Mayfield Dairy — Restaurant in Athens

Best ice cream and milk in the world !!!!!!!!!!!!! The slogan it’s not ice cream but creamer is so true to the Mayfields name. When we travel we cannot find any other ice cream or milk that comes as close as to tasting as good as Mayfields. I have had many friends who has moved off out of state and/ or country but when they come home I see post ......... “Oh yes ! Mayfields again! We missed this taste .”...... Also I see post every now and then “ Guess what I just seen at my local store?....... We finally got Mayfields!” Not only do they have ice cream and milk but water and juices as well. In Athens, TN ( where Mayfield Dairy Farms first got started) you can visit Mayfield Dairy Farms and see Maggie!!!!!! Mayfield Dairy Farms has a nice cute little visitors center where you can take tours of Mayfields and a nice little place to do a little bit of shopping.......... then you can enjoy something to drink and a scoop or two or maybe even three of the yummy yummy in your tummy ice cream!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! They have rocking chairs on the porch ( welcome to the south my friends )and tables and chairs both inside and outside. Plenty of parking space. Tours from schools and other “ special “ tours come to the Mayfield Dairy Farms visitors center often. Tours are not given on Wednesdays and I think maybe Sundays........ When you walk into the visitors center go up to the registers and ask someone there when the next tour is supposed to start so you don’t miss it. You will gather together in a group and start out by watching a small movie about Mayfield Dairy Farms then they will show you how to wear your special hat and then you get lined up for the tour......... You get to go inside of Mayfields watch how they make the bottles and then watch milk be put inside the jugs.....and then you are taken over to the ice cream section to watch some from there. It’s pretty neat! They also have a Mayfields corn maze and a haunted corn maze in the autumn / fall season. During spring and summer you can still visit the farm for fresh vegetables...

TL;DR Go if you're a parent that needs a quick 30 minute break from their kid during a long road trip and have a scoop of the peach ice cream. Both are worth the detour.

Mayfield Dairy Farms is a nice place to stop by and enjoy the simple pleasures of life. Be sure to park on the side with the mural rather than the very plain entrance.

I appreciated the painted yellow brick road on the street to help guide me to the visitor center. A very large brown cow, Maggie, will be welcoming you by the entrance of the welcome center and the small tabled area. In the area another brass cow stature is laying down and makes for a good photo opportunity. Maggie is a great photo opportunity to send to your family and friends, but not one to share as an influencer or a professional. The sheer height of Maggie makes it hard to get a good angle. Additionally the placement of Maggie, beside the visiter center, interferes with the natural lighting and always ensures that she is partially in the shade.

The gift shop / visitor center is nice and has a lot of cow related trinkets, nothing too extra ordinary is sold here. By the entrance there is a another brown cow that allows youngsters the opportunity to learn how to milk a cow with plastic udders. On the other side of the entrance there is a informative infographic about how ice cream is made. Clearly the target of the visitor center is for children and young adults with too much time on their hand and no where to go.

The peach ice cream is fantastic, while the others are not as impressive. The brown cow is extremely icy and skimpy on the chocolate. The cherry, strawberry, and banana split are...

Based on the previous reviews we visited this place, this shouldn’t be called as a dairy farm because it is just the factory visit and that too many aspects were not part of the tour. Ticket cost is $4 for everyone more than 3 years which includes a free Ice cream 1 scoop at the end of the tour. Tour starts with a short video clip explaining their evolution and then the plant tour begins - it has 4 stops (Milk container molding division, Milk filling station, Cleaning/ Washing station and the ice cream preparation section - they showed ice cream preparation process as a video only and not the real process as such! Missing aspects were - They can start somehow with showing some part of their actual farm, How milk is transferred to the factory, how it is processed/pasteurized, what process done for whole milk, 2% or fat free Milk, carton filling with Milk and along with Ice Cream preparation. Only good thing is they have good number of front chairs and tables for us to enjoy the ice cream, ice cream shop and a great entrance with gift shop. Kids will not like the tour as such except for grown ups. The tour is around 1 hour they claim and it can be considered as 30 to 40 minutes one actually. Overall if not seen we aren’t missing anything but if we want to kill some time can be visited...