I recently took my son on a little road trip to Columbus and knew after watching "The Best Thing I Ever Ate" on the Food Network that I had to stop by Jeni's Splendid Ice Creams to sample their wonderful wares.
Firstly and very importantly, upon entering Jeni's Grandview location we were warmly greeted and asked if we had ever had the pleasure of sampling their many flavors, namely their signature Salty Caramel or the Queen City Cayenne (which was the above mentioned feature on one of my favorite shows). The depth of flavors these ice creams boast are unfathomable and jaw dropping to put it lightly. The Salty Caramel is heavenly sweet and salty perfection. The Queen City Cayenne is a chasm of deep dark chocolate with a feisty finish of heat that can only be cayenne pepper. The Honey Vanilla Bean was innocent, subtle and pure--the perfect pick for the ice cream purists among us. Bangkok Peanut took me back to my first plate of Pad Thai at Johnny Mango in Cleveland. I've tried them all....well most of them. As I finished my floral, earthy scoop of Wildberry Lavender I wanted more. I ordered several pints to take home with me which Jeni's happily packed in a cooler with dry ice; (apparently this is a common request/occurrence). Since my visit to Columbus I have discovered that my new favorite ice cream is now sold at DeVitis' Italian Market in North Hill. They even take requests! Those of you that are not from this area have not been forgotten....you can order yours online at www.jenisicecreams.com .
