Hunting Down the Best Ice Cream Spots in North Canton

On the way to the best foods in Stark County, the long lines at local ice cream places have been relatively unrecognized. Until now, that is. North Canton Patch has compiled the hottest list of the coolest ice cream stops in North Canton starting on the north end of town.

RJ Scoops

RJ Scoops, at 7944 Cleveland Ave. NW, has been a lot of fun for the new owners, Rob and Jeri Gipson. They purchased the ice cream stand more than two years ago and have added many new ice cream flavors and hot food.

“Our biggest seller is the no-sugar-added, fat-free frozen yogurt,” Rob Gipson said.

“We have added a full grill service this year and we’ve been told that our third-pound black angus burger is better than many of the big burger places in town. It helps that we use all fresh, high-quality ingredients for all of our products.”

In addition to the frozen yogurt, RJ Scoops offers 21 flavors of ice cream, including a few hard-to-find flavors such as pistachio nut and their newly added red velvet cake with dark red ice cream and white swirls with chunks of cake. They also offer fried pickles, coneys and Philly cheesesteaks. 

Another best-seller is the "bow-wow bowls" for the canine sweet tooth in the family. It has one scoop of vanilla ice cream in a cup with a dog biscuit on top, then it gets frozen, which helps makes it last longer for the family pets and gives the dog owner time to eat their own cool treat.

RJ Scoops is open March through October. Their regular summer hours are 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. during the week and 1 p.m. to 10 p.m. on Saturdays and Sundays. Hours differ for spring and early fall. Scoops plans to have several summer events this year, including a cruise-in with hot rod cars and an outdoor fish fry.

Swensons at 1558 North Main Street is known for their Galley Boy, single-, double-, quarter- and half-pound hamburgers. Nonetheless, those looking for a cool treat can find a slew of menu selections at the popular drive-in restaurant. They offer sundaes, milkshakes, malts, floats, phosphates and a few unique options such as the mint whip and California and Florida drinks.

The milkshakes come in 18 flavors and are hand mixed. Those ordering a mint whip will get a refreshing drink made of ice cream mixed with mint syrup and ginger ale. The California is grape flavoring mixed with ginger ale and the Florida is orange and ginger ale with a twist of lemon.

“Swensons started in 1934 in West Akron as a drive-in restaurant with the servers coming to the customer’s car, and that’s what we are today,” said Nick Malorni, senior manager at Swensons.

The latest cool treats added to the Swensons menu include Sidekicks, which is a plastic cup packed with frozen fruit juice, Xangos, a cheesecake rolled and frozen in a tortilla shell that gets deep fried and topped off with fruit toppings. And they offer fruit smoothies and flavored iced coffees.

Swensons is open year round with summer hours 11 a.m. to noon and Fridays and Saturdays until 1:30 p.m. Winter, spring and fall hours differ.

Dairy Queen, at 1664 N. Main Street, has the well-known Blizzard along with milkshakes, sundaes, Dilly Bars, DQ ice cream sandwiches, ice cream cones and dipped cones. They also offer hot dogs, chicken sandwiches and fish sandwiches, among other items.

Another well-known DQ treat? How about ice cream cakes with custom writing and photos on top.

“We sell 300 Blizzards a day and about 20 cakes a day,” said Marsha Houvig, owner.

A new addition is the Mini-Blizzard for those folks who still want an ice cream treat but don’t want a full-size Blizzard. The Mini-Blizzard costs less but tastes just as great. This summer, DQ announces several new Blizzard flavors, including Swiss Almond Crunch and Triple Chocoholic. Plus, in early May, the company introduced a new version of its milkshakes with whipped cream and a cherry on top.

“Beginning May 1, DQ’s milkshakes will receive the No. 1-rated best milkshakes by Zagat’s, which is a firm that rates the fast food restaurants,” Houvig said.

There is a drive-up window and indoor and outdoor seating. They are open Mondays through Thursdays, 11 a.m. to 9:30 p.m., Fridays and Saturdays until 10 p.m. and Sundays, 11:30 a.m. to 9:30 p.m.

Up next

Because the hottest list of coolest treats is as long as the line to any of these yummy  stops, we have to use a couple of articles to preview the hot spots. The next list (coming next week) will include Ro’s, Milk & Honey and a few others.