The Ice-Cream world tour: Lisbon

We recently went on a weekend trip to Lisbon. It was the boy's birthday too. Just as we were walking one of Lisbon's steep streets, after we played at a small park we found the perfect place to celebrate: Gelato Mú.

Its decoration is simple, clean and pretty in white, light green and natural wood. It is long enough to fit our stroller (several actually, as another family came after us) and you can peek at their small kitchen / factory to see how they actually make the ice-cream. They only use fruits that are in season. They use a  process of ice-cream making in which the ice-cream sits a whole night to make the flavours just more intense and guarantee the perfect texture.

 I had a strawberry milkshake, we also tested chocolate (we are classic, I guess) and we had to have the tiramisu as well.

I wish we could have stayed to try all their flavours. You will find them at Campo Martires da Patria 50 in Lisbon very close to Jardim do Campo Santana. 

Highly recommended! 

Ice-Cream World Tour: Fanielje in Leidschendam

 I have been wanting to write this post for about a year, but we hadn't had the chance to come back to the source. Last year, the winter lasted very, very long. A good friend of mine had come to visit us last April, specifically to bike along the tulip fields. However, even if it was already mid-April, except for some dandelions here and there, no flowers were in bloom. So, instead of taking the tulip route (Bollenstreek) as we had planned, we took the bikes and went from Zoetermeer to Leidschendam, stopping in the old center for pancakes and ice-cream. For some weird reason we didn't have the camera with us at the moment, but I did not forget that ice-cream and we were determined to go back. That first time I tasted their orange ice-cream and it was glory, no artificial flavours. It was like licking a soft, fresh, real orange.

Anyhow, we have been blessed with glorious summer days, which for us mean only one thing: ice-cream. I am not exaggerating when I say that this is the best ice-cream I've tasted in The Netherlands, maybe in other countries too. It is the real-deal. Perfect, creamy, natural. This time we tasted strawberry, tiramisu, lemon and cookies. They were all delicious. I can not wait to come back for more. The center of Leidschendam is very pretty too, if you are ever in the area you shouldn't miss a visit to Fanielje (Sluisplein 6, Leidschendam).

Public service announcement: Go get Ice-cream

In case you did not know... it is that time of the year. The day where you can get free ice-cream at Ben & Jerry's worldwide. If you are in the Netherlands click here to see in a map where you can get your free ice-cream (per province). The Ben & Jerry's at Amsterdam Centraal train station (on track 2a) has a shop that will be open. Otherwise, for the rest of the world,  here you can get more information. And, I absolutely love this video about the story of such a joyous day!

Ice-Cream Word Tour: Istanbul

I could not leave my Ice-Cream World Tour without a recommendation for the fabulous, turkish elastic ice-cream, also known as dondurma.  You will find it in small stands and candy shops all over the place. I had mine in Sultanahmet square, in a big terrace right in front of Haghia Sophia.
It resembles dough, and owes its remarkable elasticity to salep, a flour made of dried orchid tubers, and to mastic, a natural resin from a tree, common in Greece (Pistacia lentiscus). When you get it, you will for sure be teased by the vendor, who will pretend to give it to you and then take it away, several times. If you order two flavors, they will layer one scoop over the other. I had raspberry and lemon, the boy had chocolate and vanilla. Quite the experience and a perfect delicious treat for the warm days.

First image via here

Marinello IJssalon is back

 Just a quick note, last Sunday the boy and I went for a long walk in the city and I was jumping up and down in happiness to discover that Marinello Ijssalon is back open and running (after having had to close due to high rents). Their new location is quite close to the original, you will find them at Lange Poten 3 in The Hague. This ice cream shop (that I told you about before) is so worth it. They still make their ice-cream in the traditional, artisan way and is owned by an italian family. Now let's hope the weather gets sunny and cooperates. Even if it doesn't.... I'd say I'm up for ice-cream on rainy days as well.

*first photo thanks to Marinello ijssalon

Get ready for free ice-cream

First of all for full disclosure, this is in no way a sponsored post, I am just here spreading the news and sharing the joy. Free ice-cream day must be close to my favorite day of the year. My best friend Helga and I would make a holiday out of it and miss class just to go to the other side of the city (from campus) and get some. So, on April 3, all around the world, head over to your local Ben & Jerry's ice cream shop (find it here) and enjoy a free cone. Oh happiness.

The Ice-Cream World Tour: Leiden

This week we have a brand new discovery, but totally worth it. While we were walking in the old center of Leiden I could not help but noticing a small little shop in the corner of a street, in front of a bridge ,where through a window you could see an expert girl working with chocolate and making some kind of fancy pretty cake. As we walked closer, we saw there was a huge line coming out of the shop (good sign). And then we saw people were getting ice-cream. Needless to say we had to try it. And I am glad we did because we were not disappointed. The place we are talking about is called Soetenso. They have homemade ice-cream, but also chocolate, bonbons and some cakes that I definitely have to go back and try. (If you click on the macaron you will see what I am talking about). I tested the berries ice-cream and the boy tried rhum and raisins. Mine was perfect. You could actually see the pieces of fruit inside (which is a bit rare, very often in flavors with berries you can tell they use syrup and almost no real fruit) and the taste was creamy and subtle. I will definitely come back for more.

 The boy's ice-cream was also creamy and full of flavour though I have to say I am not a big fan of ice-cream with alcohol in it. I was even surprised he chose it since he does not drink alcohol at all. If you are in Leiden, this is definitely a spot you shouldn't miss. And hey, there is also chocolate if you don't feel like ice-cream. Though I can not imagine someone not wanting ice-cream, ever.

 

 Their address is:
Korg Galgewater 1
2312 BR Leiden.

It is fairly easy to get there from the train station Leiden centraal:

See in google maps here

*This posts are based on my own personal experience and love for ice-cream, no one is sponsoring for writing this .

The Ice-Cream World Tour: Geneva

This is a place where I have a lot of memories from my time in Switzerland. Café Glacier Remor is not only an ice-cream shop, but an artsy café (where they sometimes project movies) and my best friend, who studied history and I would often go and sit and talk about boys and books and the world for hours. It is located at walking distance from the main historic university buildings, that are in a beautiful park (Parc des Bastions, totally worth visiting).

 It was founded by an italian family in 1921, who to this day continue to run the place. They are always experimenting with new flavours, but my favorite is cinammon. If you are hungry, they have salads and other lunch options. It is a place with old school charm. I couldn't resist quoting this, from the history of the café-glacier in their website:

See more here

"Le glacier une nouveauté pour les dames des années 20. Enfin un lieu ou une dame seule et libérée pouvait s’y rendre avec ses amies sans subir l’atmosphère trop masculine, bruyante et avinée du café du coin." (Ice cream shops were a novelty for ladies from the 20's. Finally a place where a liberated woman could go with her friends without the masculine, noisy atmosphere of the regular coffee shops)

Their addres is Place du Cirque 1. You can easily get there from the railway station with tramway 13 (lime green), or bus line 1 (purple) to the stop "Cirque" or you can walk from the "Place Neuve". Also, it is open from 7h00 to 24h00 from Monday to Sunday, so if you crave ice-cream just before midnight, you can still get it !

The Ice-Cream World Tour: Nice

From Fenocchio's website

Oh la France! Don't you miss it? I so wish I was there right now, walking in a little town with old streets, wearing a girly dress and running around parks and then maybe going to the beach. Imagine that life was like that Dior commercial from Sofia Coppola, the first one.

So this time, I am bringing you to a very very famous ice-cream shop in Nice. Yes we are talking about Fenocchio. A family run ice cream shop that has all kinds of unusual flavors like basil, but also the classic, and there is Ferrero Rocher ice cream, Chocolate Orange, Lemon (yes made with real lemon, not artificial flavored syrup). I was there some years ago with friends on a 3 day trip that we planned just like that and I remember going there 3 or 4 times because we wanted to keep on trying new flavours. It is located in the main square in the old town. Somewhere near there is also a homemade cookie shop but I digress. Their Ice cream is delicious. And a bonus tip, for the kids, they have all kinds of candy flavored ice cream. You should really put this one on your list. If it's really crowded, stay. Make that line. It is totally worth it. I did not make these photos, because my old albums are in Mexico, but here are some that I found so you will be able to recognize the place.

Source

 The address is : 2 place Rossetti, in the old center of Nice.But just go to the main square, and you won't miss it. You can even ask around. People will know.

*This posts are based on my own personal experience and love for ice-cream, no one is sponsoring for writing this .

The Ice-Cream World Tour: Barcelona (+ bonus, Buenos Aires)

Well, with the weekend coming, there is no better excuse than to go for a walk and get an ice-cream right? Actually, you don't need the weekend to go for ice-cream. So, our ice-cream shop this week is one of the best I've ever been too. Not only because their ice-cream is heaven, but because the staff is super friendly. It is a place owned by argentinians, and they will chat with you for a while. All their flavors are delicious. I specially like dark chocolate and mango. But I seriously recommend you go and try them all. And bonus, I just discovered they are also still in Argentina, so if you are there you can go as well. Since it's a family business I would risk to assume that over there is just as good as in Barcelona where I personally tried them. The place I am talking about is Heladeria Fratello. or Gelato Fratello as the sign says in Barcelona. Do click on the link, you can see the full list of flavors, by category and get a description of the ice-cream.

 Via google street view

In Barcelona they are located in Passeig Joan de Borbo 15. To get there, you can take the yellow metro line (L 4) to the stop "Barceloneta", from there you should walk on Passeig de Borbo which is the long wide street that follows the harbor and goes to the beach.Once in the area, you can go to the Barcelona Zoo, to the Chocolate Museum,to Ciutadella Parc.... ohhh how I miss it over there.

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Via google maps

And bonus, bonus, just in case, their adresses in Buenos Aires are:

Medrano 1904 (esq. Mansilla)
Coronel Diaz 1521 (esq. Paraguay)
Cap. Federal, Barrio de Palermo

The Ice-Cream World Tour: Den Haag

I guess it is no wonder that we are crazy about ice-cream. We made a point in having an ice-cream stand at our wedding.

Photo by Fotoflex Nederland

So I thought I would share some of the best ice-cream shops I've been too, in different places, so you too can travel the world by eating ice cream. This is all based on our own personal experience, and nobody paid us to write this.

 Let's start with Den Haag. In the busy commercial street Spuistraat, at number 64 Lange Poten, number 3 you will find an italian, handmade ice-cream shop that is always crowded and open til quite late (at least until it´s dark). It's called "Marinello Ijs".

Via here

I have tried dark chocolate, tiramisu, cinammon, strawberry and mango and all of these flavors are delicious. Will have to continue with the rest of the flavors. The "creamy" flavors have been the best so far. The staff is very friendly, and numerous, so even if there are lots of people the service is very fast.

Via here

Oh, and you can only pay in cash. (I point this out because here in Holland, it is very common to pay everything with debit card, or Pin, as they call it here, even very small amounts). But don't worry, there are cash machines nearby. Last time we went there it was almost closing time, and they actually waited for us to go get some money. We had to have ice-cream.

Post edit: Unfortunately, this ice cream shop has closed, I believe, because the owners retired.   
After being closed for the winter while hoping to find a new place, they are back, very close to their old location at Lange Poten 3, and with new flavors too.

Via Google maps