Top 5 Twin Cities Ice Cream Shops

With summertime just around the corner the weather is going to start warming up. With warm weather comes the need for cool treats. My favorite summer treat is ice cream, so I have compiled a list of my favorite ice cream shops here in Twin Cities area.

My first and top choice is the Grand Ole Creamery. This shop has been a fixture on Grand ave for 22 years, with their homemade delights there is always a line when it's warm out. With homemade flavors that range from black hills gold to watermelon sorbet, you are sure to find something you like. Along with the ice cream being homemade, they make their waffle cones from scratch, and if you come to the store at the right time you can watch them being made. The prices start at a reasonable 3 dollars and go up from there, they are open Monday-Thursday from 2pm-10pm and Saturday 1pm-11pm, so stop on in and get yourself a cool treat. While you're down there you can always take a moment to check out the neighborhood shops, or stop in at Aveda and get you hair done.

If find yourself around Stillwater, take a moment to stop into my second choice for the summer, The Liberty House Café. Located just off Manning ave & Hwy 12, this historical feeling shop is a great place to grab some coffee or their house specialty Gelato. They offer a wide variety of items, from sandwiches to coffee, but the gelato is what people truly come for. Prices are affordable and start around 3.50 dollars for a nice sized cup of Gelato; they are open Monday-Friday 6:30am-9:00pm and Saturday-Sunday 8:00am-9:00pm. There are some nurseries nearby to find flowers for your nursery, as well as an eclectic collection of shops.

Heading back into St Paul on Marshall Street you will find Izzy's ice cream production. You have to love Izzy's atmosphere, and the fact that they are the first ice cream shop in the nation to be running on solar power. They have a full line of homemade ice creams, and are best known for their key lime pie flavor, Yum! The prices at Izzy's start around 4 dollars for a nice portion, and their hours of operation are Monday-Thursday 2pm-9pm, Friday-Saturday 1pm-10pm and Sunday 1pm-9pm. Once you have your ice cream why not take a walk along Marshall and enjoy the area, find one of the local parks and sit to watch some of the day go by.

What ice cream list would be complete with out a Cold Stone creamery? I know this one wouldn't. It is easy to find a Cold stone as they are a franchise; my favorite store is located in Minneapolis on Hennepin Ave. The newest item at Cold Stone has to be one of my favorites the ice cream cupcake. They have several different flavors, and it's a little bit of sinful heaven. Prices start reasonably around 3 dollars, and hours are Sunday-Thursday 10am-10pm and Saturday 10am-11pm. Being in downtown there are a number of things you can do once you have your sweet treat, my favorite is to check out one of the local music venues.

And last but not least, is another Minneapolis shop, Sebastian Joe's. They have two locations; I frequent the Uptown address on Franklin. Another wonderful shop in Minnesota that serves hand churned ice cream. They have a wonderful atmosphere, with free Wi-Fi if you want to just sit back and relax. The in house specialty is of course the hand churned ice cream, and I will say they have one of the few vanilla flavors I will eat! Open Monday-Friday 1pm-9pm, Saturday-Sunday 1pm-10pm come on down and give them a try for the reasonable 3 dollar price range. And enjoy the uptown life around it when you're done.