3 Scoops - Innovation at its creamiest!

What I love most about my antics as a frugal foodista, are the little adventures that take me way out of my usual niche and into a world of innovation and creativity.  I experienced one such adventure on Tuesday evening at the hands of 3 Scoops Ice Cream Café, a little gem of a creamerie in Brighton.

After a few confused hops on and off the same bus (good thing I had a bus pass!) I was dropped off right in front of the ice cream café where my love for ice cream was about to be nurtured.

3 Scoops, which has been around for about 6 years now, is your quintessential mom and pops ice cream store; cardboard boxes filled with ice cream both very different and very traditional, hand written menus show the days featured flavours and any specials, a large tub offers little candy treats for 25 cents.

I was fortunate enough to meet with Raul, one of the ice cream makers in chief (he partners with Mark Cooper) who not only comes up with some of the most far out combinations of ice cream, but is also at the forefront of the fight against corporate monsters who try to gobble places like 3 Scoops right up and out of business.

I spent a lot of time asking questions about Raul's ice cream philosophy while trying out pretty much every flavour in the store...in addition to some secret batches kept in the back freezer. 

To make his ice cream and sorbets, Raul makes everything from scratch using only local ingredients to support farmers in the area.  He told me he is a stickler for knowing what goes into the ice cream they sell and any single taste will justify the extra effort.

For instance, in their famed 'Coffee and Donuts' ice cream, he makes and grinds his own coffee based ice cream to which he adds apple fritter donuts which again, he makes himself.  The end result is an entire experience, it's more than a combination of flavours, its a revelation! I felt like I was sitting in a cop car at a stake out!

Of all the flavours that I tried, my favorite was...ok, so that's not going to work because each flavour was such a testimony to its name that I loved every one...apart from the coconut sorbet, which he admitted was a little off an ingredient.  I was most impressed however with his cucumber goat cheese ice cream...yes you read it right!

Raul also takes requests from customers who have a flavour they would like to see behind counter.  I have been thinking about what I would like since the moment I left the store....so far I have St. Andre cheese, with cinamon and pear...what do you think?

If I could, I would give this place a six dancer rating, I was so impressed by the product, the pricing and the integrity.  If only there were more places like this and less of the generic corporate  replicas we can't seem to get away from!