Ever eaten at the Itizy Ice Cream Truck? Well, about 2 weeks ago @Moneymaus sent us the following tweet: “@nystfood just passed this new-to-me truck on 51st b/w 6&7, itizy. didn’t have time check it out. do you know it?” They also sent the above photo of the truck.
Earlier this week, we had a chance to visit Itizy on that same block. It was after the lunch rush, so we had a chance to chat with Ken and Ann, the couple behind Itizy.
If you like your ice cream au naturel (without any artificial colors, flavors or preservatives), and want to support a good cause at the same time, Itizy Ice Cream Truck is the place to go.
Click through for a First Look at Itizy Ice Cream Truck, find out what Itizy means and how to pronounce it, and get the story behind that beautiful blue color of the truck.
This is the 2nd month Itizy has been on the street, but before that, Ken and Ann did a lot of research before starting the company. Ken told me they went to ice cream stores, stands and trucks all across the US and Canada, and hit between 30-40 national and local parks in the process.
That’s actually where the blue color of the truck comes from. Ken said one of the places they visited was Banff in Western Canada, which has a place called Emerald Lake. They wanted the truck to be as close to the color of the lake as possible.
Coincidentally, we knew exactly what he was talking about, having taken a vacation to the Canadian Rockies in 2005. We went to Emerald Lake too, and you can see by the photo below that we took at the time, they got the truck pretty close to the color of the lake. Man, talk about a gorgeous lake!
As an aside, that trip to the Canadian Rockies was one of our all-time favorites. The scenery was amazing, outdoor activities were plentiful (whitewater rafting!), and everyone was super-nice. Just our two cents if you’re looking for a new place to vacation.
But let’s get back to the matter at hand – ice cream! All the ice cream on the truck is made with dairy from farms in the Hudson Valley, and they churn it right here in NYC, with nothing fake or artificial introduced into the process.
For now, there are 4 flavors of ice cream and 2 sorbets, plus daily specials. When we went, one of the specials was Thai Iced Tea ice cream, which we sampled. Wouldn’t you know it, it tasted exactly like the Thai iced tea you get in restaurants. Very nice.
We also had a taste of vanilla, which is made with Madagascar Bourbon vanilla beans. We’ve always been more into chocolate than vanilla, but their vanilla was creamy and rich.
When it was time to order, the Double Dark Chocolate almost got our vote, but then we saw Mint Stracciatella, which is made with the same dark chocolate flakes as the double dark. This way we got to try the mint ice cream and the dark chocolate flakes. You can see the full menu here.
Single scoops are $4.25, double scoops are $6.50, and you can get it in a bio-degradable and compostable cup or on a sugar cone. Waffle cones are available for $1.25 extra, and there are numerous toppings for $1 each such as crushed Oreos, Ghiradelli chocolate sauce and coffee almond toffee crunch.
The mint stracciatella was delicious. There was plenty of mint flavor, but it was not overpowering. Every bite had dark chocolate flakes, which melted a little slower in my mouth than the ice cream. This had the effect of each bite starting with mint and ending with minty dark chocolate. Yum!
The mint stracciatella was excellent, but now I’m dying to try the double dark chocolate. The blueberry mojito sorbet looks pretty damn good too.
As for the name Itizy, Ann told me it’s actually made up. They wanted a name that’s unique and nobody else has, so they made up a name themselves.
Ann said Itizy is pronounced “eh-teh-zee”, with the “eh” pronounced the same as in Italy. Hey, if you make a word up, you can pronounce it any way you want.
We almost forgot to tell you that for every 5 scoops purchased at Itizy, one meal will be purchased for a child in need. What better reason do you need to eat ice cream or sorbet?
You can follow Itizy Ice Cream Truck on twitter here or on our Mobile Munchies twitter feed. Ann confessed that she used our Mobile Munchies twitter feed when they were researching where to park. Glad to be of service.
The ice cream and sorbet at Itizy is a little pricey, but the ingredients are top-notch, the ice cream is made fresh every few days, and 1/5 of your scoop price is donated to feed hungry children. That’s a pretty tough combination to beat.
