Ice Cream Stereotypes

When I was in high school, I worked as an ice cream server for three years at an ice cream shop called Bruster’s.  To this day, I have never had better ice cream than I did at Bruster’s.

A typical day of work would include me serving ice cream to dozens and dozens of wide-eyed kids and adults looking to treat themselves. 

At Bruster’s, we would make our own ice cream, which certainly set us a part from the other parlors that were considered “competition.” The truth is, Bruster’s didn’t have any competition.  Up the street, there was a shop that didn’t have their own homemade ice cream.  In fact, their Hershey’s brand cream was typically freezer burned, and had chunks of ice thrown throughout each scoop.  The only benefit to this Hershey’s brand ice cream was that the store was open 24/7, whereas Bruster’s closed at 10pm. So for the late night ice cream craving, one had to settle for a less appetizing scoop.

I didn’t realize how much ice cream meant to people until I started working at Bruster’s.  I, like every other girl I know, LOVE ice cream. Sometimes, I just crave a big brownie sundae with extra hot fudge and extra whipped cream. At Bruster’s, that was one of our specialties.

Anyway, one night I was working and an elderly couple came up to my window. I recall that one ordered butter pecan, and the other ordered white house (a vanilla ice cream with whole maraschino cherries mixed throughout). In the ice cream world, these were flavors for older people. Most kids chose Oreo, cotton candy, or cookie dough. Young people got peanut butter puddles, a milkshake, or some kind of sundae. Middle aged-people ordered something like chocolate raspberry truffle, almond coconut, or coffee chocolate chip.

These ice cream stereotypes truly never failed. Occasionally someone would order something outside of their “zone,” and I would always instinctively, ask “are you sure you don’t want a taste first?” After their taste test, the adventurous order-er would usually change his or her mind.

Anyway, after serving the older couple their ice cream on cake cones (another sign of an elderly customer, I went back to helping the other customers in the huge line outside my window.  About twenty minutes went by when the crowd died down, I got a knock on my window. I opened up, and it was the elderly man and woman.  They went on to tell me that their ice cream cone was the best they had ever tasted, and they swore it was because of me.  I assured them that I had nothing to do with making the ice cream, and was only there to scoop it. Unwillingly taking my response, the older man gave me two one-dollar bills, and told me I deserved it. I repeatedly told him I did not need a tip, but he persisted, and the couple left.

After reflecting on that experience, I know now that it wasn’t about if I made the ice cream or not, it was how I treated the customers.  My boss was a stickler for having a good personality and always being “made up” before coming to work.

I think that giving someone a smile with their ice cream cone can make their experience even more delicious.