Jeni's Splendid Ice Creams — Restaurant in Chicago

I don't usually do desserts, but I decided to get some ice cream late at night. I showed up right before a rush of people, but even at 10 PM, the place was packed. After me, the line stretched outside. It could have also been due to being on the weekend. They have a lot of unique flavors, with an infographic to explain and preview each flavor which is really helpful. The line moved pretty fast thankfully. They were generous with the samples. I got a standard (a half scoops of two different flavors) on a cake cone and this was plenty to eat. I got cream puff and Roxy road (basically Rocky road), and both were excellent flavors. The cooking process detailed by Jeni's on their napkins seemed to be accurate as the ice cream was definitely unique. The taste was nice and soft on the tongue, the texture was nice and fluffy, and the ice cream had an excellent aroma. Both of the flavors I got were equally delicious and I believe all the flavors would be of equivalent quality. The cone was a good crunch too. The ice cream also melted much faster, even when inside, than other ice cream I have had, so eat fast! Overall, great flavor without feeling too guilty about eating it.

The service from the staff is good and they were very courteous when letting me try samples to the checkout process. The place is a little small for the customer crowd, but it feels nice and quaint and has a nice chic vibe. The price ($5) for a cone isn't too bad for the flavor. Definitely a good choice for a late night snack and worth visiting for some ice...

This particular Jeni’s location has excellent customer service! The servers are always helpful in describing flavors and options. The available flavors vary; not sure if it is due to volume of ice-cream distributed to this location, but it sells out of certain flavors pretty quickly. I don’t fault the store though. Through this pandemic, this store has still provided some outdoor seating (benches) and does a good job of maintaining crowd control. The flavors of ice cream are really diverse and their seasonal flavors are always unique; not at all like their usual. The waffle is saltier than I would like, but it complements the sweet ice cream. Some flavors are a miss for me, but the lavender berry is always a win! I will add that this ice cream is NOT cheap, but it is delicious. If you’re looking for a sweet treat, Jeni’s will work! If you’re looking to buy a few pints but not break the bank, you may want to compromise. The orange blossom tasted like toothpaste to me... the lavender is always good! The vanilla bean is not as creamy as I’d like. The lemon berry is tang at its best! Hit or miss on flavors but...

One of my kids found this place in a Google search for us to try on the way back to our hotel since Penelope's didn't have any ice cream for me to try.

She told me she found at least 4 dairy free & gluten free options on their website. I was excited to give them a try.

Upon entering there was a line, so we couldn't clearly see the menu. Once we got up to the counter for one of the employees to assist us, I asked what they had that was both dairy free and gluten free. He asked his other co-worker who told him they didn't have anything that was both.

Apparently they only had 2 dairy free ice cream options, but both had gluten products in them. I was really disappointed and irritated that they didn't even have one option for me, even if it was just a plain old vanilla.

If you're going to have dairy free ice cream options, at least one of them should easily be gluten free to cater towards those of us...