The Parlour Ice Cream Shoppe

     I would venture to call my friend Emily a connoisseur of ice cream, so when she recommends a place for the cream, I take it pretty seriously.  Some time ago I had sampled The Parlour's wares from their roaming food bus, and I was excited to relive the pleasure by visiting their brick and mortar location in downtown Durham. I was immediately taken by the olde timey feel of The Parlour, with its sugary pink walls, classy glass ice cream dishes and cake stands.  Even the mustachioed hipster soda jerk seems to fit the scene. However, the real allure of The Parlour is it's offering of unique flavors.  While they have the old chocolate and vanilla standbys, they also offer a rotation of more exotic flavors like quince or jasmine tea.  From the copious samples tasted (and by dipping my spoon into the dishes of others...) I've managed to taste quite a few flavors. I've sampled the delightful salted butter caramel (although it seems to melt more quickly than some other flavors,) which is my friend's favorite and one of the few flavors she claims they make better than she can.  The coconut brownie (creamy coconut flavored ice cream and chunks of legitimate brownie...the good stuff.) The Vietnamese coffee, is sweet with enough of the natural bitterness of coffee to make it best complemented with chocolate fudge.  The eggnog ice cream has the creamy spicy flavor of the holiday favorite perfectly captured. The Parlour even offers vegan-friendly options like a vegan chocolate or a grapefruit sorbet.  On my next visit I'm looking forward to sampling toppings like the espresso whipped cream, or their all natural sprinkles...maybe a sundae will be in order

So when you're craving the cream, hit up The Parlour, or go stake out their next bus stop.