I Scream Sundae — Restaurant in Ripley

This place was SLAMMED when I went. To be fair, I inadvertently went during Mothman Festival, so there was a LOT of traffic!

To end this review on a good note, I will start with the nit-picks.

Firstly, the parking. You have to park on a small hill and walk down. For most people, this wouldn't be an issue. But for people with mobility issues of any kind, they would have difficulty entering the store. They would either have to have someone pick them up/drop them off at the front, or not go at all. I am able to walk, but the small hill gave me problems.

Next, the building. The inside is TINY. It was so crowded with people that it was hard to walk around upright, let alone with any potential mobility aid someone would have. Saying that, it would likely be more mobility aid accommodating if they weren't so busy. There is also seating outside, but that really should be an option for some with mobility issues, rather than a necessity. Plus, from what I could see, the kitchen area is also really tiny so there must not be much room to make things back there either, which leads to my next issue.

Finally, the wait time/ potential lack of staff for the crowd. I feel like today was a big surprise for the owner, so I'm not dinging them too much for this. With the Mothman Festival, they had a massive influx of visitors they were not really prepared for or expecting from what I could gather. I saw several people (myself included) that had to wait 30 minutes or longer for a single milkshake. There was a mid shift grocery run to get more milk to make the creations, so that likely contributed to the wait time for many people, myself included. And like I said, the kitchen may have also made the wait time longer.

With the negative out of the way, I'll reflect on the positive.

The atmosphere was fantastic!! There was a lot to see and bide your time looking at and admiring. There was merchandise you could peruse if you wanted. There was even a chalkboard you could leave messages on. One little girl entertained herself drawing and writing math problems while waiting for her drink. I liked the music they were playing. The owner was really friendly, if not completely stressed out.

Next was the product itself. I got a hotdog with just ketchup and mustard. It was a good hotdog with an old-fashioned split-top, toasted bun. Only critique was that the ketchup and mustard were put on top so it was much more likely to make a mess. But I'm fine with that myself. Also, the milkshake creation was pretty dang good. I got the Midsommar so it wasn't one with all the bells and whistles (some were dipped rim, some had balloons, some had waffles!) Despite this, it tasted great. The whipped cream was a bit melty, but considering the heat and other circumstances, it's excusable.

For all the negatives, I redacted one star. The positives were great, but I definitely had issues so it's not a perfect 5 star.

I really feel like I need to go back there when it is less busy to get the full effect of the place, and to try more flavors. Plus, I need to return the little Halloween bucket that I accidentally walked...

I Scream Sundae is a fun ice cream shop that's just a short drive off the Ripley interstate exit. When pulling up to the restaurant, it wasn't immediately clear where the parking was, but we did end up finding it (if you're staring at the front of the restaurant, you can either park to the right of it or up behind the building).

Along with indoor seating, I Scream Sundae also has tables & chairs set up outside for customers. The inside of the restaurant isn't huge, but it's still pretty cool. It features a "Spider Egg Bar" (boba/bubble tea), a wall of pictures showcasing what their ice cream creations look like, and a neat display of bottled pop available for purchase.

Their decor is Halloween/spooky/horror movie themed and all of their ice cream offerings are very on-brand for that. Since we were getting our ice cream to-go, I opted for the Black Cherry "scream" (ice cream) milkshake and it was delicious. The prices seemed reasonable for what you were getting.

Besides the good ice cream, the customer service was also great! Just moments after we walked in, a sweet woman came right over to greet us. Since we had never been there before, she took her time to explain the menu & directed us where to order when we were ready.

I would definitely recommend everyone check out I Scream Sundae at least once! If you're a fan of scary or spooky movies, you'll especially enjoy the fun vibes...

What a fantastic hidden gem in West Virginia! I stumbled upon this place on Maps when looking for cool spooky stuff to see around the country and made a point to stop on the way to Asheville from Point Pleasant (visiting from the Pacific Northwest).

I had the privilege of meeting the owner, who explained she used to run a haunted house— no wonder the vibe/decor is so well done! I had a lot of fun just exploring the place and taking pictures (don’t miss the black light bathroom!). It’s really an experience, not just an ice cream shop. Anyone with even a remote interest in horror and/or ice cream should add this to their bucket list.

I had to get the What We Do In The Shadows, especially for the cute little trinkets on it! Mine was delicious, the strawberry blood on the outside was the perfect touch. I normally wouldn’t have been able to finish the whole thing by myself, but somehow I managed. Definitely come here on an empty stomach or willing to share.

This ended up being my favorite stop on a 2 week road trip to see 9 states for the first time. I plan to return someday and get something different each time! Such a...