Blast from the Past - Farrell's Ice Cream

So the cold of November hasn't scared me away from an ice cream parlor birthday party. Silver Diner and The Cheesecake Factory sounded too run-of-the-mill.

Then my ultra-creative brain started thinking...
Google Maps: Business Search: ice cream near Arlington, VA
Cold Stone, Baskin Robbins, yeah, yeah, those places didn't really do well to my ears... I wanted something like Friendly's, but friendlier.
Moorenko's! Oh yeah! (hormone-free ice cream) Moorenko's in McLean...
They'll host or cater, and they'll make up any concoction you can describe... they'll even do frozen margaritas. I liked the sound of that.
So... my gears got going... ok, what does any concoction mean to me?
Standard Ice Cream Novelties:

• hot fudge sundae
• banana split
• scoop in a bowl
• ice cream sandwich
• shake or malt or float

None of those were satisfying my taste for adventure. Then I remembered going to Farrell's for some of my friends' birthday parties as a kid. And the only word I could associate with Farrell's was "The Volcano" ... I didn't remember what it was, but I just remember it being a mountain of ice cream that not even a standard-size Girl Scout troop could finish.

Farrell's... there's gotta be a little Farrell's in everyone ... the part that pines for old-time newspaper ads selling Model-T's for $75 and bushels of apples for $3... or the part that just craves a perfectly toasted hot dog split down the middle... or the sundaes they give you awards for finishing. So I did a little background, since I figured Farrell's was a long-lost dream. It turns out there are a few in Hawaii and one or two in California.

The Volcano - an erruption of hot fudge on 30 scoops of vanilla ice cream... with a sparkler on top.




Or... go for the Zoo. Literally, it's a zoo. I have fond memories of the sirens, whistles and drum that screeched around the restaurant announcing the emergency delivery of a very large, very zany combination of ice cream to someone's table. Two servers brought it out over their shoulders on a gurney!
There you have it. The Zoo going off to another lucky table :)

For at least one of my childhood birthday parties, my wonderful mother made ice cream clowns. These were a happy thawt guaranteed! So I'm still debating as to whether I have my guests experience the Zoo and Volcano, or the clowns, or just do the good old order-your-own.

By the way, if you're in the mood for a little ice cream (I've been talking about it for this whole post!) ... play the virtual cone game! It's a scrumptious adventure.