Dutch Dreams Café
78 Vaughan Road (just North of St. Clair, 1 light west of Bathurst)
T: 416-656-6959
Summer: 12:00pm – 1:00am
Winter: 5pm – 11pm

It was a rarity that all four of us were together during the day in downtown Toronto. So rather than go our separate ways, we decided to take advantage of the situation and go somewhere where we could all enjoy. My brother recommended we go to “this really good ice cream shop.” And really, that’s all he needed to say to persuade us all.

It wasn’t until we got there that I realized that this so called Dutch Dreams, is the same place that I had read about in the Japanese newspaper just the other day. I was excited the moment I found this out. Parking was a challenge as they don’t really offer it in the immediate vicinity. I had to drive a block or two up north to a residential street. We then made our trek down to 78 Vaughan Rd.

As soon as I opened the door, that sweet scent of heaven came dashing towards me in full force. Only this time it was bearable, and quite pleasant. The very narrow store took me by surprise. But that didn’t last very long as I was then entranced by the myriad of ice cream cone selections they had on display to my right. These gourmet cones are just plain awesome. Describing the shear selection just doesn’t do it justice. From m&m covered cones to peanuts to Skor crunch cones and my personal favourite, the Owie brownie cone, this place had it all for any confection lover.

Then came choosing the ice cream flavour. At first I didn’t know where to look as I couldn’t really get a good glimpse of all the flavours in the fridge. So I opted for the sign on top. Listing flavour after flavour, I had no idea what to get. But then my selection slowly dawned on me. Peaches and passionfruit, and Dutch chocolate. Yeah, that’s right. I’ll have two scoops today!

To my dismay neither of those flavours were available that day. They were either sold out or too soft or just not in. I had to choose quick as the line was building slowly behind me. I queried about the Mocha almond fudge and they didn’t know if that was available. Fortunately another helper chimed in and said it was available over there. So with that, I coupled it with Espresso ice cream. Both chocolatey good, inside a chocolatey fabulous waffle cone.

Each cone comes complete with complimentary whipped cream and fruits. I opted just for the latter. After paying for it and stepping out of the store, it was pure bliss as I tried hard to save my ice cream from melting on me. They give you a spoon inside your ice cream to help you out too, which came in handy as it wasn’t very long before it started melting on my hand.

I couldn’t keep up. Drip after drip, I was losing precious ice cream to my hand, which didn’t need it at all. I finished off the strawberry and pineapple slices on top (both were fresh and tasty), and then attacked the espresso ice cream on top. Delicious. Smooth, flavourful, and surprisingly refreshing. Yes, this ice cream was actually quite refreshing. Not overly creamy or rich in flavour, but just ice, cold, refreshing ice cream. It was a first for me and I loved it. By the time I got to the mocha almond fudge, my right hand was covered with espresso drippings. I didn’t care though. I was enjoying every bite I had.

The mocha almond fudge was just pure deliciousness all over again. And to top things off, this Owie brownie cone, that actually had chunks of brownie stuck on the side of the waffle cone by melted chocolate, was simply to die for. I swear I have never had a better waffle cone in my life. The chunks were delicious, the chocolate great, and the waffle cone itself was oh so very good.

This combination would do justice to any chocolate lover out there. It was an incredible treat to have in the middle of the day. Of course all this goodness does come with a price. 3 gourmet cones, 2 with double scoops and one with a single scoop, totaled $18.99 including all taxes. Wow!

Yes, indeed it was wow. But really, doesn’t everybody deserve to treat themselves once in a while? Yeah, you bet you do! I don’t remember ever enjoying an ice cream cone like this in my recent memory.

Go there, pick your cone, your flavour, and topping, then eat your heart out, baby!