Old-fashioned or over-the-top? Six Lexington places to indulge your ice cream cravings
Now that the Parkette Drive-In is gone, you might be missing the hand-spun shakes and jukeboxes.
The local drive-in, which closed in June after 70 years, was a great place to go for ice cream treats as well as burgers in Lexington.
So where can you go now to get the fun of an old-fashioned soda fountain? Or just great ice cream?
Here is a guide and list of six of the best local places to get your fix in Lexington and Central Kentucky. (And don’t forget Graeter’s, a Cincinnati-based chain that has terrific French-pot style ice cream available as sundaes or in cones or cups at two locations in Lexington.)
Freshie’s Ice Cream & Soda Fountain
3851 Kenesaw Dr. Open noon to 9 p.m. Sunday-Thursday, noon to 10 p.m. Friday and Saturday.
Freshie’s has the look and feel of a classic retro ice cream parlor, with a menu of premium ice cream that is hand-dipped. You can get scoops in waffle cones or in old-fashioned glass ice cream dishes.
In addition to scoops, you can also get sundaes, ice cream sodas and floats, egg creams, milkshakes and malts and cane sugar draft sodas in your choice of flavors.
For a special treat, get a shareable dish like an ice cream flight of six flavors, Waffle Nachos Supreme or a banana split. Seasonal dishes also are available, like a Peppermint Shake, Warm Brownie Sundae with Peppermint ice cream or a Hot Chocolate Ice Cream Float.
And in early 2023, Freshie’s will add a second location in South Lexington at 4379 Old Harrodsburg Rd. with a waffle cone booth, room for more ice cream flavors and new menu items, including “dirty sodas.”
Railroad Drug & Old Time Soda Fountain
115 E. Main St. in Midway, open 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday-Friday, 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday. Closed Sunday.
Tucked inside an actual pharmacy, Railroad Drug & Old Time Soda Fountain has Blue Bell Ice Cream in sugar cones, waffle cones or cups, as well as milkshakes, malts and ice cream sodas or floats. You can also get a selection of sandwiches and hot dogs there.
Cattywampus Station
161 Lexington Green Circle, open 1-8 p.m. Wednesday-Thursday, 1-9 p.m. Friday, noon to 9 p.m. Saturday and noon to 8 p.m. Sunday.
“Over the top” is pretty much the definition of Cattywampus Station, which serves milkshakes in Mason jars encrusted with icing, cookies, cupcakes, candy, whipped cream and drizzles of toppings and fruit.
You can also get scoops and waffle cones as well as jazzed up sundaes with your choice of toppings. The Hot Mess Giant Sundaes ($54.98 each) are 12 scoops of ice cream designed to be shared. You can go Old School with chocolate and caramel drizzle, strawberries, bananas and more, or go new school with a puff of cotton candy, gummy worms and rainbow sprinkles.
And in the winter owner Tia Chancellor adds Cattywampus Cocoa to the menu, seven flavors of hot drinks dressed up with her signature toppings.
Frozen in Time
189 E. Brannon Rd., open 1 to 8 p.m. Sunday-Thursday, 1 to 9 p.m. Friday and Saturday.
Frozen in Time isn’t so much a traditional ice cream shop but a celebration of soft serve. The shop serves vanilla and chocolate custard and eight other flavors of ice cream, including seasonal options, as well as non-dairy Dole Pineapple and Raspberry whips.
You can get the soft serve in a bowl, a Joy cake cone or in a waffle cone, with a variety of toppings to sprinkle on top.
Crank & Boom
1210 Manchester St. and 3101 Clays Mill Rd., open noon to 9 p.m. Sunday-Thursday and noon to 10 p.m. Friday and Saturday.
Crank & Boom is known for its inventive quality ice cream and both locations can do fun treats like waffle bowl sundaes. And because owners Toa and Mike Green make all their own ice cream, there are always special seasonal flavors you can pre-order online to take home, like Peppermint Brownie and Oreo Cheesecake, as well as others like White Chocolate Peppermint, Mexican Hot Chocolate or non-dairy Caramel Praline in stores for the holidays.
And if you’re looking for a grown-up treat, Crank & Boom also can do “boozy” hot chocolates.
BoBi Cones
3735 Palomar Centre Dr., open 2-8 p.m. Wednesday and Thursday, 2-9 p.m. Friday and Saturday and noon to 9 p.m. Sunday
Also technically not an ice cream spot (but check out the sister business, Crank & Boom, for lots of ice cream options) BoBi Cones is unique. Yes, it’s soft serve but it’s really really creamy and you can you can get the ice cream dipped in chocolate.
You can get the soft serve in “fish cones” that are waffles shaped like fish with open mouths full of ice cream. Or in a cup or in a regular waffle cone. The menu also includes sundaes (check out the new pie sundaes), ice cream nachos and special hot chocolates.
