McConnell’s Fine Ice Creams

I got a single scoop (aka two scoops): Vanilla on the bottom and Whiskey Pralines on Top. I love that they give such a heavy portion, and they still let you sample the ice cream.
It is nestled in Grand Central market. If I knew more people who had the same level of love for ice cream as I do, I would go there with them and order scoops of all their different flavors.

I came here after brunch and the line wasn’t toooo bad. They let you sample the flavors before you choose and they actually give you a good amount of samples to try. Yumm. I ended up ordering the cookies n cream and earl grey, but the other flavors were amazing as well. Can’t wait to try the other flavors!

Such delicious ice cream!!!
Located in the grand central market, McConnells is ice cream heaven :)
They have so many unique flavors– I tried the earl grey tea with biscuit, dark Java chip, and sweet cream! They were all so yummy and full of flavor but my favorite hands down was the earl grey!
They even have an earl grey float– you choose any flavor ice cream and they pour in earl grey tea. The worker suggested pairing it with the sweet cream ice cream so that’ll definitely be what I get next time!
A single scoop is very generous and you can mix 2 flavors which is awesome!

Decent ice cream. Pleasant staff.
San Francisco’s Mitchell’s Ice Cream is still the best.

Sometimes people can be complete assholes… What do I mean? Well… I get angry when people act like assholes and eat my McConnell’s ice cream… Because it’s MINE. See? MINE!
I am picky about my ice cream, thus you can imagine the geek squeal that may have (totally) escaped my lips when I found it in a market near my second home. I didn’t ask questions. I grabbed. So guy tried to reach in to make his choice before I was finished. He may have backed away, quickly, once he discovered I’ve spent so much time with my Sirius puppy that I occasionally lapse in to speaking like him too…
Why did you need to know this? Because, um… McConnell’s is awesome. Duh. Just keep getting it here as I don’t fear all out war when someone else likes my favourite flavours. You’re welcome. :)

I’m standing in line as I write this review. I haven’t even tasted their ice cream yet but this huge line can’t all be a lie, right?
I decided to write this review immediately, because I just witnessed such an awesome display of customer service. One of the workers from the Tacos spot across the way came by while on his break. He spoke to Matt and with a pretty heavy accent said «hey man, I don’t have much time left on my break and you guys have a huge line, but is there any way you can help me out.» Matt said «absolutely.» He went over and grabbed a small cup of what was requested and brought it over. The guy asked, «how much?» And Matt replied, «no worries man it’s on us.» The guy was taken aback and said, «thank you, but are you sure?» It was for sure. They had a little friendly conversation afterwards and shook hands. To me that was so beautiful! I’m a huge fan of seeing interracial couples, friends, etc. With the media consistently showing people segregation of beliefs, Trump bashing immigrants, and black people being shot all the time it’s nice to see that there are pockets of fresh air in this country. I’m so happy to have seen this display of kindness. No discrimination, we are all human. Much love, y’all.

Artisanal Santa Barbara ice cream shop in Grand central market. Stopped by here after lunch to get some dessert. There always seems to be a line but it’s never too bad. Also, they let you try samples of the ice cream!
I had one of the flights (3 scoops of different flavors which was ~ $ 6) which I loved because I’m super indecisive and can never just choose one flavor so this was the perfect option for me. I had the Turkish coffee, whisky pecan praline and the Rose milk boysenberry jam? I can’t remember what the last flavor was but I swear I liked it! All the flavors were super yummy and creamy.
My friend ordered a customized float and enjoyed that as well. They also make ice cream cookie sandwiches if you’re into that. And they make fresh waffle cones/​bowls right in front of you! It smells so good whenever they do this! Either way, you can’t go wrong with a little bit of ice cream!

I scream you scream we all scream for inexplicable, astonishing, creamy, sweet cold ice cream. The kind that makes one forget he or she is an adult for awhile and transports us back to our childhood fantasies, when everything was possible like reaching the farthest stars, flying among the clouds, or perched high on a crescent moon! McConnells’s ice cream does just that. It’s an enjoyable and tasty experience.
Oh hurahhh!!! I love ice cream parlors when you can clearly see the ice cold mountain of creamy, multi-​flavored orbs of deliciousness and mouthwatering goodness that’s about to give me a freezer burn! Ha ha
The concoction I had was the spilt a delicious take on a banana split. It had two scoops of the tastiest vanilla and strawberry I have ever had. You can taste the fresh strawberries that are delightfully sweet, ripe and juicy. The intoxicatingly simplicity of The vanilla ice cream sweetens your entire mouth! Mixed with fresh bananas, roasted salted almonds, homemade fudge, topped with sweet fluffy clouds of whip cream, and Carmel. The combination of the salted almonds, gooey fudge and ice cream is pleasure for your mouth that will transport one back to Willy Wonkas Chocolate factory! Ha ha it’s so good you have to try it!
The sweet aroma of McConnells’s ice cream will entice all your sweet senses. It comes in a good size foam cup and when You poke it with a spoon, You’ll learn that it has a thick density. scoop a small portion of this extraordinary ice cream and let it bring you pleasure like only ice cream can ja ja
My Mexican stomach is still happy!!! Viva la Raza!

Oh McConnell’s…you so fine.
* GET — Strawberry = soooo good here
* GET — Turkish coffee = smooth and creamy
* GET — Marionberries w/​Lemon = omg that citrus-​fresh after taste? Win.
* GET — Vanilla Bean = b/​c sometimes classics are just the way to go
* YES — Consistently delicious ice cream (this is 3^rd place I’ve had it)
* YES — They have no preservatives, fillers or additives
* YES — Friendly service
* YES — Counter purchase; at GCM, tables are in main seating areas, few in the vendor’s stand
* FYI — GCM has its own parking lot
* FYI — Accepts credit cards
Can I have oh-​so-​fine ice cream everyday? Yes, you say? Let’s go.

The line at McConnell’s Fine Ice Cream wrapped around the stand which led us past the station where they were making fresh cones before our eyes and nose. It took nearly 15 min which gave us time to consider their menu and our flavor options.
Given the reasonable size of their waffle cones, I couldn’t resist. As for flavors, I went with their limited edition flavor — Peanut Butter & Jam, and the Churros Con Leche for the 2^nd scoop of a single for $ 4.75, of which I preferred the latter Their scoops are not oversized. The waffle cone was an extra buck.

I’m so glad I didn’t listen to the voice in my head reminding me about the Carmela ice cream I had eaten the day before and the Coolhaus ice cream I had in my freezer… There’s no such thing as too much ice cream!
I had a scoop of burnt caramel apple (seasonal flavor, along with PB&J) and a scoop of whiskey praline. You can combine two flavors in a small, and the portion was pretty generous.
The employees were impossibly nice and friendly in a super genuine way. Like at any good ice cream place, they’re forthcoming with the samples and skilled at scooping. The guy helping me even asked which flavor I wanted on the top of the cone!
McConnell’s is definitely a must try if you’re at Grand Central Market. One taco from Tacos Tumbras a Tomas and a small scoop here made the perfect lunch that didn’t completely break the bank.

Not a day goes by that I’m not tempted by one of their alluring ice cream food porn enticements on Instagram.
I’m super excited to visit them whenever I’m at Grand Central Market. I may be starving for food but I always head straight to McConnell’s to «casually» stroll by the case and check out the flavors of the day.
McConnell uses local ingredients to create sophisticated flavors. An ice cream sampling experience here can be compared to sampling wine. They encourage you to taste the flavors from light to bold. If you ask to sample a rich chocolatey flavor and then go to a lemon sorbet the nuances of the lighter flavor will understandably be lost. The well informed staff will help guide you as they did me.

++ Stop #2 in my jury duty food adventures ++
While I’m here, might as well indulge! McConnell’s makes all their ice cream from scratch, without preservatives, and using local ingredients. The end result? Delicious, high quality ice cream with a subtle Californian influence. You will not be disappointed by the flavors they offer. Trust, I sampled a lot and all of them were good.
I went with a SINGLE ($ 4.75), which is technically a double… since they let you choose two flavors. I finally settled on CHURROS CON LECHE and SEA SALT CREAM AND COOKIES. Both were winners for me, but of course that all depends on your own preference. All of them are super creamy and taste unique. They don’t have any gimmicky flavors, but who needs that when they’ve got all this natural, fresh goodness going on?
Food: 5, Service: 3, Environment: 4, Price: 2

I think I’m leaning towards giving a lesser star review due to comparison to McConnell’s in Santa Barbara so please keep that in mind! Came here with a friend around 8:30 pm before Grand Central Market closed! I had been blown away by McConbell’s in Santa Barbara so maybe I had too high expectations coming in.
A decent flavor selection (maybe 10 – 12?) but much less than in Santa Barbara. The ice cream was delicious as usual, and I ordered the single scoop (2 flavors) in a waffle cone which came to around $ 6. I ordered the lemon and marionbarries and the sea salt and cookies! Really liked both flavors but the waffle cone tasted a little stale.
The scoops were pretty average/​small. Definitely much smaller than the portions you’d get up in Santa Barbara. Parking for Grand Central Market is pretty difficult too. Don’t know if I’d come back to this specific location again.

Meh — not worth it. This was one of the only dessert places inside Grand Central Market and I was craving some ice cream.
For $ 4.75 you get a choice of 2 flavors. I sampled various flavors and nothing stood out that much to me but I ended up getting the churro con leche and java coffee in a waffle cone (extra $ 1).
Both my boyfriend and I quickly got tired of our ice creams and the waffle cone fell apart way too easily resulting in a messy experience. Overpriced ice cream for sure

Located inside Grand Central Market.
Ice Cream tastes exactly like the Santa Barbara locations but just not as many choices.
Service was friendly. I got to try a few samples. They do take credit card.
Single Scoop — $ 4.75 — Sea Salt Cream & Cookies, lightly salted vanilla ice cream with cookie dough bits inside, so good! Whiskey & Pecan Pralines, like your typical pecan pralines ice cream, couldn’t taste the whiskey flavor.

Went on a Saturday around noontime after visiting The Broad and there wasn’t a line (eggslut’s line was literally a mile long.) Great! we took our sweet time tasting each flavor. The ladies behind the counter were awesome! We tasted and tasted and tasted and they never broke a sweat… that is, until the crazy line formed behind us ;)
Each «cup» of ice cream comes with either two flavors or you can have two scoops of one flavor. Your choice. I chose the Salted Caramel Chip and Sweet Cream. I began with the sweet cream and it was heavenly creamy… lightly sweetened. I felt good eating it… on the bottom was the salted caramel which was the perfect amount of creamy saltiness, but when I got halfway, the dark chocolate chips and sweetness got to me and I tossed it… I also tried the Churros Con Leche and the cinnamon flavor was definitely there. almost like you are eating an airy churro lols.
The ice cream sizing is perfect… not too much where it overloads you. two small scoops ;)

Located in the Grand Central Market, McConnell’s offers amazing ice cream & shakes.
All waffle cones, sauces and topping are home-​made!
Came here during lunch hours on a Sunday and the wait wasn’t bad — maybe around 10 minutes.
Single scoop comes with up to 2 flavors. I got the pink lemonade sorbet, which was sweet and sour, and was perfect for this hot California weather.
I tried some of my friends, which she got the Turkish coffee and cookies and cream. These flavors were also really yummy and creamy.
Really good ice cream, and with a very reasonable price too.

Had a great day out at grand central market with my son and we finished up our day with a trio of ice cream scoops from McConnel’s.
TRIO SAMPLER
Now, I’m no so-​called «iced cream» connoisseur (as Mr. Burns would say) but it was all damn tasty.
Pro tip for any new parents on Unilocal.Buy your kid some gawdamn ice cream for those extra bonus parent points… it really ain’t that fu*king difficult… trust me, if my dumbass can do it… so can you.

1, 2, 3, 4… I DECLARE AN… ICE CREAM CRAWL!!!
DAY 3, STOP 1
BACKSTORY: (Repeated on all ice cream crawl reviews. If you’ve read it once, no need to read it 20+ times :-p)
Thanks to social media and their ways to entice peeps, like me, to get out and about town, I recently succumbed to their power of suggestion and checked out ice cream parlors in the LA area. The goal? The goal was not to find the best ice cream parlor, nor the worst, and to see what was out there, instead the goal was to have a frame of reference when peeps or fellow Unilocalers ask, suggest, or check into places.
Here we go, here we go again, with «armed with an appetite and not afraid to use it»!!!
PARKING:
Metered street parking
Paid parking lots nearby
INTERIOR:
Located inside DownTown LA’s Central Market, this Santa Barbara native doesn’t have much of an interior, more of a space, but they have made their space their own with bright white subway tile to brighten up the market which supports the McConnell’s signature logo signage.
CUSTOMER SERVICE:
Both cohort and I were ready to get our scoop on and the fine young girls workin’ behind the ice cream counter were patiently waiting to dish it out.
ORDERED:
Cohort ordered a split scoop of Churros con Leche and Summer Fruit cobbler, while I ordered Salted Caramel Chip. Wow!!! McConnell’s really set the bar high for the day. Not only were our scoops velvety smooth and creamy, but lusciously flavorful with the right amount ingredients to gently wake up the taste buds and get them startin’ their day doin’ the happy dance.
IN A SCOOP:
It was an early Saturday sunny morning when cohort and I set out on day three of our ice cream crawl. With lots of parlors to hit and miles to drive, starting in DTLA early, before all the traffreak was a must. Having said that, parking was easy peasy, service was quick and we were on our way in no time with wonderful flows of cream sliding down into our tummies.
#LAICECREAMCRAWL