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5 Places to Get Ice Cream Right Now

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Jason Farris

Head YES man at FresYes.com
I grew up in Fresno. Relaxed in its calm breezes, listened with my dad to the crack of the bat at little league baseball games when I was a kid and now take my son to do the same at minor league games. I broadened my mind at its schools (I went to high school right here at San Joaquin Memorial, and to college at Fresno State!) I love that if I drive for two hours in one direction, I can be in the mountains. For two hours in another, luxuriating on a California beach. I can enjoy the cosmopolitan atmosphere of San Francisco or Los Angeles, but still be able to come home to relaxation, calm, and quiet.

I love where I live, and I also love what I do. I'm lucky to be able to work in a profession in which I get to build relationships; one that has me meeting new people each and every day and helping them to build new lives in my beloved city. I'm lucky enough to work in a profession in which I can marry cutting-edge technologies and marketing techniques to good, old-fashioned, nose-to-the-grindstone work. I am lucky enough to work in a profession that allows me to work as an advocate for my clients; to use every tool at my disposal to get a job done well for them, and with as little stress and expense as possible.

I love my city. I love my job. One inspires my excellence for the other.

Fresno? I say FresYES

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Last week, we told you about Roll Me Some Artisanal Ice Cream, and it just reminded me how many great places there are to get ice cream — and other frozen treats — in the Fresno area.

Roll Me Some is currently a pop-up with plans to open a store front in downtown Fresno soon, but in the meantime, here are five places open now where you can satisfy your cool, sweet cravings.

1. Ampersand Ice Cream

Located at Weldon and Echo in the Fresno High area, locally owned Ampersand is known for creative flavors and for hosting neighborhood events. Look for unique concoctions like Peanut Butter Caramel Bacon, Honeycomb, and Strawberry Balsamic, along with old favorites like Mint Chip and Rocky Road. And follow Ampersand on Facebook to see what events it has lined up.

Details:
Open 7 days a week, noon to 11 p.m.
1940 N. Echo Ave.
Fresno, CA 93704
559-264-8000

2. Creamistry

Creamistry is a franchise with locations throughout California and Arizona; its Clovis location opened in July of 2016. Creamistry’s claim to fame is that it specializes in fresh, made-to-order ice cream using liquid nitrogen. That’s right — they freeze the ice cream right in front of you. Also, the store has a very extensive menu. Follow Creamistry on Facebook.

Details:
Open Mon-Thurs noon – 10 p.m. | Fri-Sat noon – 11 p.m. | Sun noon – 9 p.m.
635 West Herndon Ave. Ste 150
Clovis, CA 93612
559-575-8454

get ice cream

Bon Goût Gelato Lounge serves a variety of fresh flavors

3. Bon Goût Gelato Lounge

Javier Sara opened Bon Goût Gelato Lounge on the northwest corner of Willow and Nees in northeast Fresno late last year. Sara, who is from Venezuela, was previously a civil engineer, but now he spends his time creating a variety of fresh gelato flavors — some traditional, some experimental. Since opening, Sara has taken his ice cream on the road; he recently started mobile dessert catering. Find Bon Goût on Facebook here.

Details:
Open Mon-Wed & Sun 11 a.m. – 9 p.m. | Fri-Sat 11 a.m. – 10 p.m.
2950 E Nees Ave. Ste 105
Fresno, CA 93720
(559) 575-8500

4. La Reyna de Michoacan Paleteria & Neveria

Unlike other stores on this list, La Reyna is not open year-round — and that’s what it makes it so special. That, and its paletas of course, which are some of the most sought-after treats in Fresno. You can find a rich variety of paletas here, but the one that seems to get the most attention is strawberries and cream. There is also a selection of ice cream and yogurt available. Find La Reyna de Michoacan on Yelp.

Details:
Open Mon-Wed 11 a.m. – 8 p.m. | Thurs-Sun 11 a.m. – 9 p.m.
720 E. Belmont Ave.
Fresno, CA 93701
(559) 485-3013

5. Sno Cafe Food Truck

Sno Cafe is a family-owned food truck owned by Mama Denise and her two daughters, Stacey and Sarah. The family serves their take on traditional New Orleans-style “snoballs” — shaved ice, but turned up. Their latest is a key lime pie snoball, which you basically have to see to believe. Check Sno Cafe’s website to see where they’ll pop up next.

 

With temps in the high 90s, you’ll be thankful for this list. Make sure to add your favorite ice cream spot to the comments below.

Bon Goût Gelato Goes Mobile with New Dessert Catering Services

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Joanne Lui

Joanne Lui is a social media and fashion addict who has lived in Fresno since she was four, and sometimes accidentally says she was born and raised in Fresno. She was actually born in Hong Kong. She loves shopping and the St. Louis Cardinals, and is equally likely to be found in heels or a baseball cap - sometimes both. She blogs about designer bargain hunting and charitable fashion companies at www.shoesoffmyfeet.com
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Good ol’ Fresno. It’s May, and we’re already climbing toward triple-digit temperatures! The good news is, that means it’s officially frozen treat weather!

We’re also heading into prime party season: graduations, barbecues, weddings, etc. If you’re planning a party or large gathering of any sort over the next few months, you should definitely consider our latest find: catering by Bon Goût Gelato Lounge.

bon gout catering

I wrote about Bon Goût not long after it opened a few months ago. It serves homemade gelato, crepes, and other goodies in a café on Willow and Nees avenues in Fresno. Despite launching in the dead of winter, Bon Goût has met with success and rave reviews. Now they’ve taken their innovative creations mobile with catering carts.

Owner Javier Sara brought a cart to a recent agent meeting at FresYes Realty, and every person who tried the gelato was blown away. Javier brought two flavors: lemon basil and chocolate hazelnut with stout beer. The beer was from local brewer Tioga-Sequoia Brewing Co.

bon gout catering

Chocolate hazelnut stout gelato over lemon basil gelato.

Prices start at $250 for two-hour service with 50 servings and two flavors. If you want more than 70 servings, Bon Goût can double the number of carts and add more flavors.

The coolest part about getting your dessert catered by Bon Goût is that you can even work with the team to create unique flavors just for your event. The chocolate hazelnut stout gelato we tasted, for example, was custom-made for Tioga-Sequoia. This comes at an extra cost, of course, but the possibilities are endless.

“We can prepare any kind of flavor,” Javier said. “We can prepare the classic flavors like strawberry, vanilla, chocolate. Or some flavors like beer, wine. … We can make gelato [with] no sugar added or we can prepare vegan options. We can prepare vegetable gelato.”

Yes, vegetable gelato! This came at the suggestion of a trainer at a gym opening Bon Goût was hired to cater. So Javier made a green mix with spinach, celery, and cucumber, and he also created an energy gelato with oranges, carrots, and beets. You can now try the green mix flavor in the store.

bon gout catering

Bon Goût Gelato Lounge owner Javier Sara serves gelato at the FresYes office.

Hiring Bon Goût to cater your party isn’t the only way you can create a new gelato flavor, though. Javier loves taking customer suggestions at the café. He estimates that a third of the 30 flavors in the shop were customer suggestions, including one of my personal favorites, the honey lavender. He also takes inspiration from the seasons. Right now, he’s offering several berry flavors.

While you’re at Bon Goût, be sure to check out some of the other delicious things they have to offer, including Lanna Coffee, cakes, and savory or sweet crepes and panini.

To find out more information about hiring Bon Goût for your next party, visit their Facebook or website.

Gelato in Winter? Bon Goût Gelato Lounge is Worth It

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Joanne Lui

Joanne Lui is a social media and fashion addict who has lived in Fresno since she was four, and sometimes accidentally says she was born and raised in Fresno. She was actually born in Hong Kong. She loves shopping and the St. Louis Cardinals, and is equally likely to be found in heels or a baseball cap - sometimes both. She blogs about designer bargain hunting and charitable fashion companies at www.shoesoffmyfeet.com
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I know you can’t believe I’m writing about gelato right now. It’s January, and we’re all Californians who don’t know how to handle these below-50 temperatures. But there’s a reason why Bon Goût Gelato Lounge recently posted about having a full house of customers in winter: It’s too good to wait for warmer temperatures to try it.

Bon Goût Gelato Lounge has a very cool vibe!

Gelato, for those of you who don’t know, is Italian ice cream. It’s less fluffy than traditional ice cream, and has fewer calories and less fat (a.k.a. dessert with less guilt)!

Bon Goût—which is French for “good taste”—opened on the northwest corner of Willow and Nees in Fresno several months ago. The lounge has a wide range of gelato flavors, from traditional to experimental, all made in-house by owner Javier Sara. Sara and his wife came to Fresno in 2014 to escape communism in their home country of Venezuela.

“I left everything … to start from zero here,” says Sara, who was previously a civil engineer.

It’s clear that Sara puts a lot of thought and care into developing his flavors. I went into my visit excited, and it exceeded my expectations. I got the honey lavender, which was incredible. My family went for the more classic pistachio and Oreo flavors, which were also yummy, as were the samples of lemon basil, whiskey cream, and waffle caramel that I tried. Bon Goût also has seasonal offerings, which included gingerbread, rum raisin, and eggnog when we were there. Basically, you can’t go wrong with any of these.

“We use real fruits and natural pastes to give the most rich and healthy flavor to our finished product,” Sara told me.

From left: honey lavender, pistachio, and Oreo gelato.

While we went the cup route, there’s a whole host of gelato delivery systems to choose from. You can have your frozen goodness in a shake, a cone, or even on top of cappuccino. You can also have it with other fresh, homemade desserts like waffles, brownies, and crepes. Bon Goût also serves gelato inside slices of cake, and will even make custom gelato cakes for your special occasions!

For those who don’t have a sweet tooth, I should backtrack and say that we actually started our visit with dinner at Bon Goût—yes, dinner! The lounge serves fresh-made paninis and crepes, and as a longtime savory crepe fan, I was happy to try all of their offerings. I recommend the beef crepe in particular. The steak was surprisingly tender and flavorful!

Bon Goût’s savory crepes are definitely worth a try!

“The big difference is, we are not just a dessert place,” Sara says. “We serve savory options like crepes, salads, paninis, beverages, natural juices made with fresh fruits, [and] coffees, so a customer can get breakfast, brunch, lunch, dinner or dessert in the same place, with a chill ambiance and great customer service.”

If you’re planning to check out Bon Goût Gelato Lounge, you should snag one of several deals available online before you go, like Yelp’s deal: $9 for a voucher worth $12. Or if you’re already a fan like me, the best way to go may be Groupon: for $12, you can get three $8 vouchers to use at separate times.

To find out more about Bon Goût Gelato Lounge and everything they offer, you can check them out on Facebook, Instagram or their website.