Americans love frozen treats and desserts, and ice cream, Popsicles, gelato, and more prove hugely popular every single year. The idea of ice cream is over a century old, and a staggering variety of flavors can be found today. But there is more variance to ice cream than just entering “best ice cream around” online or comparing Rocky Road to mint chocolate ice cream. Many ice cream lovers may choose between waffle cones and paper cups when they get a frozen treat, and in Florida and Texas, many Americans may also find Mexican-style paletas, too. These are Mexican Popsicles, in short, and come in a charming variety of flavors, many of which may be exotic and fun for American consumers. A Spanish speaker may look for Spanish-language ice cream parlors in Florida or Texas online, and search “heladerias en miami” or “heladerias en miami espanol” to find something they might like. Something similar to “heladerias en miami” can be done to find paletas, too.
All About Ice Cream
This treat, and others like it such as gelato and frozen custard, prove popular all across the nation. Many statistics are kept every year to track what Americans like to eat and drink, and that includes ice cream and the like. For example, the NDP Group found that in any two-week period, some 40% of Americans, over 100 million people, will eat ice cream. What is more, some 90% of households regularly indulge in frozen treats, and almost as many have ice cream in their refrigerators, too. June proves to be the most popular month for producing ice cream, since it is at the start of summer, and nearly 8% of all American dairy is dedicated to making ice cream. Often, this ice cream is sold at local stores with local brands, as only 16% of all ice cream is marketed across the entire United States. Local brands and sellers of ice cream, by contrast, are the norm. Some ice cream parlors may specialize in even more varieties. Some such parlors may also serve gelato, a related frozen dessert that is creamier than ice cream and usually served with cups or bowls rather than on cones. Frozen custard, sherbet, and frozen custard may also be served in paper or plastic cups with spoons or straws. Meanwhile, someone looking for a good ice cream parlor may look for a bilingual ice cream parlor in Miami or Texas, and enter something like “heladerias en miami” or “heladerias en dallas” to find something local. They might also find a shop that sells paletas this way. Though in other cases, it may be more fun to simply explore the town and stumble upon a nice ice cream shop and see what it has to offer.
There is more than one way to eat ice cream. The classic image of ice cream is the ice cream cone, when one or more scoops of this frozen treat is piled atop an edible waffle cone. These cones are stylish, and their dry, mildly sweet bodies make for a wonderful contrast with the ice cream itself. But ice cream cones can be a bit messy too, and the eater may run the risk of ice cream falling off or melting and making a mess. What is more, these ice cream cones don’t make for good leftovers containers, so cones might be best for smaller servings in informal settings.
Many Americans also like to eat ice cream with laminated paper cups or plastic bowls, complete with plastic spoons or straws. These containers aren’t stylish or edible, but they make for neat and tidy containers that prevent messes or spills. They are also good and ready-made leftovers containers. A good ice cream parlor will have cups and waffle cones alike for any customer’s preference.
A good ice cream parlor will stock not only the ice cream itself (and all its flavors), but also plenty of waffle cones, paper and plastic cups and spoons, paper napkins, and more. A parlor’s staff will also rinse out, then take apart and wash their ice cream machines after a hard day’s work. This sets up the machines for work the next day.
