Petersen's Ice Cream — Restaurant in Oak Park

The truth is that this place is in need of an overhaul! It feels like the owners don’t care to keep it going. The location is great and it gets plenty of foot traffic and business. It is kept clean. It has your basic variety of scoop ice cream flavors…. But that’s where the pros stop.

I am there often and whenever I’m there, there is only one older person working. This older person is running the entire shop by themselves. This person has also been mentioned in other reviews as being cold and rude, but I believe this is due to a language barrier. This same one person takes smoke breaks by the outdoor seating where kids are eating ice cream. Because of these reasons, service is VERY slow and the atmosphere is uninviting.

I wish they had more staff (even one extra set of hands to help out!) and more equipment to really provide quicker service for things like milkshakes and sundaes. The decor feels untouched for decades and boring. It’s a shame because it’s been there so long and I’d love to see our local ice cream spot thrive but it truly feels like the owners don’t really care about keeping it running and are doing the bare minimum.

In summary, there is only one person who seems to work here and they smoke around child customers. The service is slow. The atmosphere is tired and unwelcoming. What this place has going for it is its history, loyal customer base, and...

I live in Oak Park and have visited this location multiple times. Each time, the same woman has treated my son and I very rudely, disrespectful, and borderline racist. She’s an older woman with dark hair who who makes us feel unwelcome. There are times when I’m the only customer in the store and she won’t acknowledge my presence or requests. She goes to the back of the store and makes me wait by the register only to come back much later and give me an attitude for wanting to order something or have any questions. Every single time I’ve visited, she avoids answering me, and pretends to be busy while I’m standing at the register waiting the whole time, again, I’m the only customer there almost every time I’ve gone! She avoids speaking to me and when she does speak she’s rude and aggressive. I feel very uncomfortable visiting this establishment. Good luck to you if you decide to visit. Not a...

I had the unfortunate experience of visiting Petersens ice cream in Oak Park. My family and I made the drive to visit one of “Chicago’s best” listed establishments for their turtle pie dessert. When we entered we were not greeted in a friendly manner if at all. We were then immediately told that we had to leave the building in 15 minutes when they were closing. We inquired about their turtle pie only to be told “i don’t know. go check the fridge”. A few minutes passed and we were again told that we had to leave the building. We left 3 minutes before closing to sit outside only to see 4 (white) customers call the attention of a worker and then happily walk through the back door. They were then served and enjoyed eating inside for 10 minutes. Disgusted by this behavior. Will be calling in the morning with the hopes to speak...