The PortLand Malt Shoppe — Restaurant in Duluth

I don't know how else to say this...the woman who owns the business is a giant b*tch. I was compelled to write this review after two bad encounters. The first was years ago, my mom pulled into the parking and hadn't gotten 3 feet out of the car when this woman stuck her head out and yelled at us that we couldn't park there unless we were shopping at one of their two businesses. My mom told her that she had planned on doing just that but wouldn't waste her time now.

This morning I was looking to do a few more purchases in town and pulled up outside at 9:55am. I went up to the door to see if they were open on Sunday and, if so, what time. No days or hours on the door. And no web site to check. Huh? Who operates that way in 2014? So we called the number we found online. I called expecting to get a recording that would tell me this information. Instead I got the resident btch on the phone who sounded terribly inconvenienced by my call. I asked when they opened. She told me the Malt Shoppe opened at 11. Ok, weird, since I called the Chocolate Ship #. So I asked when the gift shop opened. She replied in a totally exasperated and impatient tone, "11, it IS Sunday". Hey, btch, I went to Canal Park and spent $100 from 10am-11am in the hour you weren't open on Sunday morning and met pleasant owners all around. Including at the Northwoods Confectioners. So sorry for trying to come spend $ at your shop! If you don't enjoy people, don't own a business that relies on customer service and interacting...

Popular Place - Long Waits are Typical.

Every time we are in Duluth, I am brought here multiple times. When the weather is decent, there is usually a decent sized line so expect a 20+ minute wait. This place used to be 'cash-only' but - when we were there a few weeks back - they are now taking cards.

When I am here and actually opt for something to eat - it's usually one of the $8 malts. Unfortunately, every malt I have ever had is really gritty and it seems like they have added a tablespoon or so of sand to. I'm told the various ice cream flavors are pretty good but none of them have really jumped out as a must have.

One other point of not about this place is that there is only on-street metered parking. If you can find a space, you will need to make sure you have quarters on hand to feed the meter. There are 3 reserved spots that are not supposed to be for the general public but people park there anyways. If you do try and park there, backing out can be a bit of a challenge and I have seen MULTIPLE people almost getting into a wreck backing out...

My girlfriend found this place on accident, and she told me we had to go there together sometime. The parking lot for this place is only 4-5 spots wide, so parking is limited other than street parking. When you walk up, there are lots of malt and ice cream options available. Root beer floats, sundaes, shakes, cones, and of course their malts. The malts can be a little spendy, but its huge in size and you can easily split one with someone as a sweet treat. The flavor of the ice cream they put into their malts is delicious and they put a cherry and sugar wafer on top of the whipped cream top. There are a few benches around to enjoy your ice cream with a nice view of Lake Superior. The place was a gas station back in the 1920s and you tell by the building's old charm. This will be a favorite spot to stop at in the hot Duluth summers. They are open from April 10th to October 18th because any other time of the year would be too cold for ice cream anyways. Overall I highly recommend trying...