Milkjam Creamery - January 24, 2016
(This one’s out of order, I wanted to get Mucci’s pop-up pushed before I went to the soft opening as I’d mentioned.)
Before writing this, I thought a lot of people would say with pride that certain aspects of a place are “Only in <place>.” However, if you do a hashtag search on Instagram for “#onlyin<stateAbbreviation>,” you end up seeing that the most frequent usage is Minnesota. If you include other places, Minnesota still appears to be in first place with over 200k usages, Vegas is second with about 149k, the Philippines in third with about 145k.
I was curious because I can’t think of another place where a group of friends would gather to stand around outside in subzero (Fahrenheit) temperatures to get ice cream from a shop that decided to open during the depths of winter. Only in Minnesota.
It helped that the shop is the brainchild of former Iron Chef competing, cook book authoring, food truck and finer dining restaurant owning master of spice and flavor Sameh Wadi. Him and his brother Saed operate my favorite food truck and its companion brick and mortar, along with Saffron, a restaurant that leaves me wondering if I dreamt each meal, or actually experienced it. I knew when I heard there was an ice cream shop coming it’d be something to check out.
I’d gone a few days earlier (when it was subzero) and tried a couple flavors and a Jam Bun, a scoop of ice cream on a sliced Glam Doll Donut, usually with a sauce and a topping. This time we were a crew of six and we wanted to be the first to order the “All of Them” menu item. Just as it says, it’s all of the flavors, but that’s not all it is. It’s also crushed cones, sauces, baked goods, and toppings.
It brings me back to my childhood when there were a lot more standalone Bridgeman’s Restaurant and Ice Cream Parlors. I remember that they offered a sundae named the Lollapalooza. Rumor has it there was some sort of challenge attached it to it, eat it all, and you’d win something. I only attempted it once when I was a teenager. I was a Boy Scout and it was the night I was inducted into the Order of the Arrow, my parents took me and my siblings there as an impromptu celebration, that was the only time I tried, and I failed. That failure’s memory wasn’t with me when a group of us decided to make sure that we’d be the first to order, and attempt to finish “All of them.”
So on a January’s Sunday evening in Minneapolis, when the temperature wasn’t subzero, but was below freezing, Kat, Shawn, Andrea, Bryan, Kim, and I decided we would be the first to order ALL OF THEM. When all of us arrived and finished waiting outside, we got in line. When it was finally our turn to order, when asked what I’d like, I think it was me that said “All of Them.” (It may not have been me.) The look on the scooper’s face was priceless, she asked for confirmation. I’m sure there was probably some discussion amongst the staff, debating how long it would be until some group decided to get it. The chef indicated they hadn’t really constructed one yet, so it was still just a concept, until we made it a reality.
Here’s a link to a tweet that has a time lapse video of the construction.
Here’s my before shot. Kat’s, Shawn’s, Andrea’s, Kim’s.
Here’s 4 minutes later.
Another 6 minutes later, some spoons started slowing.
But 8 minutes later it was history. First “All of Them” ordered, constructed, and devoured. Shawn’s also took a picture of the aftermath. Less than 18 minutes from spoons in to spoons down.
I *might* attempt it myself soon.
Gluttonous pursuits and achievements aside, if you’re a fan of ice cream, Milkjam Creamery is an amazing addition to the already thriving ice cream scene in town. Izzy’s, Sweet Science, Sebastian Joe’s, et al., have another more than worthy contemporary. Lots of dairy free and vegan for those persuasions, some boozier blends too, all with great flavor. Mostly unconventional flavors and toppings that get transformed into great sundaes, especially if you go with the WWCD (What Would Chef Do?) - a usually impromptu jazz session by chef Ben. I recommend it. They’re still filling some of the promises on their menu, and working on doing some things, including their waffle/sugar cones, in house.