Beach Bums Ice Cream

This is the craziest little place I’ve ever been. An Asian couple running a little sandwich shop that also serves ice cream just off the Cross Street Market in Baltimore.
I’ve gotta say. .. they might have the best sandwiches on the planet. Seriously GREAT sandwiches! Their menu is insane. Dozens of specialty sandwiches with interesting names.
I was in Baltimore for three months on business and I probably ate here twenty times. Often, I couldn’t decide between two of the specialty sandwiches so I’d order one to eat there and then order another to go.
Friendly owners, PHENOMENAL sandwiches, cool location near Cross Street Market (a short walk from the Inner Harbor)…
I can’t say enough good things about this place.

I can honestly say that their sandwiches and ice cream are both among the best I’ve ever had. No joke. I’m in paradise here. You have to come and try for yourself — fresh toppings, thick cuts of cheese, generous portions, and a mouthwatering pretzel roll. I swooned. Then I had the Guatemalan-​something ice cream. A-​shmazing. Plus, thoroughly friendly staff. A+ all around.

We stayed in Baltimore over a weekend and came here four days in a row for lunch. Got different sandwiches every day and ice cream and bing soo. The owner is wonderfully personable and very willing to help you! The sandwiches are a bit expensive, but they’re huge and –incredibly– delicious and come with chips so it’s totally worth it.

The sandwiches and the ice cream are delicious. The daily specials are the way to go. I only went once but after the good experience I had, I will definitely be back.

This review is only for the ice cream and the cookies, neither of which blew my socks off. The cookies were especially dry, but perhaps it was the bitter taste I still had in my mouth from having been told that I could not order my dish of ice cream with my credit card because it was under $ 5 (which is not really a legal move on the part of businesses, even though a lot of places try to implement it. They can REQUEST that you spend a minimum, but not enforce). I didn’t challenge it because it would take more effort to explain that this wasn’t really supposed to happen, so I ordered two cookies to at least put me close to the «$ 5-​minimum» thinking that I could make a little sundae for myself. I took a bite of one cookie: ddddrrrry. The Sahara pitied that cookie, it was so dry. I set it aside so I could throw it away. The second cookie? Better… but still dry. On par with the Sahara this time — no pity; they were equal mates. I didn’t understand. It wasn’t the end of the day or anything. This shouldn’t be.
Anyway, I gave up on the cookies I didn’t even really want to begin with and got to the star or my trip, my reason for stopping in: vanilla bean ice cream. The bowl was piled high (to my surprise since it was so inexpensive) and I quickly got to it! First spoonful: solid… nothing fancy, but nothing bad. The second: the same. The third: no change. still the same. I got half way through before I realized I was eating ice cream that was no better than what I could get at my neighborhood grocer’s and tossed the rest. And that isn’t a diss — it’s just fact. I mean, if I were hard up for some ice cream and within walking distance to Beach Bums, I would totally come back and order a dish or cone. I wouldn’t, however, come in with high expectations. When it comes to ice cream there, you get what you get — well, as long as you bring cash. Skip the cookies.
*note* Although I didn’t get the chance to get them because I had just eaten, I have to say that the sandwiches looked outstanding! The smoothies too! I will be sure to update my review when I try those out as well :)

I’ll admit it. I was hesitant, afraid even, of the tiny, non-​descript storefront crammed between a Subway and the shell of what used to be Dangerously Delicious Pies (now some kind of «novelty store»?. WTF Guess Baltimore needed a place to get it’s Whoopie cushions and blue mouth gum). That one warrants some further investigation, but I digress.
Beach Bums Ice Cream is as deceptive as its name. Sure, they serve ice cream. There are probably close to a dozen (give or take) different flavors in two freezers. But they are so much more than that to this hidden gem. So many times I’d walk by, not even giving them a chance. Even my wife, who had tried one of their sandwiches on a separate occasion, failed to convince me. I loko back and it’s only now that I realize how wrong I was.
Did I say sandwiches? Why yes I did. Beach Bums Ice Cream has one of the most creative sandwich lists in Baltimore, and it’s damn long. Dozens of sandwiches from which to choose and each with a name as great as its overstuffed, over-​the-​top ingredients. The last one I had, which also happened to be the special, was roast beef, smoked turkey, BLT, and horseradish mayo on a soft pretzel bun. Yeah, I know. They’ve got a sandwich called the Facebreaker. That alone should want to make you pay them a visit.
Friendly service, huge sandwich selection (hot and cold) and ice cream. Not a bad combination. Be prepared to wait, though. It seems like even on their busy days there’s only about three folks working and one pretty much stays at the register. They aren’t cheap, either. A typical sandwich will run you about $ 9 (comes with chips). The average person could easily split it into two meals, so if you average it out that’s actually pretty cheap.

Beach Bums has several things going for it: delicious overstuffed sandwiches, a MASSIVE menu that would require going there every day for six straight months to work your way through, and a really, really good ice cream selection. The staff is also really friendly.
Two half-​point deductions though. 1) It’s pricey. There are other cheaper and equally as good sandwich shops in Cross Street Market and the surrounding area. 2) They’re closed on Sundays, which is kind of silly considering a lot of people only indulge their ice cream cravings on weekends. The nearby Dunkin’ Donuts/​Baskin Robbins is always open if you’re in a crunch.

This place was adorable. There’s a great hand-​painted mural on the wall of a beach which is just so perfect. The owner works very long hours and served us well-​passed closing – but she wasn’t mean or rude about it at all. She was very nice, despite us being the pests. I asked if she came up with the flavors, which she agreed, yes, she does. And they have Tastycake chocolate cupcake ice cream. WHAT?! So good.

I’ve walked by this place numerous times and never realized they served stuff other than ice cream. Yea, this ice cream place also makes some damn fine sammiches. They had a special running today: jumbo shrimp salad with bacon, provolone, L, T, M on a sub roll with chips and a pickle. The sub was really good, with big pieces of fresh shrimp and nice and thick slices of bacon. For $ 10.95 it was kind of expensive but it was really good.
If I would have stoped there this place would have gotten 4 stars… but NOOOOO… I had to order the cream of crab soup too. I should have skipped on that. Don’t get me wrong, I like my cream of crab soup thick, but this was the consistency of pudding. Granted, it had bug pieces of crab meat in it, but the consistency was just too thick.
Nope, three stars it is. Stick to the sandwiches, skip the soups. Also, they ARE an ice cream place… but I haven’t had their ice cream so I can’t speak to that.