I Tried 7 Popular Fast Food Ice Creams and This Is the One I’ll Order Again and Again

Some of my earliest recollections of eating out contain my grandfather taking me to McDonald’s for a vanilla delicate serve cone. There was one alongside our stroll dwelling from his job, and after spending weekends with him at work, that ice cream cone turned my common reward.

Even now, after I’m on the highway or quick on native choices, I’ll often swing by means of the McDonald’s drive-thru for that very same nostalgic deal with. But lately, whereas having fun with one, I began questioning—have I been lacking out on higher quick meals ice cream all these years?

So, over the course of some weeks, I sampled ice lotions from a number of chains. A couple of stood out from the group, and it’s protected to say my childhood favourite was unseated.

How I Tested the Fast Food Ice Creams

I visited quite a lot of quick meals eating places, ordering vanilla ice cream from each to maintain the assessments constant. To keep away from style overload, I restricted myself to not more than two stops per outing. Some locations served delicate serve, others frozen custard, however so long as it certified as ice cream, it made the lower.

While tasting the quick meals ice lotions, I targeted on texture, in search of clean, not icy or grainy ice cream, and judged the flavour primarily based on stability, favoring wealthy, milky notes that weren’t overly candy.

The Best Fast Food Ice Creams, Ranked

seventh Place: Wendy’s

Wendy’s could also be well-known for its Frostys, however the vanilla taste fell wanting my expectations. The texture felt grainy, and in comparison with different contenders, the entire thing simply fell flat. On prime of that, it was fairly candy, virtually cloying, and had a synthetic vanilla style. For these causes, it wouldn’t be my prime decide for drive-thru ice cream.

sixth Place: Burger King

Burger King’s ice cream got here out wanting image excellent, and the primary chunk delivered a clean texture I actually preferred. But sadly, it didn’t ship within the taste division. When in comparison with a number of the different quick meals ice lotions I attempted, I discovered it lacked that basic vanilla taste.

The chain additionally doesn’t provide any toppings or mix-ins both, so there’s no actual technique to costume it up or make it extra thrilling.

fifth Place: Chick-fil-A

I’ll wait within the longest drive-thru line for Chick-fil-A’s spicy hen sandwich and waffle fries. So after I came upon it additionally serves ice cream (information to me!), I needed to strive it and see if it deserved a spot in my typical order.

The delicate serve had a grainy texture, and in comparison with a number of the higher-ranked picks, it lacked the smoothness I hoped for. That mentioned, the vanilla taste landed nicely. It wasn’t too candy and was properly balanced all through—I simply want the consistency matched the style.

4th Place: McDonald’s

My historical past with McDonald’s Vanilla Cone runs deep, so I knew precisely what to anticipate from this frozen deal with. Comparing it facet by facet with different chains’ ice cream made one factor clear: While it delivers on style and at all times hits the spot, it doesn’t take the highest spot.

I respect the sunshine, ethereal texture of Mickey D’s delicate serve. It’s filled with candy, milky notes, however the vanilla taste doesn’t stand out as a lot because it does in a number of the different chains’ choices.

third Place: Shake Shack

In my opinion, Shake Shack serves one of the best quick meals burger, palms down. So at any time when I’m close to a location, I follow my go-to order: the SmokeShack with crispy onions, cheese fries, and no matter seasonal lemonade is on provide. I often skip dessert, however after making an attempt the frozen custard, I would simply need to rethink that.

The frozen custard is made in-house, and I think that performs into why the flavour and texture stand out. The greatest technique to describe it? That nostalgic Breyers vanilla ice cream vibe. The texture felt velvety and clean, and truthfully, it’s going to grow to be my new go-to at any time when I go to Shake Shake.

2nd Place: Sonic

Sonic ranks excessive on my record of quick meals stops. Between the hen tender wraps, chili cheese canines, and onion rings, I at all times discover one thing value ordering. That streak continued till I attempted the Vanilla Cup, which delivered essentially the most near-perfect swirl of soppy serve.

It tasted like a thicker model of a vanilla milkshake, which made it even higher. The candy, milky taste got here by means of in a refined manner, and the feel stayed clean and creamy from begin to melty end.

1st Place Winner: Dairy Queen

Dairy Queen nails its frozen treats, whether or not it’s Blizzards, dipped cones, or sundaes, so I used to be excited to lastly strive the chain’s vanilla delicate serve by itself. The first chunk stunned me with how ethereal it felt. It was gentle sufficient to dig into with out tasting overly wealthy. I additionally preferred the creamy consistency. The basic vanilla taste got here by means of, and as quickly as I tasted it, I began pondering of all of the methods I’d costume it up with mix-ins and toppings.

I’m already a giant fan of DQ’s onion rings and cheese curds, so subsequent time I make a journey to its drive-thru, I’ll positively be ending off my go-to meal with a vanilla cone.