Rita’s Italian Ice

The first Rita’s ever, so conveniently situated right outside my quiet little neighborhood. I’m actually not a huge water ice fan by any means, but occasionally I crave a gelati and when I decide to indulge, they deliver. The girls are always extremely friendly and quick on their feet to bust through the crazy lines that occasionally happen here. I’ve frequented a little more this summer in result of the new «blood orange» water ice they have on tap. That mixed with the vanilla (now) soft-​serve, is heaven.
Parking is limited, but it’s mostly locals walking over from the neighborhood. You can always grab a quick spot on the street or the lot next to it!

Great water ice. Please bring back Grape water ice. I do miss the Gold train arcade which used to be at this location in the 1980’s

I love Rita’s, although I do bemoan the fact that the portion sizes have shrunk over the years while the prices have gone up. And does anyone else remember getting huge chunks of frozen fruit in their water ice back when Rita’s was still a new chain? Now you’re lucky to find a speck of fruit in your entire cup.
Anyway, that said, I usually go to the Rita’s on Academy Road in the Acme shopping center than the one on Bristol Pike/​Route 13, despite the fact that the Bristol Pike one is closer. The reason is that there are only a few parking spots, and it is very, very difficult to get back out of their lot and onto Bristol Pike, especially if you’re turning left to head back into Philly. It’s best to go on off hours when people are in work (and not at lunch time or around 3 p.m. when schools let out). But Bristol Pike is always busy, so good luck if you go and need to make a left to get home!