6820 Refugee Road
Canal Winchester
614.920.9409

399 W. Olentangy Street
Powell
614.766.1255

Handel’s ice cream began in Youngstown in 1945. The first location was in a garage along a one-way alley. Handel’s quickly became a local landmark culminating when the original owner Alice Handel was presented with a key to the city and the alley was renamed Handel’s Court. For many years Handel’s has been listed in the media among the country’s top ten ice creams. Recent national recognition was in 2006 when Handel’s was named the number one ice cream in the 10 Best of Everything by National Geographic.

Chris DiAngelo and Craig Zeroski grew up in Youngstown and loved Handel’s as kids. They became familiar with Columbus while attending OSU and remained here to work in different jobs. Handel’s started franchising in the 1990’s it was time to import something other than a football coach from Youngstown. Chris and Craig wanted to work for themselves, they loved Columbus and they had a hunch that Handle’s suited the tastes of central Ohio. They opened their first Handle’s in 2002 and they now have three locations.

Chris and Craig have preserved every thing that made the original Handel’s so popular. The ice cream is made fresh in each store using a machine that is manufactured specifically for Handel’s. The focus is on the customer and the community. Each location supports local charities with fundraising and ice cream. Each Handel’s is a walk up stand (like the original) with multiple ordering windows designed for leisurely licking in a neighborhood instead an anonymous transaction in a strip mall. Handel’s has a reputation for not skimping on ingredients so customers like the overabundance of “stuff” in each flavor.

There are well over 50 flavors available including Spouse like a House, Deep Dish Apple Pie, Graham Central Station, Tin Lizzy and, not surprising in OSU crazed Columbus, Buckeye. It is easy to get overwhelmed by the choices listed on the board, which includes yogurt, ices, and more. If you can’t decide, go with Chocolate Pecan – it is the flavor of choice in Youngstown where some people have never had anything else – why mess with a good thing?

Other locations:
Bexley
Dublin
Easton
Gahanna
Grove City
Pickerington
Powell
Westerville
Worthington

What is so great about Graeter’s? Let me count the ways….. Graeter’s has served ice cream in Cincinnati since 1870. A company has to do many things right to be popular for 137 years! There are now over two dozen Graeter’s in Ohio as well as a large selection of pints and half gallons available in Kroger stores. Graeter’s melted away most of the competition in the online ice cream business, especially since 2002 when Oprah Winfrey mentioned that Graeter’s butter pecan was her favorite ice cream.

In spite of this large volume of ice cream production, it is still made in small two-gallon batches. The family ice cream recipe is egg custard and fresh cream mixed with the finest ingredients. The process is very time and labor intensive but leads to a sumptuous result. Vertical batch freezers, a.k.a. French Pots, press the ice cream onto itself which pushes air out. (Less air in the finished flavor means fewer ice crystals, which leads to a more tantalizing feel on the taste buds). The ice cream is also paddled by hand with specially designed scrapers instead of being whipped by a machine. Hand paddling beats more air out. Some air is needed to keep ice cream from becoming an icicle, so at the end of the process, Graeter’s ice cream is about 5% air compared to some commercial ice cream which can be up to 50% air. This is why a pint of Graeter’s weighs about one pound. This thickness gives the ice cream a distinctive density and creaminess. Having a butterfat content of 16 – 18% does not hurt either.

Many fans love the large chunks of chocolate in the chip flavors such as the signature Black Raspberry Chip. Graeter’s pours in liquid chocolate while mixing the ice cream. As the ice cream cools, the chocolate forms into large pieces. The chunks are then broken down into more manageable bites using the same paddles used to mix the ice cream. If you want to see what this French Pot process is all about, go see it in action at the Bethel Road Graeter’s.

Graeter’s is synonymous with good ice cream in the Buckeye state. Friends of the Graeter family opened the first Graeter’s in Columbus on Lane Avenue in 1989. Today there are multiple Columbus locations. The ice cream is made fresh locally. The toppings and waffle cones are made by hand in each store. Graeter’s has consistently been ranked as one of the best ice creams in the nation, Ohio and of course Columbus for more than a decade.

7111 E. Main Street
Reynoldsburg
614.577.1916

Johnson’s Real Ice Cream

Johnson’s is a real Bexley institution. It is destination for anyone in the community as well as for those who have moved away that sojourn back to remember the good old days. Children from the nearby elementary school observe local tradition by walking to Johnson’s for an end of the school year ice cream cone. Robert Johnson and his son-in-law James Wilcoxon opened a small stand in 1950. Johnson’s has beaten the odds by remaining a family run business to this day. In 1994 Matt Wilcoxon became the fourth generation of the family to work in the business. (There is also a spin off in Chicago).

Johnson’s has churned out fifty flavors for over fifty years from the same spot on Main Street. The Bexley location is family friendly with plenty of booths and tables. The interior is decorated with ice cream posters and thank you cards from school children that have experienced the “factory” tour. There are also framed ice cream-themed puzzles for added ambiance. Walk-up windows are available for ordering to help manage the summer time lines.

Johnson’s is served at several local restaurants including Cameron Mitchell Restaurants. An adult favorite is Triple Vanilla Bean while kids go crazy over Blue Sky, a marshmallow swirl ice cream in a brilliant blue base. In addition to a wide selection of flavors, Johnson’s is also has unique sundaes such as Tin Roof and Pecan Ball as well as specialty items including Turtle ice cream pies. The ice cream buckeyes are best known Johnson’s specialty – handmade round balls of peanut butter chocolate chip ice cream dipped in chocolate and sold in packs of eight. Johnson’s buckeyes are great for any OSU themed event – one local institution supporting another.