernsnowcompany.com
Greene County
La Monarca Ice Cream & Fruit Bar
111 SE 2nd Street
Snow Hill, NC 28580
(252) 747-4336
facebook.com/LaMonarcaIcecream
Halifax County
Wakeboard Willie’s
2475 Eaton Ferry Road
Littleton, NC 27850
(252) 586-6866
Harnett County
Sunni Sky’s Homemade Ice Cream
8617 NC Highway 55 South
Angier, NC 27501
(919) 427-7118
sunniskys.com
Hertford County
Charlie West’s Grill-Ice Cream
21 East Memorial Drive
Ahoskie, NC 27910
(252) 332-4133
Hyde County
The Slushy Stand
473 Irvin Garrish Highway
Ocracoke, NC 27960
(252) 928-1878
theslushystand.com
Johnston County
Nancy Jo’s Homemade of Clayton
200 East Main Street #103
Clayton, NC 27520
(919) 333-7895
nancyjoshomemade,com
Jones County
Sweetie’s Ice Cream
505 Main Street
Maysville, NC 28555
facebook.com/SweetiesIceCreamMaysville
New Hanover County
Boombalatti’s Homemade Ice Cream
1127 Military Cutoff Road No. B
Wilmington, NC 28405
(910) 679-4955
boombalattis.com
Onslow County
Tiki Turtle’s Ice Creams and Mocktails
214 A2 North Topsail Drive
Surf City, NC 28445
(910) 928-8080
tikiturtlesicecreamsandmocktails.business.site
Pamlico County
The Bean
304 Hodges Street
Oriental, NC 28571
(252) 249-4918
beanonc.com
Pasquotank County
Nu-Quality Ice Cream Bar
801 North Hughes Boulevard
Elizabeth City, NC 27909
(252) 335-0901
facebook.com/nuqualityicecream
Pender County
Beach Bunny Ice Cream
501 Roland Avenue
Surf City, NC 28445
(910) 520-1144
Pitt County
Simply Natural Creamery
1265 Carson Edwards Road
Ayden, NC 28513
(252) 746-3334
simplynaturalcreamery.com
Robeson County
Dairy Ranch
931 East 4th Avenue
Red Springs, NC 28377
(910) 843-5424
Vance County
Farmer John’s Produce and Homemade Ice Cream
675 Kelly Road
Henderson, NC 27537
(252) 432-9215
Wake County
Andia’s Homemade Ice Cream
10120 Green Level Church Road No. 208
Cary, NC 27519
(919) 822-1866
andiasicecream.com
Lumpy’s Ice Cream
306 East Wait Avenue
Wake Forest, NC 27587
(919) 878-7700
lumpysicecream.com
Two Roosters Ice Cream
7713 Lead Mine Road No. 49
Raleigh, NC 27615
(919) 803-9369
tworoosters.com
Warren County
Buchanan’s Store
6547 Drewry-Virginia Line Road
Manson, NC 27553
(252) 456-2580
facebook.com/buchananscountrystore
Wayne County
Stay Sweet Bakery
469 Buck Swamp Road
Goldsboro, NC 27530
(919) 947-5965
staysweetbakery.com
Wilson County
Sweet Southern Scoops
3475-K Airport Boulevard NW
Wilson, NC 27896
(252) 292-3514
facebook.com/sweetsouthernscoops