The first half of this summer was one of the hottest on record. And while there is only so much you can do to beat the heat, a scoop of delicious ice cream can’t hurt. This week for Get Out There, our weekly conversation about ways to explore the Washington region, the WAMU newsroom rounded up some of their favorite local ice cream spots around town. Here are their recommendations for your next great sweet treat:
From WAMU Supervising Producer Kayla Hewitt:
I’m pretty partial to Mount Desert Island Ice Cream in D.C.’s Mount Pleasant neighborhood. On a summer afternoon you’ll usually find a line out the door. They’ve got classic flavors like cookies and cream and my personal favorite salted caramel. They’ve also got flavors like olive oil, blueberry sour cream crumble, and fresh basil if you’re hoping to get out of your comfort zone. For the vegans and the lactose intolerants out there, they always have a rotating menu with different dairy free options!
From The Politics Hour Producer Matt Blitz:
My favorite local ice cream spot is Dairy Godmother in Del Ray, which is in Alexandria. It is great. It’s always crowded. There’s always kids, there’s always people, there’re always dogs in line waiting for their pup cups. They have vanilla and chocolate and a special flavor every week. And it’s fantastic. It’s custard, which means it has egg in it. Which is great and makes it even tastier, but I have to take my Lactaid pills.
Another great custard place also in Alexandria is called Custard Shack. It’s near Belle Haven Park, right off the Mount Vernon Trail. They also have special flavors. The best part is that you can come off right off of the Mount Vernon trail, you can walk in or run in and get in your custard. So you can immediately go from exercising to eating frozen dairy treats. Exactly what you want.
From Engagement Producer Nayion Perkins:
I would say my favorite ice cream place is, Here’s The Scoop on Georgia Avenue. They’re Black owned. I think they were founded in 2019 and the location, Georgia Avenue, just sort of takes me back to childhood…kind of walking up and down Georgia Avenue myself.
From Editor Dee Hackney:
My favorite local ice cream spot is actually Max’s Best Ice Cream. It’s on Woodmont Triangle in the Bethesda area. They do outrageous milkshakes and they do those very fancy milkshakes that have cake in them and candy bars in them. Then they have the candy and fudge rimmed glasses.
I also like that they work with the Best Buddies program. That means they employ folks with intellectual and physical disabilities. And they donate a some of their proceeds to the Best Buddies program, so I make sure to give all my ice cream money to Max’s Best Ice Cream.
From All Things Considered Host Tamika Smith:
I’m going with Sarah’s Handmade Ice Cream and Treats in Bethesda and they opened a new location upcounty in Montgomery County, in Gaithersburg. I’m talking classic flavors and even some with a twist like mango and sticky rice, lavender honey and lemon meringue pie.
The post Get Out There: Cooling down at our favorite ice cream shops in the D.C. region appeared first on WAMU.
Published Date : 2026-07-24 15:19:00
Source : wamu.org
